tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8685943936054176261.post188460349259658851..comments2022-04-10T01:26:25.205-06:00Comments on Communication and Popular Culture: Sample Blog #1Kevin Steinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11972544593687844002noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8685943936054176261.post-78150626550286838622016-01-11T22:59:39.390-07:002016-01-11T22:59:39.390-07:00Anddddd I just watched the video and realized we&#...Anddddd I just watched the video and realized we're not supposed to respond to the samples :( Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06476696429440133849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8685943936054176261.post-71275257843409253372016-01-11T22:49:10.711-07:002016-01-11T22:49:10.711-07:00American culture is as dynamic as our country and ... American culture is as dynamic as our country and communities itself. However, to me at least, the makeup of families is only facet of an area's culture. Therefore, it makes sense that since our culture is so ever changing, that there would be no societal "norm" for the family make up. <br /><br />When the shows "Leave it to Beaver" and "The Brady Bunch" aired on television there was most certainly a firmer sense of normality in the family unit. Within pop culture today there is rarely even a sense of family norms, or the traditional family unit now though. This can be seen in movies like "Step Brothers" or "Dan in Real Life," or “The Family Stone”. <br /><br />In chapter one of Brummet the author clearly explains the point that is being emphasized. That cultures are, "highly complex and overlapping." The text goes on to say that cultures can be very broad, they give the example of being American, or very small, such as the culture of SUU. <br /><br />The text also goes on to explain that there are two ways to thing of cultures in their complexity. The first is to recognize that there exist a, “great many things that go into making up the system of artifacts that is a culture.” The second way to consider the overlapping tendencies of culture is to acknowledge that, “there are simply not any ‘whole ways of life’ in which we immerse ourselves exclusively. We stand within a complex structure of ways of life, identifying with many different groups that may have very little in common with each other.” <br /> <br />Now that is has been established that families exist only as a part or aspect of a culture. The opening statement that America does not have a distinct culture really cannot be considered accurate. Not to argue that America does or does not have a distinct culture, but since families are the only aspect of culture discussed in this post, a more accurate statement would be, “the culture of families in America is not consistent.” <br /><br />(Disclaimer: I didn’t answer a specific discussion question, but wanted to address a larger aspect of the post- hope that’s okay)<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06476696429440133849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8685943936054176261.post-28071647968022314552016-01-11T15:04:39.368-07:002016-01-11T15:04:39.368-07:00Evan,
Great response to the posed question.
I used...Evan,<br />Great response to the posed question.<br />I used to say the same thing when people asked me years ago where my ancestors came from,...50% this and so on. I don't do it anymore. Like you say why emphasize that now in our day and age? Do people really care? <br />I am also interested in searching out my families ancestry, and I find lots of interesting facts; that for the most part our younger generation can't even relate to. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04803223716277748849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8685943936054176261.post-16882912714604779232016-01-09T20:08:21.505-07:002016-01-09T20:08:21.505-07:00When I think of American culture my mind goes dire...When I think of American culture my mind goes directly to those that immigrated here in the 1800’s 1900’s. I think of Europeans looking for a fresh start living in cramped conditions in the New York area yet somehow feeling grateful to be alive. I think of men setting out to make their situations better for them their families. I think of Edison and JP Morgan. We learned in school about these men and the American dream to own a house and twp cars and lots of stuff. Life was meant to be worked for and the more you worked the more you could have. I learned from my parents about having honor and to do what is deemed best. I heard stories of my grandfather migrating from Kansas to California during the dust bowl working as a dock worker then eventually starting his own plumbing business. My dad is also a plumber and an entrepreneur. My parents coming from an uneducated back ground pushed us as kids to become educated in hopes of getting a good paying job. I guess I have a bit of an entrepreneur spirit in me because currently I’m a hair stylist myself, I have never been to keen on working traditional jobs. <br /><br />In the last five years I have read a lot of books on opinions about the economy. My biggest influence comes from the writings of Buckminster Fuller and Seth Godin. Some people see these men as fanatics while I see them as ones who color outside the lines. Even though I learned about men who strove to find a better life the common theme I seemed to get was that those men had laid the foundation for us now and the best way to live life is through a good steady job. It bothered me that I did not enjoy conformity. Has anyone else struggled with aligning themselves with the contemporary ideas of the American dream such as buying a house and having a salaried job? I sure have, I am satisfied with my path now, maybe because I feel more aligned with those who immigrated and were doing the best they could not just trying to compete with others.<br /><br />My family is also a bit of a mixture but we do have a large piece of Scottish blood running through our veins. There was a point when people asked what are you? I use to say I was over 50 percent Scottish now I don’t put as much emphasis on it. I think I’m currently more concerned with the ancestry of my grandparents and what they did in their lives. I feel like I can trace some of my quirks and attributes to them and I am interested much more in how they conducted their lives, how they were parents, what they did for a living, etc. <br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05188344678681894484noreply@blogger.com