Source 1

This is Benjamin's most widely quoted article, and it is good material for studying the relationship between art and politics.

Benjamin said he wrote the essay to describe a theory that had been used to "shape the revolutionary demands of art and politics." The development of art will be based on political practice in the era of mechanical reproduction in which the value of traditional and religious rituals recedes.

The article points out that previous artistic works all have aura, which emphasizes authenticity and is inseparable from tradition and ritual. When the age of mechanical reproduction came, mass produced works of art no longer had original authenticity, and the light of inspiration began to fade away. The value of art used for religious purposes also declined, that is to say, Benjamin criticized copying. After the emergence of photography and film, the meaning and scope of art were enriched by them on the one hand, and they also pushed the value of art to politics. In short, Benjamin criticized the film industry. Benjamin goes on to point out that the fascists, the Aestheticisation of politics, and the communist rulers, the Politicisation of Art.

Source 2

The author thinks that fascism is an aesthetic political behavior, and then discusses the deep relationship between individual and collective. Military uniforms in war represent the highest goal, the projection of all desires. The bodies under the uniforms are less important than the uniforms themselves. This collectivism is hypocritical and dead, the state is just a noun supported by the ruling class. In a quadrilateral of nature and nation, war is the diagonal. This leads to the most personal suffering through theocratic obedience. I think this is China‘s inevitable status quo in the coronavirus period. That's why I'm talking about the relationship between the individual and the collective.

Walter Benjamin (1936) The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction available at：https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/benjamin.htm（Accessed: 29/02/2020)

Ziyu Lin (1999) Fascism: Aestheticisation of politics available at：https://www.bilibili.com/video/av3475298?from=search&seid=17926845899058385786  （Accessed: 13/02/2020)