Assignment 1-4-6 - Analysis # 5

Analysis #5

Throughout the course, I was amazed that mostly every week the theories that were discussed relating to popular culture directly applied to my popular culture topic, Harry Potter.  The discussions on Ritual and Stereotype (Module 3), Heroes and the Cult of Celebrity (Module 4), and Formulas (Module 5) I feel best related to my topic and therefore made it easier to analyze my topic in a way that I never thought of before. 

I think the most interesting analysis that I uncovered with my topic was the theory of the formula and how it related to numerous things in our popular culture from television, video games, music, books, and movies.  I thought it was interesting how my topic was very formulaic when you begin to compare other popular franchises in our popular culture such as Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings series to name a few.  Although they are all years and years apart and were huge successes in their time, the formula behind them never really changed which may be a reason why they are successful and memorable in our popular culture even though the stories behind them are very different from each other.

After analyzing my topic through the theories given from this course, I have come to understand that although I had found my topic interesting merely for my own entertainment, the topic itself is a reflection of the values that our society finds important at this point in time that is delivered through our popular culture.  I think that there is more “beneath the surface” to understand about my topic than merely a commercially successful book and movie franchise but rather what this topic represents about our society and popular culture through analysis of the different facets of how the story of Harry Potter is written and shown in the movies.

Assignment 1-4-5 - Analysis # 4 - Formula's

In general, when we watch movies or read books, we form a generalization as to how the movie or book will play out and try to predict how it will end.  This notion may not be first and foremost on our mind when being entertained but the idea is there in the background (our subconscious perhaps) as to how the “story” will end.  This idea is not something new but rather purposeful because most of these types of entertainment follow a type of formula(s) that follows a type of predicable order with the same outcome (Franklin University 2012). 

A very basic example that exists in numerous adventure stories and movies is that “the hero will always win in the end”.  In Harry Potter, Harry does finally defeat Voldemort at the conclusion of the story.  In Star Wars, Luke Skywalker defeats Darth Vader.  In Lord of the Rings, Frodo destroys Sauron by destroying the ring that was given to him.  All of these stories cannot be more different but the basic formula that is used remains the same.  The heroes in these stories eventually win in the end.

Another element that was formulaic in Harry Potter and in the other two stories mentioned is that the hero may have close companions who may be considered “unusual” or social outcasts that will give support to the hero and will help him throughout the story (Wysaki 2011).  In Harry Potter, Harry has Ron and Hermione for best friends.  In Star Wars, Luke gets help from R2-D2 and C-3PO.  In Lord of the Rings, Frodo is aided his close friends Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandybuck, and Peregrin Took.

Going back to the Hero formula, the villain always has some type of goal that follows a formula where they want to take control of something for their own (Wysaki 2011). Voldemort wants to take control over the magical world and eventually the nonmagical world in Harry Potter.  Darth Vader wants to take control of the galactic empire in Star Wars.  Sauron wants to retrieve his ring to come into full power to take over middle-earth in the Lord of the Rings.

I think that these types of formulas are always followed to some extent with a few twists depending on the story.  Because these formulas are so ingrained into our culture in the form of media or entertainment, I don’t think it’s something we actively think about because it’s simply always present.  I believe that it is important to have formulas in stories because they provide the basic outline to how our culture and society is feels about certain issues or events that are going on today.  If they really wanted to, one could make a story/movie that follows the opposite of the established formulas that are used such as having the antagonist become the victor in the end but will these stories be commercially successful or be accepted at this point in time compared to their formulaic counterparts?

 

References

Franklin University (2012). Module 5: Formulas. Popular Culture.   Retrieved from            https://my.franklin.edu/myfranklin/GetCourseView.do?sectionId=31900

Wysaki, Jeff (2011). The Successful Movie Formula.  Retrieved from http://www.pleated  jeans.com/2011/06/07/the-successful-movie-formula/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assignment 1-3-2 - Journal Article Analysis

Journal Article Analysis

Turtle Power!: How Four Mutant Teenagers Nuked the Entertainment Industry by John Bisges

One of my favorite cultural icons growing up during the late 80s early 90s was the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  From their humble origins in comic books to the transition to a popular cartoon on television, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise began to take America by storm reaching a fever pitch with the release of a full length real life feature film in 1990 titled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the sequel in 1991 called TMNT II: The Secret of the Ooze.  In this article John Bisges analyzes the impact of the TMNT phenomena (through their movies) on our culture, what these popular culture icons represent, and how this series was a reflection of our own society and culture at that point in time with acknowledgement of real world events that had affected American culture shortly before the TMNT presence in our mainstream media.

John first analyzes the nuclear related origins of the Ninja Turtles and what messages did this have on our culture at that time.  The TMNT were not the first characters to gain special powers through mutation, in fact mutation is not a new topic in the world of comic book characters.  For example, in the X-Men series most of the characters have powers through genetic mutations where they are represented as unusual leaps in human evolution that are uncommon.  In the case of the TMNT origins, these characters gain their powers from direct exposure to nuclear waste from a discarded canister.  The turtles (ordinary turtles at first) and Splinter (their mentor and a rat) gain rapid humanoid growth and intelligence due to exposure from discarded nuclear material given credence to a more positive “spin” on the effects of living in a nuclear age where accidents involving nuclear waste/materials can be commonplace (Bisges, 2008).

John points out how the series portrays radioactivity as a mysterious force that can give you powers in contrast to the views of the American culture during the 1950s where this topic was something that was thought of fearfully.  This of course, is logical because unlike the turtles who gained intelligence and rapid growth, human exposure to radioactivity would result in sickness and certain death.  He further draws an interesting similarity on how these characters grow and gain powers which they use to “save the day” using their newfound powers in comparison to the attitudes of countries that found the power of radioactive materials in the form of nuclear weapons.  Unfortunately, these countries did not always have such a positive attitude in spite of this new “power”.  

The TMNT main antagonist is the Shredder (not mutated, normal human, from Japan), who forms a group of loyal teenagers to engage in criminal activity and follow his leadership.  John ties this character as some communist dictator who demands the sacrifice of individualism for the good of the group which is what the Shredder expected from his followers demanding fierce loyalty.  In the film, the turtles easily defeat the Shredder, which John concludes represents newly formed nuclear power of the United States in response to Japan at the conclusion of World War II.  He also finds it interesting that in this story, the carelessness of having nuclear waste left in a populated area is not a negative but rather a positive since this is the source of the humans salvation in the form of the turtles “saving the day” instead of the whole death by radiation exposure thing.

I think the authors view on this popular culture subject was very interesting and I agree with the conclusions that he came up with comparing our culture and social attitude to this series and what it represented even though the portrayal was overt in nature.  Growing up, I (along with numerous other kids) simply thought it was form of entertainment with cleverly marketed characters that gained prominence from a simple cartoon to pop culture icons that spawned a lucrative franchise.  Of course, there was no way I would understand (at that point in time at my age) the cultural impact and messages that this series had on American culture.  He draws upon American history and the culture of the time and ties the background and story of the TMNT to be actually rooted in actual events that happened in the recent past and attitudes towards contrivertial topics such as nuclear material.

I think that John sheds an interesting light, on a very well known franchise and popular culture icon in American culture from the 1990s.  I think his article was important in analyzing this one small aspect of popular culture for a particular time period because he points out the social attitudes of American culture at that point in time which is cleverly masked in a popular cartoon and subsequent movies that had influence in shaping most of the people’s opinions about a controversial subject and served as a reminder of recent historical events.  It is interesting to note that there is news of a reboot film by Michael Bay in the works scheduled for release in 2014.  I am curious to see how or if this film will address our culture and recent events that have affected the United States in current times.

 

Reference

Bisges, John (2008) Turtle Power!: How Four Mutant Teenagers Nuked the Entertainment Industry. The Journal of Popular Culture, Vol 41, No. 6, 2008.  Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

 

Assignment 1-4-4 - Analysis # 3 - Hero's and Celebrity

Hero

The idea of a Hero exists across many different cultures, past and present and is often represented through writings, art, and other forms of communication.  In our time this depiction is readily available through the media.  In any representation, heroes and their actions often embody or express the highest ideals of the representative culture (Franklin University, 2012).  This can be shown as individual greatness in physical and/or mental attributes such as strength, bravery, intelligence, and leadership to name a few.  Additionally a hero will usually have some type of weakness or personal flaw; this may be expressed through a physical weakness such as Superman’s weakness to kryptonite or a mental/emotional weakness such as Bruce Wayne who is traumatized after witnessing the murder of his parents by a mugger when he is a child (Franklin University, 2012).

In the Harry Potter series, Harry is shown to possess these qualities although he does not automatically have all of them from the start but rather progresses to having these heroic traits with each book/film.  Harry does not have extraordinary strength or intelligence, but rather is helped by those how may possess these traits such as his friends or professors.  Harry does however have a strong moral code that he stands by which is demonstrated in situations where he could take the easy way out but chooses not to because it is morally wrong.  He becomes a leader among his friends in his quest against Voldemort throughout the series.  

Like most hero’s, he does endure his weakness/personal flaw by not having his parents with him growing up.  Similar to the Batman story, Harry’s parents are both murdered in front of him but he is only a baby when it happens unlike Batman who was a child.  Throughout the story, other characters remind him of this loss both literally and figuratively and I think his loss at not having an immediate family would be considered a weakness or flaw in regards to a hero archetype.        

The cult of Celebrity

            Unlike a hero, a Celebrity may not necessarily possess heroic traits but may be considered a hero (to an individual) nonetheless because of the degree of public interest and appeal among the people and popular culture.  Most of the time, it is the prominence in a particular field or the actions or events that a person does or undergoes that makes a celebrity recognized to stand out among their own peers.  There are many examples of this in the sports and entertainment field where specific individuals rise to prominence in their own respective fields such as well known athletes, actors, and singers (Brockes, 2010).    

            In the Harry Potter series, Harry is also considered a type of celebrity among his peers.  Throughout the book, we learn that Harry is known to be the only person to survive a spell that normally kills a person, the same spell that killed his parents and left Harry unharmed as a baby.  Like the common celebrity, Harry attains a degree of public interest among the people who know of him and his fellow students and professors once they hear of his name.  They even give him a title because of this circumstance “The boy who lived”, and although Harry had no control over the events that occurred when he was a baby, he is stuck with a form of celebrity status (to a degree) in the books among the other characters in the series.

 

References

Brockes, Emma (April 17, 2010). "I want to be famous". London: Celebbuzz.            http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/17/i-want-to-be-famous. Retrieved          October 21, 2012.

Browne, R. B. (2005). Profiles of popular culture: A reader. Madison, WI: The University of        Wisconsin Press.

Franklin University (2010). Module 4: Heroes and the Cult of Celebrity. Popular Culture.   Retrieved from https://my.franklin.edu/myfranklin/GetCourseView.do?sectionId=31900

 

Assignment 1-4-3 - Analysis # 2 - Ritual and Stereotypes

Stereotypes:

When most people think of stereotypes in the Harry Potter series, they might refer to the common theme that the Malfoy family believes in which is that pure bloods are superior and non-purebloods are beneath them and lowly.  This stereotype leads certain characters in the series to have prejudice among each other even though they are different from regular humans who cannot perform magic like they can.   Interestingly enough in the very beginning of the series the readers are given stereotypes about the students themselves when they are being placed in their respective houses.  An example of this is the song that the sorting hat sings when describing the four houses:

You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folks use any means
To achieve their ends.

(Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, page 117)

Each description of the houses sets the reader up with stereotypes of the characterics that the student will have depending on their house.  This depiction is then followed throughout the series.  Students in the Gryffindor house are described as being brave; Hufflepuff students are said to be loyal; the Ravenclaw house is shown to be intelligent; finally, the Slytherin house students are described being cunning which is synonymous with being evil in addition to having the books main antagonist being from the Slytherin house which does not help with their stereotype.

Ritual:

The song described above is part of an important ritual that all new students must undergo before they start school.  This represents a sort of initiation ritual that that students sometimes undergo when starting school or joining social clubs.  The book also shows that the student observe certain holidays like we do (although they are named differently) such as Halloween and Christmas.  Furthermore, they also are enthusiastic about their sports just like we are instead following their own game called Quidditch.






References:

Rowling, J. K., & GrandPré, M. (1998). Harry Potter and the sorcerer's stone. New York: A.A. Levine Books.

Analysis

Article: Boardwalk of Dreams: Atlantic City and the Fate of Urban America

Author: Bryant Simon

In this article, Bryant Simon discusses the rise and fall of Atlantic City.  He describes Atlantic City was the original tourist destination long before Disneyland and was meant to appeal to middle class Americans or people who wanted to enter the middle class.  The original idea for the city was a destination for whites founded on the ideals of both removing class lines while reinforcing racial barriers.  The problem was that the city did not take into account what would happen after segregation ended. 

I think that although the article describes what specifically happened to Atlantic City, the premise behind the purpose of this destination was founded on the ideal or myth of the American Dream.  Because this location what built to celebrate the success of or access to the middle class, it represented a facet of the American Dream myth.  By becoming somewhat successful, your social status allowed you access to this destination which afforded you unique experiences and products.  I believe that for a time, Atlantic City was iconic to our popular culture by catering to a specific class of people who were interpreted to be living or on the verge of accessing the American Dream.

Icon Analysis

Icons can be portrayed as many different things from objects to people.  They all represent some type of belief or myth that is important to our culture and often represent something larger than themselves.  My first icon is the Lego.

This line of products is mainly marketed as a toy for children but is often appeals to children and adults alike.  I think this product is widely recognized by most children as one of the first toys they begin to play with.  I think this product is very unique as it is such a simple idea with almost limitless possibilities as to how it can be used.  I think the only limits are a person's imagination.  I feel that this is one of the earliest toys that most children interact with that is not only educational but also very fun to play with that encourages creativity.  Of course now this toy is not only marketed to children but also branded by franchises requiring much more complexity and thought but the fact remains that this product is one of the first experiences that a child has to express their creativity and imagination is often fondly remembered into adulthood.  Due to this I think this item is one of many icons in our popular culture. 

 

My second icon is Michael Jordan.  For many of us, we can remember Michael Jordan not only a basketball player for the Chicago Bulls, but a superior athlete that transcended his sport to become appealing to people all over the world whether you were a basketball fan or not.  I think whether you knew the game of basketball or not, most people knew the name Michael Jordan.  Long after he retired, lots of people still compare him as a benchmark for new younger athletes in the sport to be compared against (among other legends).  His broad appeal made him easily marketable which further enhanced his image by his line of sneakers and other numerous endorsements.  I think he represents greatness that one can achieve in their individual discipline, in this case the sport of basketball.

My third and final icon is Frank Sinatra.  Like my previous icon Frank Sinatra also transcended his respective industry.  He was film actor and singer who released numerous albums.  He is also recognized in our culture as a unique individual who is remembered by his superb singing that is still not matched today.  There were many singers in his time that created music in the same genre but none could come close to match Frank's popularity.  I feel that his music was not only great for its time but is also still appealing today and is almost impossible to match by todays artists.  Simply put, he was one of kind whose music is timeless (in my opinion).  The funny thing is his music was put out long before I was born (1980) yet it still appeals to me.