The Essence of Pop Culture
Uploaded by Riceburner8518 on Feb 27, 2001
“Talk about Pop Music, Talk about Pop Music…” was one of the most catchy phrases of the 1980’s. Just as in the 80’s, today we see many characteristics of “pop culture” effecting our lives. But, what is “pop culture?”
I spent some time online trying to answer my question and time after time I was led to the same direction: pop culture is what we see, hear, speak, and are otherwise exposed to on a daily basis. The infomercials we see late on television, the billboards we see on the side of the road, the junk mail we receive, the links on the web pages we visit, and the radio commercials we hear all tie together to form this idea of pop culture. These, plus many other aspects, form our minds and teach us how to be culturally smart. To be culturally smart is to understand and know pop culture. For example, if someone were to say “BUD!” it is automatically assumed that they would get a “WIES” in reply. If a person were to say “Just Do It!” Nike would be directly thought of.
What elements define “Pop Culture?” Television stars, such as Drew Carey; musicians, such as Santana; public figures, such as Monica Lewinski; politicians, such as Bill Clinton; athletes, such as Michael Jordan; large corporations with their slogans; and movies are all, but not limited to, pop culture. In a Journal I found online of a study of pop culture, it compared the link of religion and a pop culture icon, Star Wars. The study was conducted with people and it read:
“The comparisons and shared philosophies behind earthly religion and Luke Skywalker’s adventures, compound into many different avenues. It is easy to see that the intertextuality working between holy scriptures and the astral script of Star Wars produces an icon that just as readily accepts believers and disciples into its signification, as it does those moviegoers who seek a more temporal escape from reality. Why do many suspend belief while watching Star Wars and not while reading the bible? If Luke doesn’t seem to sway you in the direction of the force, play with the transcendence of Skywalker like the Vatican plays with the text of the bible, and soon you’ll have a new icon of salvation.”
This section from the journal explains that people are not looking at the full picture of the Bible (Christianity in this...