Pop Culture Essay Example for Free

Pop Culture Essay Throughout, history popular culture has been a common factor in everyday life. The identity of popular culture is seen through many elements of art. It was derived from artifacts and styles of human expressions developed from the creativity of ordinary people, and circulate among people according to their interests, preferences, and tastes. For example, music, fashion, people, stereotypes, and social rituals all play a role in the development of what is known today as pop culture society. These elements have shape society to behave and think a certain way, all in which are seen to have a more negative impact to the public rather than promote positive influences. Moreover, we will examine three main elements of popular culture that affect the American culture on a day to day basis. â€Å"Stereotypes, social rituals, and arts are all elements of popular culture that have been adopted and appeals to large masses of people, normally the middle class citizens† . Thus, popular culture comes from people; it is not just given to them. This perspective tears away at distinctions typically made between producers and consumers of cultural material. According to Webster stereotypes are oversimplified opinion, prejudiced attitude, or uncritical judgment. For example, â€Å"people develop conceptions about certain groups of people because of what we see on television and use these generalizations in everyday life, such as Gender and where the media portrays ones masculinity and femininity† 2. Stereotypes can be seen with real or imaginary people or objects. For example, real icons such as expensive cars can be portrayed as a person being wealthy with luxury. Imaginary icons are things such as Bat mobiles or spaceships that are seen as a â€Å"warp speeding icon expressing in truly magical ways- faster than light travel, to demonstrate power beyond discovery† 3. Other real or imaginary stereotypes are heroes. For instances, Martin Luther King Jr. is a known for leading many Americans to freedom from slavery and racism. On the hand, Superman is an imaginary hero that saves the world from danger. These stereotypes have shaped America’s beliefs to be based on judgments of their own opinions as opposed to the truth. Social Rituals consist of â€Å"highly patterned symbolic events in which we all participate as a way of marking important passages in our individual lives or in society as a whole† 4. For example, holidays such as Christmas which is only celebrated by some who believe in decorating and exchanging gifts for the birth of Jesus Christ. However, others prefer not to engage in certain holidays or activities. Moreover, rituals integrate with heroes and icons that are built from a base structure of hierarchy. For example, voting is a common social ritual that plays a significant role in many American’s life. After voting, many constituency wear clothing to symbolize their heroic effort or support for the candidate they endorsed. Art is one the largest rooms of pop culture with a vast and diverse amount of subdivisions. Art includes; magazines, movies, television, recordings, comic books and others. Art correlates with all forms of pop culture and its affects with society. For example, books discuss heroes, icons, stereotypes, people, myth, beliefs and values. All of these elements interact with one another and result in moving to another room that leads to other possibly subcategories. Thus, arts are group together based upon shared characteristics which are known to both popular artist and the audience. Pop Culture is a trend that many learn about through film, media, music, people, fashion and others. These trends can sometime have a negative effect on the way society may behave or act to certain situations. For instances, many people use stereotypes to judge others or relate their lives to those individuals. In addition, others use heroes whether they are real or imaginary to compare and contrast their way of living. On the other hand, there are other elements of pop culture that make up these special trends. For example, social rituals is another element that allows people to express themselves based on their belief, things such as holidays, voting, and weddings. Lastly, Art is the element of diversity it relates to all subcategories of pop culture, within these categories all elements interact and form other elements.

Smitty :: essays research papers

Hello my name is R, I had been running track all through high school and am just about to start my senior season. I had never been great, but good enough to make states last year in the 100 meter dash. Up until this year (When I transferred to Newark after 3 years at Hodgson) our only coaches were only temporary or who only coached track because they needed some more spending money on their paycheck. Some were even athletes themselves before they let themselves go and now wanted to relive their fantasies of victory through our hard work and sweat. This winter though, events will change. I have an experienced track coach who has championships to prove it and also cares of his athletes as if they were his children. He had run track in both high school and college but chose to be a coach for the love on the sport. His name is â€Å"Smitty† (as though we call him) and he was my ideal coach and person since he obviously was better at it than any of my other coaches. Not only that, but he has more passion than anyone else on the team and all my other coaches. Add to that the fact that he was more successful than most of the coaches in the state in sending athletes to college. He is also a very stern coach that comes with extremely hard workouts. If he hadn't been one of the nicest and most helpful people in the world things might have gotten ugly between him and I very quickly because at Hodgson I didn’t practice much. Instead, he became one of my best friends, as well as part of my family. I don't know exactly why, but Smitty seemed to make me his special project for the season( Calling me the next Brandon Reeves). From the first day of meeting him he pushed me harder than anyone else, spent more time with me and made sure that I pushed myself. Maybe it was because I ran the same distances he ran, but then again so did a few of the other guys. Maybe it was because he saw something in me that none of the other coaches had. I wasn't sure what it was, but at times I enjoyed the extra attention, on the other hand I am sure that I will hate it when he makes me run the extra distance or work extra hard.

A Waltz With Death On Crystal Stairs Essay

‘My Papa’s Waltz,’ 1948 In this poem by Theodor Roethke, the speaker is describing his childhood in the arms of his drunken father. He recalls how his father comes home intoxicated with alcohol and drives both him and his mother crazy. Theodor Roethke was a great poet and the moods of his poetry range from acid wit to simple feeling. Some of his other poems are Open House (1941), The Lost Son and Other Poems (1948), The Waking (1953, Pulitzer Prize), Words for the Wind (1957), I Am! Says the Lamb (1961), and The Far Field (1964). ‘Because I could not stop for Death,’ 1863 In this poem by Emily Dickinson, the poet seems to position herself in eternity as she recalls her life. Death is portrayed as a gentleman and Immortality is with them as they ride in a carriage that passes sceneries that depict the three major stages of human life: birth, adolescence and old age. Emily Dickinson is considered one of the most original 19th Century American poets. She is noted for her unconventional broken rhyming meter and use of dashes and random capitalization as well as her creative use of metaphor and overall innovative style. Some of her poems are Fame is a fickle food, I cannot live with you, I felt a Funeral, in my Brain and I’m Nobody! Who are you? ‘Mother to Son,’ 1932 In this poem by Langston Hughes, a mother is advising his son not to give up on life by recalling her own misgivings in the past. The mother decides to compare her life to stairs and describes how hard it was to climb it. Langston Hughes was a prolific writer. In the forty years when he first wrote a book until his death in 1967, he wrote sixteen books of poems, two novels, three collections of short stories, four volumes of â€Å"editorial† and â€Å"documentary† fiction, twenty plays, children’s poetry, musicals and operas, three autobiographies, a dozen radio and television scripts and dozens of magazine articles and edited seven anthologies. Some of his other distinguished poems are The Weary Blues (1926), The Negro Mother and other Dramatic Recitations (1931) and The Dream Keeper (1932). The profound metaphors in Theodor Roethke’s â€Å"My Papa’s Waltz,† Emily Dickinson’s â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop For Death† and Langston Hughes â€Å"Mother to Son† make readers reflect on the lives of their poets and contemplate on their own existence. â€Å"My Papa’s Waltz† is a joy to analyze because the metaphor or the â€Å"waltz† has brought about very contrasting reflections on the poem. With lines such as â€Å"But I hung on like death; such waltzing was not easy† (Kennedy and Gioia 674) many critics have come to understand the poem in the light of a father and son playing roughly and enjoying their quality moment. However, many scholars also think that Roethke is actually using the metaphor of a waltz to describe child abuse. The word â€Å"romped† seems to show enjoyment. However, pans sliding from the kitchen shelves and the boy’s ear scraping on his father’s belt buckle with every missed step contradict the poet’s first description of the dance. According to John J. McKenna in his article, Roethke’s Revisions and The Tone Of My Papa’s Waltz, the holograph manuscripts of â€Å"My Papa’s Waltz† confirm that Roethke himself tried to balance the negative and positive tones of the poem, resulting in its rich ambiguity. Emily Dickinson is famous for her great use of metaphors. The first line of the poem â€Å"Because i could not stop for death, he kindly stopped for me†( Kennedy and Gioia 1019) seems to be about a girl who has contemplated committing suicide in the past. In the end of the poem she seems to be happy that she did not push through with it because she was after all, ready to pursue living. However, the metaphors used to portray death and immortality as persons can be confusing and easily understood in a different light. William Galperin reflects on these metaphors from the point of view of a feminist. In his critique compiled by Donna Campbell of Washington State University, he believes that â€Å"death† embodies society’s perception that a woman has to get married and live a domesticated life while the poem similarly redefined immortality as a woman’s self-possession, or the result of a refusal to allow society the prerogative of selecting her. There are also some scholars who believe that Dickinson is actually hinting on seduction in this poem. It is very easy to get lost in Dickinson’s metaphors and even scholars themselves have different points of reflections on it. However, these metaphors are what make her poem truly distinct and interesting. In the poem, Mother To Son, Langston Hughes seems to be referring to a stereo-typical mother advising his son on how to deal with life. It is easy to think that the poem just wants to convey a more mature person trying to coach someone to move on. â€Å"Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair† (Kennedy and Gioia 1031) clearly uses the metaphor of the stairway to make readers understand that life is not easy. Words like â€Å"splinters† â€Å"boards torn up† and â€Å"bare† can be interpreted as hardships in life. The poet’s use of the â€Å"crystal† stairs also seems to describe an easy and comfortable life or heaven to some. However, in the light of the times when the poem was written, scholars believe that the message is related to racial discrimination. Aidan Wasley, in the book, Poetry for Students, believes that it becomes easy to see Hughes’s mother figure as something like a racial matriarch addressing her scattered children and exhorting them to â€Å"keep on climbing† on their way to freedom. The lives and beliefs of the authors of the three poems are deeply embedded in the metaphors they used. It is their masterful way of weaving these mere words intricately that convey such powerful messages and remarkable stories that one can only appreciate by reflecting on one’s own decisions and principles. These poetic devices are very effective in making one contemplate and were successful and shall keep the poems truly alive long after their poets have gone. Works Cited Keneddy, X. J. , and Dana Gioia. Literature: an introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. New York, New York: Pearson and Longman, 2007. McKenna, John J. â€Å"Roethke’s Revisions And The Tone Of My Papa’s Waltz,† 1998. University of Nebraska at Omaha. 15 April 2007 < http://www. mrbauld. com/exrthkwtz. html>. Wasley, Aidan. â€Å"An Overview of Mother To Son† Poetry For Students. Gale, 1998. Wsu. edu. Campbell, Donna. Washington State University. 15 April 2007 .

Gender, Social Class, And Slut Discourse On Campus

1. â€Å"Good Girls†: Gender, Social Class, and Slut Discourse on Campus Authors: Elizabeth A. Armstrong, Laura T. Hamilton, Elizabeth M. Armstrong and J. Lotus Seeley Citation: Armstrong, E. A. et al. Good Girls: Gender, Social Class, And Slut Discourse On Campus. Social Psychology Quarterly 77.2 (2014): 100-122. Web. 17 Feb. 2016. The journal article addresses the issue of undergraduate women using slut shaming and the actual reason women participate in it. 2. The theory being tested in the article is that women participate in slut shaming as a way for them to distance or separate themselves from other women. The reason they separate themselves is a way for women to categorize other women into different statuses and a way for themselves to maintain their own status. The status classes women are categorized in are linked to the social class they are a part of. Slut shaming among women is not necessarily based on their sexual acts, but of the way they act as a woman. The theory also states that slut shaming is also a result of male dominance and female submission. The slut label was created by men due to a double standard created by society. The double standard is that men are expected to act upon their sexual desires regardless of being in a relationship or having any emotional connection with the person they’re engaging that sexual act with all while women are only allowed to participate in sexual activities if they are in a lovi ng and committed relationship. However, ifShow MoreRelatedGender, Social Class, And Slut Discourse On Campus Essay1482 Words   |  6 Pagesare belittled in their slut shaming and are therefore degraded and neglected in their social life. Collectively Elizabeth A. Armstrong; Laura T. Hamilton; Elizabeth M. Armstrong; and J. Lotus Seeley composed an article, ‘ Good Girls : Gender, Social Class, and Slut Discourse on Campus’ in 2014 for Social Psychology Quarterly (p. 100-122), utilizing observations on social psychology, gender, and culture to argue that undergraduate females exploit shaming to construct social barriers around statusRead MoreCollege Students Perceptions Of Slut Shaming Discourse On Campus1005 Words   |  5 PagesCOLLEGE STUDENTS PERCEPTIONS OF SLUT-SHAMING DISCOURSE ON CAMPUS A Graduate Research Project by VANESSA ADRIANA ALMAZAN Submitted to the College of Graduate Studies Texas AM University-Kingsville in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE May 2015 Major Subject: Counseling and Guidance ABSTRACT College Students Perceptions of Slut-Shaming Discourse on Campus (Spring 2015) Vanessa A. Almazan, M.A., Texas AM University-KingsvilleRead MoreJournal Article Evaluation And Critique1625 Words   |  7 PagesGirls†: Gender, Social Class, and Slut Discourse on Campus. Social Psychology Quarterly, 77(100), 100-122. Doi: 10.1177/0190272514521220. The issue that the authors address is trying to find an explanation and understanding of why women actively participate in slut shaming. 2. The theory that was tested was whether women participate in slut stigma in order to maintain their different status in regards to social standing. The main concepts of this was that women considered as low-class (women thatRead MoreSex, Love And Autonomy And The Teenage Sleepover By Amy T. Schalet1760 Words   |  8 PagesGender For those of us that are parents, we know that raising a child to adulthood is not an easy task but one which we do lovingly (hopefully) and responsibly. I’ll go out on a limb to say here that everyone agrees that the teenage years are the most challenging. The general consensus is that teenagers are unruly, aggressive, careless, spoiled and dependent on technology. On the other hand, I believe along with a small group of other parents that teenagers are also brilliant and in the process