Simulacra and Simulation (French: Simulacres et Simulation) is a 1981 philosophical treatise by the philosopher and cultural theorist Jean Baudrillard in which he seeks to examine the relationships between reality symbols and society in particular the significations and symbolism of culture and media involved in constructing an understanding of shared existence. Simulacra are copies that depict things that either had no original or that no longer have an original. Simulation is the imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system over time.