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Karl marx critique of capitalism
Karl marx critique of capitalism
Karl marx critique of capitalism
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The concept of popular culture impacts the everyday lives of people in society as it produces practices, beliefs and objects which influences people’s attitudes towards certain matters within society (McGaha, 2015). Hall (1981) describes popular culture as a “site where struggle for and against culture of the powerful is engaged” and “an arena of consent and resistance, where hegemony arises and where it is secured” (Hall, 1981:453). Therefore, as YouTube has arguably become a platform for generating and distributing popular culture, this assignment will critically assess whether YouTube’s platform supports or challenges Gramsci’s theory of Cultural Hegemony and the Marxist criticisms of Capitalism by focusing on the concept of the representation of female ‘beauty’ on YouTube. It begins with an introduction of what YouTube is and how it has become a form of popular culture followed by an analysis of the key representations of ‘beauty’ presented on YouTube. It then …show more content…
It involves the ability of a certain group to hold power over social institutions and influencing the norms, values, and behaviors of the rest of society; consequently, creating cultural hegemonic ideologies (Artz & Murphy, 2000:1). Furthermore, Cultural Hegemony functions by obtaining consent from the masses through their acceptance of these ideologies as standard social norms, when in reality they are designed with the illusion that they benefit all, although they may only benefit the ruling class (Artz & Murphy, 2000; Garner, 2007). Therefore, this concept can be witnessed through the analysis of YouTube’s representation of female beauty, as these representations can also reinforce cultural hegemonic ideologies which arguably only benefit the capitalist system (Burgess & Green,
She claims that it is “in our Sunday news. With our morning coffee…the endless commercials and advertisements we believe we pay no attention to” (149) By referring to background examples of the media’s omnipresent influence, she allows the reader to understand how easy it is for many women to get lost in the world of images. In addition, she notes that as a feminist professor of gender studies even she is not immune from the negative impacts of media culture. She organizes her argument in what seems to be almost a list; one by one, she gives her readers a multitude of examples detailing the many ways women and girls are being bombarded with various stimuli influencing ways they should act, dress, and
Far too often, we are influenced mentally and socially by Media. The new millennium has accepted all sources of media has almost more prudent source of information. As defined by The Merriam Webster Dictionary , Media is “a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression (Smiler).” For the purposes of this essay, I will condense the broad spectrum of media and focus specifically on these forms : print media, television , movies, and the internet. Within the Written composition, A trifling media written by Shakira Smiler, she carefully examines piece by piece why she believes not only men are trifling but as well how media has influenced why it's acceptable. Within her exposition, she speaks to infidelity , immaturity, and specifically, seeing
Omi claims that media and popular culture are two of the main culprits for the dissemination of a segregation ideology through music, movies and TV shows (Omi 114). According to Omi, media has the “ability to reflect the dominant racial ideology” and to “shape that ideology in first place” (Omi 115). These two sentences imply that Omi is not just blaming on media, but also on white people, who dominate communications and provide a better image of themselves in order to maintain the status of dominant culture. Moreover, Omi uses the concept of “representation” to claim that even the popular culture, which was supposed to be created by the people, brings segregating ideology on itself and do not contribute to the celebration of cultural diversity (Omi 120). Omi explains this belief of “representation” as a tool of segregation when stating that jokes and songs “reinforce stereotypes and rationalize the existing relations of social inequality” (Omi 121). Media and popular culture are outsiders, meaning that are not racist themselves, but according to Omi they are the main incentive to
Sima Qian (145-86 B.C.E.) author of the Document on Qin Shi Huang, the son Sima Tan, the Grand Historian of China. Sima Qian continued the work of his father as was the and is considered one of the great history writers of China. He was employed by the emperor, Qin Shihuang. Sima Qian wrote Shi Ji which is considered one of the more realistic historical records of the Qin Dynasty and Qin Shihuang.
Hegemony in Merriam- Webster dictionary is defined as the social, cultural, ideological or economic influence exerted by a dominant group. In analyzing this definition, according to Collins the ideological influences exerted by a dominant group would be wealthy white men placed on the top of the tiered structure. The tiered structure can be better understood when talking about hegemonic masculinity and hegemonic femininity, yet to be able to connect these ideas the history of hegemony needs to be explained. Hegemony comes from the Italian Communist Antonio Gramsci. According to Gramsci, hegemony correlates to ideological dominance. Ideological dominance does not mean physical power, but the dominance of ideas. Gramsci was troubled by how the upper class got into the minds of the lower classes, making a way through their minds to believe in their ideas. For example Collins elaborates this ideology by expressing how white Americans have socio control over Blacks beyond the plantation. Even though a black male might no longer be enslaved, his plantation mentality is still controlled. Gramsci states that we have been conditioned by our language to think and feel about thinking in particular ways that serve the purpose of those who implemented those ideologies developing into the “dominant ideology.” What this means is that since slavery, male and female black slaves have been conditioned to think that the purpose of them being is to be slaves, because the only way in controlling social order in capitalist society is with force and inferiority. Through such conditions and ideologies it is believed that it works to keep Black men and Black women centralized on blaming each other for the problems. This in turn allows for a more cohesive understanding of hegemony and will further explain Collins’s central argument of this hegemonic ideology and the functions of
Instead, women are being discriminated and treated as inferior due to the stereotypes that are portrayed in the media. The media creates and reproduces ways of seeing that at a minimum reflect and shape our culture. We can look at the media to understand more about a culture’s values and norms, if we realize the limitations of looking at the media. For example, one may ask, does the news based in the United Sates represent what the American culture is like, or only what stands out from everyday American culture? The answer to that is no. Instead, the media represents what it thinks it will be able to sell and is supported by advertisements. This includes violent acts, the sensationally and inappropriate. Jhally reminds us that “it is this male, heterosexual, pornographic imagination based on the degradation and control of women that has colonized commercial culture in general, although it is more clearly articulated in music videos” (Jhally 2007). Therefore, “media content is a symbolic rather than a literal representation of society and that to be represented in the media is in itself a form of power—social groups that are powerless can be relatively easily ignored, allowing the media to focus on the social groups that ‘really matter’” (Gerbner,
In assessing the impact and effect of popular cultural forms like MTV, it is important to acknowledge the extent to which, rather than having them imposed upon us, we may instead appropriate or assimilate parts, whilst choosing to reject or ignore the rest. This, of course, has the consumer or viewer acting (or perhaps more accurately interacting) as opposed to simply passively receiving (Philo par 16).Even though critics of MTV stand strongly against the passive consumer, th...
This essay discusses censorship and the way in which social media and consumer products affect and model an appropriate societal ‘literacy’ or view in particular regards to gender and race, to young children. A summary of the stereotypes displayed in several videos viewed on YouTube, as well as student’s own identified stereotypes, both in regards to race and gender, are displayed below (Alexander, 2011; BrokenXLoner, 2012; Lac, 2013; Walt Disney Pictures, 1998, 1994, 1992, 1967, 1955, 1953, 1941):
The issue of the relationship between the mass media and the popular culture has always been a controversial issue in social sciences. The political economists insist on the role of the media industry in the creation of this phenomenon of the twentieth century. Though, advocates such as John Fiske, argue that popular culture is actually the creation of the populous itself, and is independent of the capitalist production process of the communication sector. Basing his argument on the immense interpretive power of the people, Fiske believes that the audience is able to break all the indented meanings within a media message. He also believes- by giving new meanings to that specific message they can oppose the power block that is trying to impose its ideology to the public. Consequently, this anarchistic activity of the audience creates the popular culture as a defence mechanism. Even when we accept Fiske’s ideas, we can not disregard the manipulative power of the media and its effects on cultural and social life.
Strinati, D. (2004). An Introduction to Theories of Popular Culture (pp. 52-79). New York, NY USA: Taylor & Francis.
Ideology is “a system of meaning that helps define and explain the world and that makes value judgments about that world.” (Croteau & Hoynes, 2014). According to Sturken (2001), the system of meaning is based on the use of language and images or representation. Therefore, media texts come along and select what is “normal” and what is “deviant” to the extent that this hegemony of constructed meanings in the viewer’s head becomes “common-sense” (Gramsci in Croteau & Hoynes, 2014). From this standpoint, what America claims to be pop culture which is omnipresent in media internationally, is a representation, through “politics of signification” of what is right or wrong (Kooijman, 2008). An example of America’s cultural ‘manifestation’ is Mean Girls,
It is shocking to see the digression in humanity’s morals and values over the past decade. As cliché as it sounds, the media is the center of it all. The way women are being represented, from our television sets, the radio, pornography and even art has pushed beauty to the top of the list of controversial and widely debated topics around the globe. “Whenever we walk down the street, watch TV, open a magazine or enter an art gallery, we are faced with images of femininity,” (Watson and Martin).
The media, through its many outlets, has a lasting effect on the values and social structure evident in modern day society. Television, in particular, has the ability to influence the social structure of society with its subjective content. As Dwight E. Brooks and Lisa P. Hébert write in their article, “GENDER, RACE, AND MEDIA REPRESENTATION”, the basis of our accepted social identities is heavily controlled by the media we consume. One of the social identities that is heavily influenced is gender: Brooks and Hébert conclude, “While sex differences are rooted in biology, how we come to understand and perform gender is based on culture” (Brooks, Hébert 297). With gender being shaped so profusely by our culture, it is important to be aware of how social identities, such as gender, are being constructed in the media.
It is increasingly clear that media and culture today are of central importance to the maintenance and reproduction of contemporary societies. Cultures expose society to different personalities, provide models, which display various forms of societal life and cultivate various ways to introduce people into dominant forms of thought and action. These are the types of activities integrate people into society and create our public sphere. Media and technology surround our society; engrained into the fabric of our existence so much so, that it has become hard to find an aspect of life not influenced by its effects. For this reason, media controllers, wield extreme power and influence over the lives of everyday people. Although, they increasingly continue to feed the audience trash, despite their authority as the creator of our social/cultural interactions, and justify their actions by calling themselves industries. Reducing themselves to just businesses whose sole purpose is to create a profit. This admittance of what they feel to be their true purpose however does not hinder their control and power but instead adds to it. Creating a need for there to be some way to analyze and discuss whether they are using their position and power wisely. Filling this void, scholars have theorized ways for individuals to be critical of the media that they intake. One of these critical theories is the “Culture Industry” theory. Using Cultural Theory, as well as other complementary neo Marxist theories, it is possible to determine how Stacy Peralta, once urban youth culture advocate, became incorporated into the superstructure through media use, thus making him a tool for the continued commoditization of society, and a youth marketer for industries l...
Pop culture is a reflection of social change, not a cause of social change” (John Podhoretz). It encompasses the advertisements we see on T.V, the clothes we wear, the music we listen too, and it’s the reason Leonardo DiCaprio has not won an Oscar yet. It defines and dictates the desires and fears of the mainstream members of society; and it is so ingrained into our lives that it has become as natural as breathing. Moreover, adults never even bat an eyelash at all the pop culture and advertising that surrounds them since it has become just another part of everyday life. Pop culture is still somewhat seen as entertainment enjoyed by the lower class members of society; but pop culture standards change over time. A notable example of this is the sixteenth century author, William Shakespeare, since his works were considered pop culture, entertainment that could be enjoyed by everyone, but now they are considered literary classics. While pop culture encompasses most aspects of our lives, its influence is most obvious through each generations reaction to media,