Introduction: During the 1990s, German literature saw an influx of writers who had lived through the East German regime. These authors reflected the events that led up to the Berlin Wall’s fall and Germany’s reunification. Wolfgang Hilbig’s novel, “I”, is a prominent example of these works, called “turning literature”. This fiction depicts the absurdities of life under a fading ideology and the alienation of power institutions from social developments.The present article first examines historical context and the role of literature in East Germany to provide a deeper understanding of the themes and plot of the novel “I”. Then, it analyzes the concept of “Simulacra”, which refers to the disconnection of signs from reality in modern social relations according to French sociologist Jean Baudrillard’s theories. The article further criticizes Hilbig’s literary interpretation of this concept and the various manifestations of “Simulacra” in the narrative layers of “I”.Background of the Study: The novel “I” was published in 1993 and has since been translated into multiple languages, receiving praise from literary circles. However, it has yet to be researched in the Persian language. German-speaking critics have referenced Wolfgang Hilbig’s works while critiquing contemporary German literature. The present article cites some of those critiques. One significant source is a collection of articles titled “Two Separate Areas of Literature. German Literature of the 1990s in the East and the West” (2000) published in the literary journal Text and Criticism, which includes a section dedicated to “I”. Moreover, Helmut Luger conducted a detailed study in 2010, focusing on themes such as “alienation, loss of reality, and simulation” in Hilbig’s novels and analyzing their narrative structure and linguistic characteristics.Methodology: The novel “I”, which Wolfgang Hilbig started writing before the fall of the Berlin Wall, presents various interpretations of the concept of “Simulacra” and its representations in the discourse of power. This concept in the semiotic debates of the 1980s indicated the remoteness of signs from their origin. However, philosophers and thinkers like Jean Baudrillard and Gilles Deleuze have different interpretations of this concept. The present article reviews and evaluates the opinions of various theorists on the concept of “Simulacra”. It assesses which philosophical and sociological theories align with the works of Hilbig and also examines how applying this concept to the literary text expands its meaning beyond the frameworks of these theorists.Conclusion: In this article, we reviewed the history and thematic characteristics of “turning literature” and examined one of the essential elements of the novel, i.e., “Simulacra”. We found that this concept, which Jean Baudrillard presented to represent modern social relations in the digital age, has a different meaning in Wolfgang Hilbig’s works. Simulacra in “I” is manifested in the context of a pervasive disciplinary system or a “hyperreality” whose ultimate goal is to consolidate power relations. This concept primarily refers to the simulation of ideas and actions resulting from imposing ideological illusions on society. These ideas and actions have become outdated and ineffective models on the verge of the collapse of Eastern Bloc systems.Although Baudrillard and Hilbig consider different social contexts, convergences can also be observed in their interpretations of the concept of “Simulacra”. Both philosophers and writers, whether in the field of theorizing or in the scope of the literary text, aim to critique stagnant and fragmented social relations that are far away from reality and reproduce previous patterns in an automated way.

With the growth of positivist thoughts and monistic views toward Man, the physicalist explanations of Man and corporeal resurrection have gained traction. Peter van Inwagen, an analytic philosopher, has suggested a physical explanation of corporeal resurrection known as “Simulacra” and claimed its superiority over other physical explanations in the vein. In an attempt to assess the claim – considering the underpinnings of the theory – the present study has described the theory first and then evaluated it. It was found that the theory of Simulacra suffers from anthropological and epistemological deficiencies. The theory lacks in explaining an identity standard for the worldly person and the person in the hereafter. Simulacra, is built upon modal epistemology - based on Yablo’s account - and thus fails to account for the possibility of occurrence of corporeal resurrection. Yablo’s account is based on a personal belief and results in relativism. In addition to that, in his other writings, van Inwagen has proved that Yablo’s account is invalid and result in doubt and therefore, his use of the account in Simulacra is far from justified.

Urban art plays a vital role in shaping cityscapes and public perceptions, reflecting cultural, social, and political realities. However, contemporary theories suggest that these visual expressions are increasingly influenced by hyperreality, as proposed by Baudrillard. The proliferation of digital media and consumer culture has transformed urban spaces into sites of spectacle, blurring the line between authentic social critique and superficial entertainment. This raises questions about the true social and political potential of urban art in the context of hyperreality. The primary aim of this study is to analyze how Baudrillard’s concepts particularly Simulacra, hyperreality, and spectacle apply to contemporary urban art and to explore its functions as both resistance and commodification. A qualitative, interpretive approach was employed, involving a comprehensive review of theoretical literature, analysis of visual examples such as murals, digital interventions, and social media representations, and thematic analysis to identify patterns and implications. The study found that urban art often operates simultaneously as a form of social resistance and as part of spectacle culture. While some artworks challenge dominant narratives and foster genuine engagement, many are coopted or transformed into commodified symbols, reinforcing superficial perceptions. Baudrillard’s theories offer valuable insights into understanding the complex nature of urban art in the hyperreal city. Recognizing the tension between authenticity and spectacle emphasizes the need for critical engagement and strategies that foster genuine social dialogue in urban visual culture.

The contemporary philosopher Jean Baudrillard, one of the postmodernism theorists, considers representation in the contemporary world as a factor in the disappearance of reality. In his view, the main feature of new arts is not the expression of artistic beauty, but communication with the audience and expression of the artist’s ideas. In interactive art, the presence and role of the audience in the completion of artwork, creates a common sense between the audience and the artwork. In this research, we have tried to answer questions such as how audience underestand an interactive work and how reproducing and interpreting signs in interactive art form the Baudrillard’s concept of Hyper reality. Also we try to answer the question of which factors convert the interactive art audience experience to hyper reality one? To achieve this goal, the present study uses descriptive-analytical methods and data collection using written and digital sources. We have examined some interactive art implemented in the prestigious Artech house and Flutter galleries in recent years to achieve concept of hyper reality in interactive arts. The results show that interactive art can create an example of hyper reality experience for the audience and factors such as interaction, imagination, sense, subject and object, provide a common border between interactive art and Baudrillard’s theory of hyper reality. The lack of reference to the real world in these works demonstrates Baudrillard’s creation of the hyper reality in interactive art. The interactive art traps the subject and directs his thought to the subject, to create an imaginary world. The audience considers the hyper reality world as their main goal. The audience is exposed to responding and expressing the work rather than trying to underestand and judge, and the audience becomes a part of artwork and becomes an art object. It immerses the audience in hyper reality world.

Post-modernism, both in theory and in art, is faced with a disappearance of meaning and imponderable situation, and anti-determinism and uncertainty as its main motives. Jean Baudrillard (1929-2006) as one of the most influential theorists and critics of post-modernism, has put his main focus on the criticism of new communication media, the meaninglessness of icons and debates such as hyper-reality and loss of reality.. He stands out as a prominent contemporary thinker and a controversial writer in the fields of literary theories, semiotics, sociology, and postmodernism criticism. Baudrillard contended that contemporary icons had lost their fixed values and natural significance, emphasizing their profound meaninglessness in numerous works, such as "System of Objects" (1968), "Toward the Political Economy of Icons" (1972), where he evaluated, criticized, and raised doubts about Marx's economic theory Baudrillard's provocativewritings in the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, such as Consumer Society[1] (1970), Simulacra and Simulation [1] (1981), In the Shadow of the Silent Majority[1] (1978) have obtained for him a special place in scientific and literary societies. His collection of articles related to the Persian Gulf War in 1991, which was published under the title The Gulf War Did Not Happen[1], garnered widespread attention, discussion, and criticism.Baudrillard's somewhat exaggerated opinions contained controversial messages such as the loss of reality, which eventually led to the emergence of a new concept called hyperreality.In the 70s and 80s of the last century, he claimed that we live in the age of simulations. This starts from the growth and expansion of information technologies, including computers and virtual media. Baudrillard clearly claims that in today's era, meaning tends to vanish within the realm of communication.This research endeavors to analyze various postmodern artworks and compare them with Jean Baudrillard's perspectives on the definitions of "meaning" and "reality," seeking a deeper understanding of the conceptual layers of postmodern art.The research method is descriptive-analytical, which is carried out with an inferential approach, , and falls into the category of basic research in terms of its purpose. The method of collecting information is based on written library documents and internet sources.  A case study including works by seven artists (Liu Bolin, Duane Hanson, Don Eddy, Nam June Paik, Leopoldo Maler, Benjamin Edwards and David Hockney), which are clear examples to explain Baudrillard's ideas about the loss of meaning and Reality in the field of visual arts.The research questions are:How do features of postmodern thought, such as the vanishing of meaning and the loss of reality, manifest in contemporary visual arts and through what media?In light of the prevalence of virtual reality and the clash between reality and imagery, what transformations have visual arts undergone?Drawing on Baudrillard's views on meaning and reality, how can contemporary artworks be interpreted?Chinese artist Liu Bolin (born in 1973) has created works that may be difficult to place in a specific art group. The mentioned works can be considered a perfect combination of painting, sculpture, photography, body art and performance arts. The artist has publicly reflected the cultural policies of the Chinese communist government and the transmutations of individuality in social interests in his works. Bolin, who is also known as the "invisible man", chooses the body of a living human being as the main substrate of the work of art. By meticulously camouflaging these individuals to blend seamlessly with their surroundings, he creates visual illusions that convey the complete transformation and disappearance of reality. Baudrillard's terms such as the disappearance of meaning, the disappearance of reality, simulacrums to replace reality, etc., are visually expressed in Bolein's works. Another discussed work is “Woman with Shopping Basket” by Duane Hanson. Although this work shows the reality of urban life in America at first glance, it actually challenges it with a critical view by its over statement. What Hanson does in this work is to show the complete set of mentality of the American consumer society.Baudrillard mentions that in the consumer society the value of "being" means the sacrifice of economic values. Abundance only finds meaning in extravagance. For abundance to become value, "enough" must give way to "too much".Therefore, it can be said that this extravagance is present in all aspects of today's life, and reality is not exempt from this pattern, and extravagance in reality or in other words, abundance in reality is also evident. On the other hand, hyperrealism itself shows a state of abundance of reality.The next work belongs to Don Eddy. While the subject of the work is familiar and general, it shows a complex and overlapping scene of a shop window. In his works, Eddy tries to show the relationship between man and space in an enigmatic, complex and multiple way by mixing up visual plans. By creating the illusion of reality, he creates a space in his works that bring a multifaceted and poly hedral experience of the contemporary confused reality to come into existence. Eddy's works can be considered as a hyper-reality, which tries to show a deeper meaning than reality.  The next one is TV Buddha, by Paik, a statue of a thinking and mesmerized Buddha in front of a television box. It aims at demonstrating the dominance of today's media over ancient beliefs, as well as the conflict between religion and technology.The statue stares at its virtual image, as if it is deep in thought. Virtual space offers a new definition of Buddha to himself. In this work, the artist presents a new definitions of the boundary between reality and the tropologic and cultural confrontation by contrasting Eastern religious thinking and the Western technological world. The next discussed work is “ The Death Sequence“ by Leopoldo Malerwhich reflects the duality and conflict between reality and image andevokes Baudrillard's ideas about the power of image over reality in the system of simulacrum. A nurse is sitting next to a bed that holds the image of a corpse. The work represents a reality: decomposition on different levels. In this way, the image is in the main focus of the subject and the reality is placed in its margin, just as death is prioritized over life. To understand the concepts of instability of meaning and plural space, we can refer to the creative experiences of Hockney's photographs and Edwards' paintings.In Edwards' works, the experience of ruptured space and elongated time within the genre of landscape painting produces a surreal effect more pronounced than in other painting genres. His landscapes create multifaceted spatiotemporal intervals that underscore the instability of meaning and the ephemeral nature of events .Baudrillard engaged with the subject of postmodern art personally and left significant writings in this field.Post-modern artists have created works influenced by intellectual currents, including Baudrillard's critical thoughts. By comparing the works of the mentioned artists with the thoughts of Jean Baudrillard, we exclude the commonalities between theory and practice in the postmodern era in a deeper way. Discussions such as the disappearance of meaning and the loss of reality in Bolin's mixed art, hyper-reality in the works of Hanson and Eddy, the omnipresence of virtual space in Paik's works, and the conflict between reality and image and the substitution of simulacrum for reality in the work of Maler, as well as The plural space in the works of Edwards and Hockney all confirm the disappearance of meaning and the loss of reality in contemporary thought and practically show the link between theory and practice in examples of post-modern art.  

The rewriting of a literary work, which has always been discussed in literature, is both connected with intertextuality and the transcriber's creativity. An example of this kind is a novel: The Monk written by Antonin Artaud in imitation of The Monk, by Matthew G. Lewis the complete simulacrum of an eighteenth century English text by a twentieth century French writer who considers his work a feat of skill. The present article is an attempt to show the existing differences and similarities between these two novels concerning their structure, choice of title, style, level of language, etc. This investigation might also be considered as a strategy for such novels which are, in fact, the rewriting of a previous text. Such Simulacra cannot be completely regarded as unimportant. Can the writer of these literary pieces possibly be called the creator of new works?        

Contemporary architectural forms created by various ideas and design techniques have become possible with the advances of computer simulation technology and through construction methods allowing the effective production of repetitive and variable forms with intended materials. Most of these architectural forms are perceptively being simulated and individualized in urban settings. These architectural forms with simulated images reflect the current consumer-oriented society in most countries including Iran. In this research, it is attempted to discuss the role of digital design techniques, as a tool for the active creation of simulated forms in contemporary architecture of Iran, with a semiology approach to the characterization of form in mega projects designed and constructed in urban areas. This approach establishes an association between the images of superficiality and the human sensory experience in a social context, leading to the emergence of innovative forms in contemporary architecture. The results revealed that with the utilization of digital design techniques to produce Simulacra, younger architects of Iran have reconfigured the perceptions about architectural forms, thereby enhancing their performance as a landmark in urban settings.

Since 1960s, with the incremental growth of images which were penetrating in daily life of human being, the concept of “, simulation”,gradually entered the artistic critique topics. In Baudrillard’, s idea, simulations in postmodern culture have dominated on every aspects of human life and cannot be recognized from the real thing in any way. In addition, the role of photography in postmodern era is under the influence of Baudrillard’, s thoughts. The postmodern photographers insist on the completion of imaging world and believe that the only truth under our authority is the photographed world. Postmodern philosophers including Baudrillard have this idea that “, representation”,is the entire thing that exists and can exist. Richard Prince is among those postmodern artists who, with seizing the images of other artists, distorts the distinction between the original and the copy. In the postmodern culture, the image of the focal member is considered to be an ontological priority to the real. In addition, art always has an invariable relationship with the paradigms of its age,if imitation is rooted in the traditional world, the origin of the imagination should be in the current world. According to Baudrillard, when the simulations dominates in a society, the virtual world resulting from it gives its audience nothing but absurdity. In addition, postmodern photographers were impressed by Baudrillard’, s thoughts of saturation of contemporary societies. They emphasize the reproducible nature of the photographic image, all of which has already been seen, and there is nothing more than a representation. If the postmodern world is known by signs that are more than representative, how can an artist transfer this situation through his work? Is it possible that he would represent a simulation? Jean Baudrillard believes that postmodern culture is the only domination of Simulacra and hyperreal field creation. In Baudrillard’, s interpretation, images do not represent reality anymore, but also, they themselves become reality and create the simulated reality. Today, images appear more real than real. He is one of the thinkers who questions this dual status between reality and simulation in his ideas and tries to explain a new status: a status in which two components-image and signs’,play-control the social life of human being. Postmodern photographers were affected by Baudrillard’, s ideas about saturation of today’, s societies by images. Richard Prince is one of them who emphasizes the reproducible nature of photography and believes that everything has been already seen. Today, the concepts of simulation and acute reality have become to the foundation of most researches about Baudrillard and the visual thing, especially in cultural production and artistic critique. This research is trying to analyze the causes of Baudrillard’, s ideas about discredit of contemporary art and its adjustment with postmodern photography. As well, it is trying to answer this question in a descriptive and analytical method that how these artists utilize the nature of image as simulacrum. The achievements of adjustment of the present example and Baudrillard’, s ideas show that Prince wanted to reproduce the Simulacra in a sarcastic manner by presenting the hyperreal images.

Thomas Pynchon, Don DeLillo, Jack Martin, and William Gibsonrepresentatively demonstrate the transformation of phases of hyper-reality, termed by the French philosopher Jean Baudrillard, in the last decades ofAmerican literature, lifestyle, and politics controlled by mass media. Accordingto Baudrillard, American values are hyper-real. The present research aims acritical inspection of the objectives of these novelists and its repercussion onIslamic World and its political life. It also tends to discern how the media from1960's up to the present time – from printed media means such as postal letters(1960's) to tele-visualized life (1980's), and subsequently to cyberspace andvirtual reality at present time – have contributed to the propagation of hyperrealityin Islamic World. Being incapable to distinguish reality from Simulacra, people take simulation and trends of hyper-reality as real. Mirroring the cultureof the America at present, the literature of the period reflects the simulated lifeof characters, their illusionary, televisual, consumerized, and cyber-spaciouslives, of which the present paper duly compares with their counterparts inIslamic World. The media entertain, instruct, educate, and pervert us, ceaselessly. Among two examples discussed in this research include theemergence of the Telegram in Iran as a Western media and its effects on Iran’ scultural shaping which duly leads to political shaping; and the other one isdiscussing the issue of the Persian Gulf War especially according toBaudrillard's book The [Persian] Gulf War Did Not Take Place.

Visual representation in the media world of digital images is an emerging phenomenon in which its achievement requires the identification of the epistemological and technological system of postmodern and media art, and the developments that have emerged in the path of the transformation of subjectivity. The visual representation of the female subject on Instagram as a social network can provide a suitable perspective for examining the contemporary representation and can reveal the status of the female subject in social media by distancing itself from the modern subjectivity. Via a descriptive-analytical research method and employing Jean Baudrillard's ideas of media, the present study seeks to answer the following questions: How has the Instagram social network with its technological structure and media circulation affected the image representation of the contemporary Iranian female subject? What position can be given to the artist-subject and the image-object in the contemporary media representation? The study aims to conduct a comparative analysis of the representation of the contemporary Iranian female subject in Instagram hyperreality, relying on Baudrillard's ideas. The population consisted of the women’s published photos on Instagram, selected through a purposive sampling method. The inclusion criteria of images were based on Baudrillard’s concepts. The results revealed that the world of contemporary women’s media representation is a world without reference or hyperreality that denies the possibility of a subject’s agency in a break from reality, making her face the objects that the media and its technological structure have put forward, that is, transaesthetic and transsexual objects that become empty Simulacra, seeking for their new identity and reality based on the media world.