The transfixion of animation on the plastic is a worldwide phenomenon, and its consistent manifestation in the form of a dimunitive person brings up several social and psychological issues that must be adressed. The Plastic Gnome, often of the garden variety, maintains a ubiquitous presence across lawns and wholesaler shelves throughout civilization. These small plastic ‘persons’ (members/contributors of moral communities) coldly monitor our every moves; But why? Why do we subject our selves to the presence of these distorted human reflections? How, in fact, do they function?

The answer is complex and by no means conclusive. The human condition is ripe with frontiers where the imagined bleeds into the physical, to the point where it stradles two worlds at the same time. Gnomes exist at the point where the imagined is so powerful that it demands our desire for tangibility. Gnomes reflect our need to build social human communities, with controls. They look like us, yet their dimunitive stature prevents ambiguity within our sense of what constitutes the human, and does not pose a physical challenge to existing human relationships. Their resemblence to the elderly father figure does not threaten our sexuality(reproduction) and represents selfless guiding and nurturing for the future. It is no accident that they watch over gardens and lawns, protecting and promoting safety and sustenence. There accessability allows everyone to create their own secure yet disposable world.

Recently, the Gnome phenomenon has taken a new and dramatic step. Their is now sufficient evidence to suggest that human gratitude for the imagined is being displaced on the Gnome. Owners of gnomes are including their plastic figuriens in family and social activities. Inclusion of the imagined into activities of the real shows an evolution for our desire to build lasting human relationships, even when they definitively cannot exist outside of dillusion. Gnomes are travelling, learning new skills, even participating in exciting activities as exotic as surfing. The Human ‘G’nome Project will continue researching this untracked academia-stay blogged for further updates.

Tags: Blog, exotic, gnome, human, imagined, real, social