Facebook

 

This week in class we had a group presenting on Facebook. It's astounding to me how much Facebook has and continues to effect our daily lives, even if we do not realize it. Facebook has allowed us to have relationships with people solely online in the comfort of our own homes. I deleted my Facebook two years ago. I chose to do this for a number of reasons, but the main reason was because I realized how unhappy it was making me. I would frequently be checking my Facebook and comparing my life to the lives of my friends who I saw online. As happy as I was for them, I would honestly feel down about myself if I saw people frequently doing adventurous things or posting perfect photos. I realized though that ultimately, a lot of the stuff that people post on Facebook is just so they can maintain their online image or persona. I would see a photo of my cousin with her boyfriend, only to find out a day later that she was utterly unhappy in the relationship. This all made me view Facebook as being a sort of "false reality." People will tell you their interests and post statuses and pictures, but only those that make them look good or seem like they are living the perfect life. I didn't want to partake in something like that anymore, especially since it was negatively affecting my attitude. I deleted my account and I don't regret it. Sometimes I do feel a little out of the loop when my friends ask me if I saw what so and so posted on Facebook last night. The other annoying thing about not having a Facebook is how it is frequently used everywhere. There are many contests or campaigns that require you to have a Facebook account in order to partake in the particular event. For example, I recently bought tickets for my sister to go see the popular boy band One Direction. In order to get good seats, I had to try to buy tickets during the "Facebook pre-sale." Since I didn't have a Facebook, I couldn't see what the code was to buy the tickets. Luckily my brother was able to look up the code through his Facebook account, but it just shows how society already assumes that we view Facebook as a necessity.

Nelson Mandela

 

 

 

 

The Cyborg Manifesto

This week in class we discussed Donna Haraway's Cyborg Manifesto. According to Haraway, "A  cyborg is a cybernetic organism, a hybrid of machine and organism, a creature of social reality as well as a creature of fiction." In her piece of work, Haraway discusses many boundaries relating to the formation of the cyborg. Some of the most prominent ones were human/animal, organic/inorganic, organism/machine, physical/non-physical, etc. This whole idea of a cyborg led to an interesting class discussion. Wexler asked us if we would knowingly date a cyborg. Surprisingly, a lot of the class said yes. Considering how much we rely on technology in our everyday lives though, this sort of response should not necessarily come as a surprise. A concern was whether or not the cyborg had freedom of choice. Many in our class said that if the cyborg was programmed to fall in love with them, as opposed to having the freedom to choose their lover, they would not date the cyborg. The discussion then led to a questioning of what truly defines whether something is human or not. People have all sorts of views on this matter. Many will say that in order for anything to be considered "human," they must be able to reproduce. This is a tricky topic to tackle, considering all the options that fertility clinics have to offer. Ultimately, Donna Haraway's cyborg is a representation of "lived social and bodily realities in which people are not afraid of their joint kinship with animals and machines, not afraid of permanently partial identities and contradictory standpoints."

Zizek!

Slavoj Zizek is an extremely intelligent individual with plenty of thought-provoking ideas to share. The film we watched in class exposed me to his opinions, many of which coincide with those of Marx and Lacan. Zizek's eccentric personality kept me engaged and interested in what he had to say. He made statements that are debatable, such as "the universe is one big void" and "love is evil." One of the topics that he mentioned that really stood out to me though was his take on post-modernism. He claimed that post-modernism is almost like a secret message. An example of this would be a child visiting their grandmother's house on a Sunday. The totalitarian-esque father would force their child to go, saying that it is the right thing to do, even if they do not want to. However, the postmodern approach is a bit different. The postmodern father would say something along the lines of, "your grandmother loves you very much, but it is ultimately up to you if you want to go see her." Zizek states that "this apparent free choice secretly contains an even stronger authority...Not only do you have to visit your grandmother, but you have to like it." He claims that this is more dishonest than the former. I definitely agree with Zizek's take on this scenario. It leads me to think about our idea of freedom. In the United States, we claim to be "free," but are we really? Yes we are free, but that doesn't mean that society's version of what's "right" is not constantly being shoved down our throats to influence our behavior and opinions, sometimes without us even realizing it.

Where Did The Future Go?

It seems like these days, we as a society are always anticipating the future rather than living in the moment. Preparation is always great in theory, but how often do our plans go exactly as we imagined them to go in our heads? Randy Martin's Where Did The Future Go? discusses the idea of risk management. Just by dissecting the title, we can see that Martin is trying to show us how we are all taking the idea of the future and bringing it to the present. One quote that stuck out to me is when Martin says "As a social force, capital not only dispossesses people of old habits of life but also attaches them otherwise." He is explaining how capitalism enables a change in lifestyle based on the certain demands that it is evoking. An example of risk management that I can relate to in particular is college itself. I am going to school to learn and to hopefully secure a job in the future. The irony is that I am taking out student loans while going through school in order to obtain a job that will hopefully pay well enough to help me pay off those student loans. Risk management is a controlling ideology of late capitalism.
In class, we also looked at scenes from the film Minority Report.  The characters in his movie see a crime before it happens and take preventative measures to stop it from occurring. This is another great example of risk management.
In relation to risk management is this idea of a "false reality." Mainstreet USA in Disneyland is the epitome of a wholesome and perfect way of living. This illustrates how easy it is for us to look back with such an idealized view of the past, when in fact, it is really just a false reality of the past that never was. It always easy to look back and think that things were better than they are now, which is why it is vital to consciously remember to take a breath and just be in the moment.

Cultural Space and Urban Place

This week in class, we watched the classic film Rebel Without A Cause.  In relation to the topics we've discussed in class, this film takes place during a time that is sort of in between the movement from old world order to new world disorder. The war had just ended, which partly contributes to the teenagers being enabled to live this “rebellious” lifestyle. This film also emphasizes on the importance of a father figure, or lack thereof. All of the teens can empathize with each other through the shared feelings of having parents who just “don’t get it,” whether its Plato dealing with the fact that his father abandoned his family, Jim feeling anger towards his father for not standing up to his mother, or Judy who feels like her father does not love her. I think this film also does a good job of emphasizing how highly these teenagers value the idea of “fitting in.” Jim feels that if he doesn’t fight Buzz, everyone will make fun of him and he will be seen as weak. We can relate this to teens today. It is so easy to follow the crowd and do something we may not necessarily believe in just because everyone else is doing it. There is a fear of not being accepted and being an outcast. In my opinion, the title Rebel Without a Cause can be related to the Post-modern idea of the ever-evolving self. The teens are rebels, but it is not clear what their exact cause for rebellion is because it can frequently be changing.

 

 

 

What is being Sold to Us?

In today's popular culture and mass media, there is always something being sold to us, whether it's an actual product or a specific idea. Hard Day's Night was made in 1964, and allows viewers to take a peek into the "everyday lives" of The Beatles. The most prominent idea being sold to us in this film is this idea of "cool."  The film is trying to show that The Beatles are "real" people and that they won't follow certain fads just because someone says they should. The film is encouraging a sense of rebellion and individualism by standing up to society's idea of "cool", but ironically, it is simultaneously selling us the idea of "anti-cool." Anti-cool is the new cool because The Beatles are doing it.

In class we also looked at the film The Doors, made in 1991. Jim Morrison is seen as very poetic. In once scene he quotes, " When the doors of perception are cleansed, things will appear as they really are." Drugs are heavily referenced in this movie, and maybe for Morrison that was his way of "cleansing the doors of perception." But what exactly has made these so-called doors unclean? I believe that Morrison is referring to society's ideals and morals about how to act and how to live. Morrison was passionate and indulging in a care-free, hippie lifestyle.  The film portrays how this way of living ultimately led to  Morrison's downfall, which one can argue is the film's way of sending a warning. Yes you can go against the current, but are the consequences worth the risk?

Midterm Movie Pitch: Heart over Head

Heart over Head

The struggle with identity is a problem many of us can relate to. In so many of today's movies, there is a focus on people relying on others for their own happiness. I want my movie to make viewers think outside the box and actually come to terms with loving themselves first and realize that you can make your own happiness. The name of my film is Heart over Head. This film will be easy for viewers to identify with in the sense that the main character is a college student contemplating all of the decisions she's made in her life thus far. She is used to the constant pressure of meeting and exceeding society's expectations, which is what she is currently struggling with.

My film will take place in present-day Los Angeles. Lina is a twenty-one year old college student currently majoring in business. She is a slender brunette with bright blue eyes and a smile that could light up the darkest of nights. Her charismatic nature and kind-hearted personality are why many people find themselves drawn to her. It is her third year at the university and she is doing well in all of her classes, but has yet to find any which truly engage her. She chose her business major because she knew how broad it was and that she could apply in any field of work after she graduated school. She has very supportive parents, but they are expecting her to graduate with a degree that, in their opinion, will actually aid Lina in being successful in life. Lina feels as though she is living in a world where people are no longer pursuing higher education to learn, but rather to solely better secure their chance of getting "the right" job once they graduate. She had many friends and colleagues who had certain career goals merely to live up to the expectations set by their parents. Deep down, this has always bothered Lina. She realizes the importance of having a stable job which would aid in her being able to provide for herself and eventually a family, however; she also knows that sacrificing happiness for money is often the root of so many people’s problems.

 This semester at college, she decided to take an art history class to rekindle her love for art. She had taken a course on it in the past, but now that she was a bit older, she felt that she could truly appreciate the class and enjoy learning about her favorite artists. One day in class, her professor recommended going to the Norton Simon Museum. Lina knew the name sounded familiar, and that was when she remembered how every year when her family would watch the Rose Parade on television, her dad would always make a point to mention how he took her mom right there to the Norton Simon Museum on their first date. As soon as she had a free day, Lina rushed to the Norton Simon. From that day on, her life as she knew it would be changed forever. Lina always had a tender spot in her heart for museums, but she felt as though this place was perfectly tailored to her exact taste in art. Paintings from Monet and Van Gogh, realistic Degas dancing figures, and Buddha statues all brought out a refreshing excitement in Lina that she wasn’t used to feeling. It was then when she realized that her true passion lied within the arts. Of course she could succeed in the business corporate world; she was smart and capable of doing whatever she set her mind to. But why waste her time and energy on something that didn’t incorporate at least some of what she was truly passionate for?

After going to the museum, Lina felt as though she had had some sort of awakening. Three months ago, Lina and her long-term boyfriend broke up. She struggled with no longer having a companion there to remind her of how much she was loved. She felt the pressures from society that being alone has some sort of negative connotation. After going to the museum and enjoying herself so much, she realized that she must learn to love and identify her true self. Now, she is slowly learning how to be more independent. She is becoming more comfortable with going places alone and doing things for herself that she actually enjoys, such as indulging in lattes while reading in coffee shops, practicing yoga, making day trips, and visiting art museums. A huge benefit of visiting the museum was Lina’s discovery of her newfound interest in Buddhism. She saw the statues and researched about the religion immediately after she got home. She was intrigued by the self-awareness valued so highly in Buddhism. “In mindfulness one is not only restful and happy, but alert and awake.” This excerpt from The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation by Thích Nhất Hạnh shows how critical being self-aware is in order to reach happiness, which is something everyone wants out of life. For the first time in her life, Lina is actually putting herself, her needs, and her own desires first.

Lina will have to decide whether to follow “society’s rules” and play it safe, or do something more risky that she is truly passionate for. In the end, she realizes that she can attempt to do a combination of both. She will talk to her art history teacher, with whom she has built a good relationship with, and she will introduce Lina to a career path that she had never even given much thought to: being an art dealer. Lina will complete her degree in business and apply her knowledge of how the market operates to her job as an art dealer.

The actress that I believe would be perfect for Lina would be Jennifer Lawrence. She is well-liked and respected by young-adults everywhere and I believe she would beautifully bring Lina’s character to life. I want Lina to be someone to look up to, and I know that many young girls in particular already view Jennifer Lawrence as a great role model. Another significant character would be Lina’s art history professor, Mrs. Groff. I would choose Julianne Moore to play her character because I think she would be able to portray the perfect balance of quirkiness and intelligence that a typical art history professor embodies.

The main purpose of Heart over Head is to call attention to the importance of self-discovery. This is something Lina has always struggled with because she has been too afraid of “being free” and letting go of society’s expectations. Chris Barker’s book Cultural Studies: Theories and Practice explains that “there is no known culture that does not use the pronoun ‘I’ and which does not therefore have a conception of the self and personhood. However, the manner in which ‘I’ is used, what it means, does vary from culture to culture.” Barker mentions the fact that some cultures view personhood as “inseparable from a network of kinship relations and social obligations.” Similar to this is Stuart Hall’s analysis of the sociological subject. His theory explains how the inner core was formed in relation to “significant” others. Hall also discusses the “post-modern subject,” who assumes different identities at different times. This idea of a constantly evolving “self” is what I find so intriguing and what I believe many viewers can relate to. People shouldn’t feel that they are tied down to a certain image of themselves just based on decisions they’ve made in the past or what society tells them. I would like Lina to be seen as someone who has grown to understand that being alone does not mean that you’re lonely; but instead it allows you to find out who you are and what you love.

Works Cited:

Barker, Chris. Cultural Studies: Theory and Practice. 4thth ed. London: Sage, 2012. N. pag. Print

Hall, Stuart , David Held, Don  Hubert, and Kenneth Thompson. "The Question of Cultural Identity." Modernity: An Introduction to Modern Sciences. Malden: Blackwell, 1996. 597-600. Print.

Hanh, Thích. The Miracle of Mindfullness: A manual on meditation. Revised ed. Boston, Mass.: Beacon Press, 1987. Print.

Korkki, Phyllis. "The True Calling That Wasn't." nytimes.com. N.p., 17 July 2010. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/18/jobs/

Bond and Orientalism

“It is quite common to hear high officials in Washington and elsewhere speak of changing the map of the Middle East, as if ancient societies and myriad peoples can be shaken up like so many peanuts in a jar.”
― Edward W. Said

This week we addressed the topic of Orientalism. Edward Said's take on Orientalism allows us to consider how much we really do partake in it. In relation to Orientalism, the East is negatively perceived as engaging in totalitarianism and oppression. Post World War II, the world was essentially divided in two. There was the Imperialist Capitalist and the Communist Progressive. We watched scenes from the James Bond movie Goldfinger and related it to the idea of Orientalism as well. In the film, James Bond represents a number of things. Essentially, he embodies the values of Western culture. He is tall, handsome, well-liked, and strong, all while representing individualism, freedom, security, and capitalism. The enemies in the film are representations of Eastern culture. We have to consider why all of this is relevant. There is a destabilized environment which leaves room for the USSR to take control. Bond portrays the "ideal British man"/ "English gentleman," in order to maintain Britain as a global power. There is also the whole concept of the "Bond girl." In the 1960's films, the Bond girl is tailored to meet Bond's every move. As the films has progressed though, the Bond girl has evolved to be more independent, strong, and self-sufficient.

"If You Don't Like It, Leave"

This week we explored the realms of old world order vs. new world disorder. We also focused on the concept of globalization. Through globalization, we can see how the economy divides the way culture operates. Professor Wexler related globalization to "border-crossing." An example that our textbook mentions is the rising popularity of "Bollywood" here in the United States. The movie Slumdog Millionare was a huge hit, being praised by many critics and winning several academy awards and golden globes. I even see small examples of globalization in my personal life on a daily basis. At the CSUN SRC, they offer several group exercise classes all throughout the week. You can enroll in a variety of classes, including belly-dancing, yoga, and tai-chi. I think this is very beneficial because it allows us to be more culturally aware and exposes us to new ideas. Earlier in the week we watched a Charlie Chaplin scene from Modern Times and compared it to Alec Baldwin's speech in the film Glengarry Glen Ross. In the Charlie Chaplin scene, we see the concept of Fordism. The workplace is an assembly line and there is a division and specification of labor. Without one person or if one step is skipped, the whole end result is ruined. The speech from Glengarry exemplifies the idea of new world disorder. Alec Baldwin is like a military sergeant. He is talking to the men and showing them how replaceable they are. If they do not close the sale, someone else will. In one part of this scene, he tells one of the men that being a "nice father" doesn't mean anything. This just shows how with this "new-world disorder," family values are not as important as before. Alec Baldwin is there to tell them they need to improve and close their sales while simultaneously saying that they are not good enough and will never be like him."Id wish you good luck but you wouldn't know what to do with it if you got it." The two scenes both perfectly exemplify the shift from old world order to new world disorder. 

The Rom Com

This past week in class, we discussed the “Rom Com,” or Romantic Comedy. Traditionally, there are three main stages in the romantic comedy: 1.) Boy meets girl, 2.) Boy loses girl, 3.) Boy gets girl. There are several ideologies that are presented in many romantic comedies. There is often the element of sex, who wants what when, the idea that love is “the norm”, monogamy, and marriage. If some of these elements are not obvious, more often than not, they are implied. In class we watched the movie “10”. The movie is basically about a man going through a mid-life crisis. One day he sees a random woman and instantly becomes intrigued and obsessed with her. He thinks she is the epitome of perfection; a “10.” What stuck out to me most in the movie was the scene after George and Jenny had just gotten intimate, which did not exactly go as George had planned. He finally realized that he had put Jenny on some pedestal that she would never be capable of reaching because that was not who she really was. In a sense, Jenny provided a mirror to George of himself, and he didn’t like it. Today, there are a lot of romantic comedies that are not traditional, but often still contain the elements typical of a rom com. Movies like Knocked Up, The Proposal, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall are all recent films that don’t necessarily present the stages of the romantic comedy in a specific order, however those elements of sex, love, and a happy ending are still present. I think this says a lot about our culture. Even with films like “No Strings Attatched” and “Friends With Benefits”, which start off with a relationship based strictly on sex only, they still focus on the love and relationship which builds between the two main characters. Finding true love is very important us, even if some of us don’t want to admit it.

Gender Roles

This week in class we discussed several readings, including the Simone De Beauvoir’s “The Second Sex”, Anne Waldman’s “Feminafesto”, and Shakespeare’s “Taming of The Shrew.” Beauvoir’s piece brings attention to the binary relationship between men and women. It talks about how a woman is incomplete without a man, and how essentially a man creates a woman; making women the “second sex.” Talking about this led to a class discussion about other binaries, including the “master/slave” relationship. The slave must come to consciousness that the master does not have all the power and is nothing without them. The master has to see the slave as his equal, because knowledge comes from both of them. Relating it back to the man/woman binary, Professor Wexler mentioned how the repressive apparatus is the very means of normalization. There was one line from “Feminafesto” which I particularly enjoyed: “I propose a utopian creative field where we are defined by our energy, not by gender.” I think this is a vital line because it shows the one thing that many feminists are striving for. Society has certain stereotypes for gender roles, and if anyone steps outside of those “boundaries,” it is almost as if a little red flag goes up. More often than not in the media, women are portrayed as being sexy, sensual beings and men are shown as being overtly masculine and strong. When society sees these images in the media, many of which are photo shopped, they strive to be like them because that is the example. We as a whole need to recognize that just because we are not like those images we see, doesn’t mean that anything is wrong with us.

Creating a Superhero: The Reader

         

Jesse, better known by his superhero name The Reader, was born in Paris, France on March 5th, 1988. He is twenty five years old and currently resides in the United States in the city of Los Angeles. He moved to the United States with his family when he was ten years old. He graduated high school at the top of his class and continued on to college at UCLA. He had a loving mother, father, and older brother, all of whom he looked up to dearly.

Just before his first year of college, Jesse and his family were going on their annual family vacation when they got into a terrible car accident. The impact of the truck crashing into them was so severe that all of his family was killed instantly. Jesse was in a coma for one week, and after that, his life changed forever. He woke up dazed and confused. He was devastated to find out the tragic news about his family. He knew life had to go on, so he promised himself he would do whatever it took to make them proud. It was soon after that when he realized that he had the ability to read the minds of others. He is able to instantly empathize with how someone is feeling and see where the roots of their feelings stem from. Although he is a super hero, his powers do have limitations. Sometimes the thoughts he reads come out unclear or in fragments, and if he stays in one person’s mind for too long, the person will notice. Jesse is handsome, six feet tall, with dark hair and vibrant blue eyes. When he is in full costume as The Reader, he wears a full black body suit with bright blue streaks on it. He has a black eye mask which allows his piercing blue eyes to shine through.

The Reader uses his powers to protect his fellow citizens and military forces. The villains are everyday criminals and people who are plotting against the country. Superheroes are very rare and unusual in the city of LA. The majority of people embrace The Reader and look to him for help. They admire how he has not let the tragic events which he has gone through stop his own life from continuing, and are grateful that he is using his power to prevent evil from occurring. However, people do feel as if their thoughts are not secure and are being invaded. They do not completely trust the reader and some feel a sense of uneasiness around him. They almost view him as a "Big Brother" figure, considering that he is always watching and can be aware of what is going through people's minds at any given time.

 The Reader is needed to keep citizens safe from the schemes of criminals and for military reasons (i.e. figuring out the plans for a terrorist attack and preventing it from occurring.) At the end of the day, The Reader is utilizing his power to help others to the best of his ability. Like Moss mentions in his article, many of today's superheroes are flawed. The same goes for Jesse/The Reader. He had to learn to live his life without the support of his family. Many people can empathize with that, whether they have lost loved ones or if they grew up in a broken household. The fact that The Reader is not perfect is what makes him more real and relatable. Humans have a desperate need to connect with one another, and they want to look up to someone who they can relate to. The people of Los Angeles and the United States as a whole would be in danger and at risk without the Reader and his ability to dip into the minds of others. My superhero suggests that the mind is a very powerful tool. The Reader had to set his mind to go on with his life after a terrible tragedy, and used the power that he was given to help others and himself. He illustrates how knowledge really is power and that being in tune with the feelings and thoughts of both yourself and others can promote positivity.

 

Who Wants To Be An Elephant Man?

For our presentation, my group chose the play “The Elephant Man” by Bernard Pomerance. I found this storyline about John Merrick’s deformities and how people viewed him on a daily basis to be extremely touching and eye-opening. To me personally, the most prominent themes of the play are beauty and loneliness. Both of these themes can relate and are directly correlated to popular culture today. I contributed to this project in numerous ways. I knew that I wanted to do well on this assignment, so I decided I was going to make every effort I could to achieve my goal. Our group decided that we needed to compare schedules to plan out a suitable meeting time. Considering there are nine in our group, we needed to know when everyone was available. I quickly e-mailed my group members the days and times that I would be free to meet. After the majority of our group had sent their availability times, I compared everyone’s schedules and came to the conclusion that the most ideal time for most of us to meet was on a Saturday afternoon at CSUN’s Oviatt Library. I took on a leadership role and e-mailed my group about the meeting time. I left my contact information and explained that if anyone could not make the meeting, they should still come up with ideas and communicate them with the group via e-mail. Two other group members and I attended our first official group meeting at the library to discuss our ideas and plan out how we would engage the class in a discussion about this play. We met for two hours, brainstorming ways to tell the class about “The Elephant Man” in an interesting way. We discussed the themes of the play, and I contributed my view on how social class and the perception of beauty are weaved throughout the story. I explained how I was particularly intrigued by Mrs. Kendal’s character. She is a beautiful on the inside and out, and both she and Merrick were able to step beyond their boundaries of their own class and looks to form a seemingly genuine friendship. I also brought up the idea of how our society and popular culture are so intrigued by abnormalities.  There are plenty of reality shows based on the lives of people who do not fit the image of what is “beautiful.” After we discussed our ideas of theme, each of us was assigned to come up with five creative questions regarding the play to incorporate into the activity we would be performing in class. Since we decided on involving the class through a game of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” I came up with the idea of giving the winning team Mother’s Circus Cookies, since it perfectly correlates with the “circus freak” nature of the play. Our group planned on meeting once more and I attended, along with six other members. We discussed in detail the rules and outline of our classroom activity, and I contributed my idea on how I thought the order of our presentation should take place. Overall, I know I was a great asset to this group. I promptly responded to any e-mails or texts sent my way, attended meetings, and presented my views and ideas on the play to my fellow group members. I am proud of our work and hope the class finds our game engaging and educational.

 

 

 

 

How Do You Know Who You Are?

One of the stand out moments to for me this week in class was when we were asked the question. "How do you know who you are?" I believe that our interests, values, and behavior on a daily basis all contribute to who we are as a person. However, I also believe that we are frequently evolving as individuals due to everything that happens around us. Becuase of this, we can't limit ourselves to a certain idea of who we think we are, since it may change in a week. 

Planting a Problem

     This week in my English 313 pop culture class, my professor showed us scenes from the musical "The Music Man.” I have never seen this film before, so I was eager to find out the reason why we were watching it. The scene we watched was when Harold Hill starts singing and convinces the whole town that the new pool table for billiards will bring nothing but trouble for everyone. I was amazed how he achieved this so quickly and successfully! He planted a seed into the townspeople’s heads by saying that if they didn’t follow him, their children would become corrupt! Most parents feel some sort of parental responsibility to keep their kids in check, so they had no problem listening to Harold if it was for the good of their children. This correlates directly to salespeople and the marketing world. Just like Harold, marketers pay attention to consumers’ needs and have a target audience that they are trying to appeal to. After they convince their audience that they have some kind of problem, the salespeople introduce their product or idea and are very good at convincing people that their way is the solution to the problem. I happen to be a marketing major, so I know how crucial it is for companies to empathize with consumers and seem like they are catering to their needs. Pulling on heart strings and bringing the well-being of one’s family into play definitely works for many salespeople’s advantage, as it did for Harold. These days it seems like companies are ruling the world. They introduce us to a “problem” that we may not have even been aware of, and make us believe that that problem is important enough for us to pay attention to and fix by using their product.  It is definitely something to think about, so maybe next time you won’t be so quick to feel a “need” for this weeks’ hot new item.

 

 

Intro to Popular Culture

Popular culture influences us on a daily basis, even if it's in a subtle manner. Whether it is music, literature, fashion, film, or social networking, there is at least one category that each of us enjoy hearing about. For this reason, it is important that we share what we know about popular culture on a global level. These days, the media provides a wide range of sources from which we can easily access our information. But what is "the media"? Essentially, it is a way for us all to communicate and discover what the current leading topics are. This can be done via blogging, watching videos, browsing the web, or simply getting a notification from a news app on your smart phone. Just like with technology, what's current in popular culture changes at a rapid pace as well. The term 'mainstream' frequently comes into play when looking at what's trendy with the younger generation. With the radio for example, there is always a certain amount of songs from various artists that are considered to be mainstream because most people are at least somewhat familiar with them since they are so constantly played. These artists are swiftly interchanged within the mainstream group. Apart from the fact that we are constantly craving change, I'm interested in exploring the characteristics that make certain artists gain popularity over others. These days, everyone wants to fit in in one way or another, while simultaneously trying to stand out. For example, many celebrities have generously chosen to donate a portion of their money to charities. Some have even developed their own charities, which have grown to be very successful. If we see popular icons donating their money for a good cause, we may get inspired to do so ourselves. In an effort to work for a good cause but do something a bit different, the company that makes TOMS shoes decided that for every pair of shoes sold, they would donate one pair to someone in need. This is great example of how even businesses are paying attention to pop culture. Many people model their own style after their favorite celebrity. Today there are clothing lines and even makeup collections which can help you achieve that celebrity's look. This is aimed to aid the consumer in keeping up with the latest styles that their favorite celebrity embodies and make it their own. Literature is another field that is heavily influenced by what is popular. If someone reads a book which they immensely enjoy, then they are going to spread the word about it. Soon, a large group of people are reading it and raving about how good it is, peaking the interest of others. Even if someone is on the opposite side of the world, they now  can still have access to these highly read books at tips of their fingers via e-books, and don't have to miss out just because it may not be available at their local bookstore. It is clear to see that we are all intertwined through popular culture. There are always new ideas to be discussed and trends to be set that will impact the way society thinks.