...Trends in Popular American Culture Gwendolyn M. Riley University of Phoenix SOC / 105 Deciding what is popular seems easy enough. It is what everybody likes or has heard about, what people are currently doing, wearing, eating or feeling. Our word popular derives from a Latin word populous which means “the people” so what is popular is what is “of the people”, it is what is as the dictionary says in one meaning, “frequently encountered or widely accepted”. In today’s society, culture can be defined in many ways. It can refers to the following of life including but not limited to language, arts & sciences, thought, spirituality, social activity and interactions. We can understand that culture is everyone in a society. This is because everyone in a society influences individual through social, political, personal and religious aspect. In the social trend in American culture, we can see how cell phone has changed communication dramatically. This is because cell phone is now accessible. I believe in the olden days, cell phone was not a popular thing but now in the new generation, it has changed. It is also because cell phone use can do things like surfing the net, texting and so on. Another trend that has become another popular American trend in the social aspect is networking such as: Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and these other entire dating website. It has become so popular that people are meeting other people through these sites. It is fascinating to see how...
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...Running head: MUSIC TRENDS IN POPULAR AMERICAN CULTURE Music Trends in Popular American Culture University of Phoenix There have been many trends in American popular culture dating back since America was founded, anytime an activity or a lifestyle became popular people wanted to follow it and millions did. This is the case with music; it has evolved over time yet remains one of the most popular aspects of American Culture. From 1606-1776 religious music was the first music of early colonists in what was known as The Colonial Era. Traditional English hymns were brought to America and singing the psalms was an early form of hymns. Folk music and ballads were the rage from 1776-1860 in the Revolutionary War era. Popular music just before and during the Civil War had to do with political and military events such as; Amazing Grace, Battle Hymn of the Republic and Dixie and the Star Spangled Banner was written during this time. In 1897 different composers give birth to America’s popular music industry, ending reliance on Europe. The turn of the century arrived and there was a period of excitement for the American Music Scene. During this time the “Western” musical genre spreads throughout western states and featured steel guitars and singing cowboys (Johnson, 2007). The Blues were also created during this time by ex-slaves that sang work songs filled with irony, imagery and love, offering relief from the tensions in their lives. Jazz was also developed in the 1900s...
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...Popular American Culture Diane Rembert Soc/105 July 03, 2012 April Miller Popular American Culture Culture is the complete array of erudite human behavior patterns. The word culture was first used by an English Anthropologist Edward B. Tylor in his book, Primitive Culture, published in 1871. Culture is an influential human means for survival, but it is a delicate trend. It is frequently shifting and easily lost because it exists only in one’s mind (O’Neil, 2006). America is a culture whom dictated by the many subcultures, which are known as the American citizens. Characterized by mass media such as; television, music, and magazines, pop culture sets a distinctive standard between beauty and acceptance.” Popular culture encompasses the most instantaneous and most fashionable elements in our lives which are often subject to rapid changes in a high tech world in which people are brought closer by the media” (Petracca & Madeleine, 2007, p. 2). Thus shaping the lifestyle of each American, giving new meaning to what Americans value and believe to be superficial, official, and artificial. Popular Culture and Major Trends Pop culture observes the trends, people and events that people form in their everyday American lives. In today’s society when one think of the word trend, subsequently defined as everything that happens in the general direction in which people or things tend to move towards (American popular culture,...
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...Popular American Culture SOC/105 March 11, 2013 Popular American Culture When examining popular American culture it is critical also to look at culture in its entirety. Understanding culture and popular American culture, and all its intricacies provides a view of the differences of each person we encounter daily. This paper defines culture and popular culture and also identifies three major trends in popular American culture, and how popular American culture affects personal decision making. Defining Culture The culture of the United States is predominantly a Western culture; however, we see the influence of Native Americans, African American, Latin Americans, Asians, and many other cultures. Culture identifies the behaviors, beliefs, and social forms, which are characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group and may include language, religion, social traditions, and music and arts. Define Popular Culture According to Petracca and Sorapure (2007), “Popular culture represents a common denominator, something that cuts across most economic, social, and educational barriers” (p. 3). Popular culture involves the immediate and contemporary aspects of our lives. These aspects are continuously evolving specifically because of the exceedingly technological world we live in, which exposes people to ever-present, various forms of mass media. The term media is commonly used to identify radio, music, Internet, television, print, film, and video, and it is in these forms...
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...Popular American Culture Paper Throughout this paper, the reader will get a better understanding of culture and popular culture, along with their definitions and examples of each. The reader will be told three major trends in popular American culture and their roles. Also, the reader will understand how popular American culture affects personal decision making. The reader will gain a better understanding of these three topics after absorbing the paper in its entirety. What is culture? What is popular culture? What is culture? The answer is: "Most social scientists today view culture as consisting primarily of the symbolic, ideational, and intangible aspects of human societies. The essence of a culture is not its artifacts, tools, or other tangible cultural elements but how the members of the group interpret, use, and perceive them. It is the values, symbols, interpretations, and perspectives that distinguish one people from another in modernized societies; it is not material objects and other tangible aspects of human societies. People within a culture usually interpret the meaning of symbols, artifacts, and behaviors in the same or in similar ways." (Banks, 1989) What is popular culture? The answer is: “Popular culture is the accumulated store of cultural products such as music, art, literature, fashion, dance, film, television, and radio that are consumed primarily by non-elite groups such as the working, lower, and middle class.” (Crossman, 2011) What are three major...
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...Examination of Popular American Culture Sheri Wisniewski SOC/105 University of Phoenix Abstract In this paper I will examine popular American culture. My paper will define what culture is and what popular culture is. I will also identify three major trends in popular American culture and I will explain how popular American culture affects personal decision making. Keywords: culture, popular culture, trends Examination of Popular American Culture Definition of Culture What is culture? According to Merriam-Webster there are three definitions of culture. They are “the beliefs, customs, arts, etc., of a particular society, group, place, or time, a particular society that has its own beliefs, ways of life, art, etc., and a way of thinking, behaving, or working that exists in a place or organization.” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture) Two of the definitions are very similar speaking about the beliefs, arts, etc. Those are the definitions I will be focusing on in this paper as I am going to be concentrating on people and not an organization. Definition of Popular Culture In the eBook Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture, “popular culture encompasses the most immediate and contemporary elements in our lives – elements which are often subject to rapid changes in a highly technological world in which people are brought closer and closer by the ubiquitous mass media.”(p. 3) Having access to media literally twenty-four hours...
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...Guide College of Humanities SOC/105 Version 5 Introduction to Popular American Culture | |Copyright © 2011, 2010, 2006, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This is an introductory course on modern American culture. The course focuses on the interactions between social forces such as advertising, media, and lifestyle and cultural trends in modern American society. Students are asked to cast a critical eye on current trends and changes in our culture. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. • Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality. Course Materials Petracca, M., & Sorapure, M. (2007). Common culture: Reading and writing about American popular culture (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. All electronic materials are available on the student website. |Week One: Overview of Culture ...
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...Popular American Culture SOC/105 October 31, 2012 S. C. Culture and Pop Culture The official definition of culture is “the customary beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group” (Webster Dictionary.com, 2012) whereas popular culture is the opposite of high cultural art forms like the opera, historic art, classical music, traditional theater or literature. It includes many forms of cultural communication, including newspapers, television, advertising, comics, pop music, radio, novels, movies, etc. In the beginning of the 20th Century," High art" was the realm of the wealthy and educated classes while popular culture or "Low art" is commercial entertainment for the lower classes. In the 1950s and 60s the gap between them closed with the rise of Pop Art” (Kartha, 2011, p.1). Pop culture is so prominent in society that it is almost impossible to escape its influence. This is especially true in America. As a result of easy access, children absorb huge amounts of information presented by the pop culture world, which influences and shapes their identities. However, not all of it is negative and if parents educate themselves and monitor their children’s activities, pop culture is often a positive influence that helps mold the children...
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...Running head: Popular American Culture Popular American Culture Cory James Soc/105 Clylinda Nixon June 13th, 2012 Popular American Culture Popular American culture is in one way or another is involved in everyone’s lives. Whether it is the music with listen to, the clothes we wear, the car we drive, or the movies we watch pop culture makes us who we are. Trends and Fads make up popular culture and tracts the ins and outs of what is going on from past to present. We look back and think about the fads that never stuck and the trends that define who we are today. Even in present time pop culture is constantly changing and us as people decide what stays and what goes. In pop culture it is important to look at the work culture to fully understand it. According to Live Science “culture is the characteristics of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts” Zimmerman (2012). Since different cultures are defined by their characteristics then pop culture makes up those characteristics. It is the music we listen to and the social habits we take up. Pop culture is the activities that are aimed at entertaining people in massive portions. In present time America pop culture as changed a lot due to the advancements in technology and the loss of religion in many homes. Some of the current fads that are here now but gone soon are reality TV shows like The Kardashian’s, Teen mom, and Jersey...
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...Popular American Culture The Real Housewives of Atlanta, New Jersey, Orange County, Beverly Hills, and Miami; Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta; along with various other “reality” television are some of the guilty programming that draws my attention. The integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations or b : the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group; also : the characteristic features of everyday existence (as diversions or a way of life) shared by people in a place or time (Merriam-Webster, Incorporated , 2013). Embracing culture, especially popular culture can have varying meaning depending on one’s environment. The recognition of the iconic one-liners, the names of “reality” television show stars that may otherwise go unknown to the American public is a key indicator of trends in American culture. Three trends in America’s societal popular culture seem to be the fascination with other individuals lifestyles or their reality, the shift in political participation could be considered a trend linked to the election of an African-American as president a president that made varying pop culture references during speeches (ESPN Internet Ventures, 2012), and a third trend may be the continuously growing popularity of hip-hop music. The impactful nature of the trends in pop culture from relating to politics to fashion sense, is impacted...
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...Popular culture has been traits that have been passed down from generation to generation. Today many people have come to understand culture to be everyone in today’s society. In today society the trends are what make up ones culture. Most people care about what everyone else thinks than what one actually feels or wants. Culture The study of culture is very important to our society some have been studying his or her past identities for years. Studying culture allows us as humans to understand each other as different people. American culture may be defined as a modern day way of life. The word culture can have many different meanings, for some people it can be appreciation of literature, music, art, food, and clothing. “Ray B Browne defined it as the cultural world around us that is our attitudes, habits, and actions: how we act and why we act; what we eat or wear; our buildings roads, our politics, and our religion.” (Wilson & Wilson 2001 p. 4) Trends When referring to the three major trends in popular American culture; one’s opinion it would be television, clothing, and video games. People in today’s society worry too much about what other people think about them. Take a young teenager in high school if she does not wear a certain type of clothing she can be bullied about it. If she wears a certain style of clothes that a re consider too revealing she will be stereotyped. When talking about television in one’s opinion the commercials that come on are always referring...
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...Popular American Culture Twame M. Williams Introduction to Popular American Culture SOC/105 May 20, 2010 Ms. Ardra J. Norman, LMSW Popular American Culture Popular American culture is what’s going on now. It is the way we do things in America now. It is the way we make decisions in life. Based upon our population, popular American culture surrounds itself around food, music, technology, schools, books, people, places, and things to do. The actual definition for popular culture is the elements of everyday life. When things happen in the world, people change. The media puts information out there for America to view and have options. People tend to follow the trends, the fads, the way that everyone else is leading the world to be. The inventory list that was created to form this paper started with how I viewed society and what was in it. Music, fast foods, grocery stores, clothes, and shoes are many artifacts that society and culture are built upon. In this list, comparisons have been made and some are most common than others. The knowledge and beliefs that people have show their attitudes and expectations of how society is run. When trends are set in a community, it is normally driven into them to be that way. Knowing that everyday life thrives upon all of this, it makes you see why changes are continuing to exist. Artifacts There are many artifacts tied into popular culture. Music is one of them....
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...Popular American Culture can easily be defined as those items that influence the American society as a whole. The things that influence those of us in America may not affect the European or Italian cultures in the same manner. These influences include public perception, attitudes and preferences. For instance, Americans are often identified with football. Football is a popular sport here in America and the fans of some teams have a culture of their own. The culture is set in tradition that has grown over the years. One of the assignments due this week was to complete an inventory of pop culture artifacts in my personal inventory. One of the common trends noticed in the inventory was the use of electronic devices as a part of my daily routine. I used my laptop to check weather, email, play games and review the news on a daily basis. I also used my cellular telephone to check email, play games and surf the Internet. I also noticed that I did these things around the same time each day. Personally I feel disconnected if I do not do these things several times a day. I did not use the laptop and my cellular telephone as much on Saturday but I made up for it on Sunday, to catch-up on the things that I missed. The common items in the inventory that appear more often than others are the Internet and my cellular telephone. Those items are used on a daily basis, almost hourly. The most common theme that I can identify is the need to know information immediately....
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...Culture Today The purpose of this paper in to inform my readers of the following topics: What culture is, and what popular culture is all about. I will also cover the three major trends that make up popular American culture. Lastly we will cover how popular American Culture affects personal decision making. Culture is the value in an individual or civilization that ascends for an anxiety for what is observed as admirable in arts, communication, custom, academic, quests. Culture to me is made up race, religion, age and gender. Simply culture is your background, your history and what makes you, you. Popular Culture is the total of thoughts, viewpoints, boldness, pictures, and former wonders that are inside the characteristic of a specified culture, Western culture and the evolving worldwide majority. Profoundly influenced by social media, this collection of ideas infuses the day to day lives of the civilization. Pop culture is on the rise; the fashion industry has grown and become a huge seller. We want to wear what the models wear but we do not have model figures. I am a plus size women and I love my curves, I was raised to thank God for what we have and to trust God for what we need. There are consequently many movements in the world as we know it today we will only be discussing the following social, religious and political. Social Culture is made of the type individuals are social groups, and environment in which you surround yourself. Being a military family we are intertwined...
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...How do popular culture trends affect your personal decision-making process? Is it possible to escape the consumption of popular culture? I believe that popular culture trends can affect your personal decisions because popular culture is an influence and a trend and I believe we are all part of this culture in one way or another. Social Media like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, and Yahoo have become a part of the majority of all people and this has become a trend and a part of popular culture that we adapt to and use in our daily lives. For Example purchasing Designer Clothes, Flat Screen TV’s and Purchasing Luxury Vehicles, Expensive Homes that you see on TV shows like MTV by Professional Athletes, Music or Movie Stars causes an affect and influences with people and we focus more on the Popularity than our necessities this leads to us focusing on wants instead of needs. I believe it is not possible because we cannot escape Popular Culture because For Example: the Television is an object that lets us watch what is going on in the media and this is around the world and the media focuses on promoting popular culture and popular culture around the world. Companies that have products and services that we desire are everywhere so there is no escape by products and services that we personally want that are trends and part of popularity that is part of our Popular Culture whether it’s in America or around the World. I personally believe that popular culture has always...
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