thanks for posting this - we spoke a little about Benjamin in my Literary Theory class before I had to withdrawal and i found this idea of an aura very interesting. i had not read this work though.

#3, Benjamin not only speaks of artwork having an aura, but also of the aura that exists in any first hand human perception - such as that of a mountain range & the shadow of a tree branch. there is something that exists in direct experience that cannot also exist in a replication of that experience. i, personally, believe that original works, the "real thing" have something to them, call it an aura if you like, that a copy does not have. even if that thing is only my knowledge that the thing i'm looking at is the original. that these stokes of paint i am seeing were put on this canvas by the artist's hand, not a printing press. it is the same sort of quieting feeling i have around ancient buildings, old places - as Benjamin discusses architecture can have this effect on us.

linking that in with #1, i find it troubling that more and more people are perfectly happy living much of their lives through a computer screen. while at first it seemed like virtual reality was an interesting novelty -it can be quite amazing what computers can do- now it seems to have supplanted actual reality for a large portion of people. there seems to be no joy in experiencing things first hand anymore, for many people. it seems that with our flat screen TVs and easy access to images on the internet many are content to trade direct experience for replications of that experience. the symbol has become reality. i worry about where this will go.