Shirley Temple: Origins of the Optimistic Image
Shirley Temple. When the name is uttered an image of the dimpled faced, curly haired, tap dancing four year old from the 1930s automatically appears in everyone's mind. She was the child actress of the depression era, winning over the hearts and pocket books of many. Films, dolls and even a drink named after her, her face and name were ones that couldn't be missed. She was Fox's gem and saviour. She was an escape from the hard life. She was a star. The image that she gave off, of love for the needy and pure optimism, must have had an origin. Did it rise from the social needs of the public to escape the depression or was it purely constructed by Twentieth Century-Fox? Her image clearly correlates with the mentality of the public at the time, but Fox must have had a hand. Undoubtedly her image was created through a mixture of both elements.
To analyze the degree to which Shirley Temple's image was formed through the needs of the time or through manipulation by Fox, one must first look at stars' images in general and how they come into being. What do stars represent to the audience? What is the nature of their images?
Many people might say that stars are merely a product of the Hollywood system needing to make a profit; Hollywood manufactures a product and creates the demand for it. A star's image is processed through advertisements and promotions and has little to do with what the audience wants and needs from entertainment. There is a widespread mentality that any Average Joe can become a star with enough resources backing him up. Richard Dyer points out, however, that even movies full of stars fail, and stars can and do fall out of fashion (12). A star's economic worth is not invulnerable to audiences' opinions. The audience isn't so easily controlled.
As Dyer says, "Stars ... are the direct or indirect reflection of the needs, drives and dreams of American society." (6). The star's image is formed by what the audience chooses to see, and the audience will choose to see a movie that fills their societal needs, even if unconsciously. Once the audience has made its decision, it empowers that star to fulfill these needs. "Stars have a privileged position in the definition of social roles and types, and this must have real consequences in terms of how people believe they can and should behave" (Dyer 8).
The stars, particularly Hollywood stars, made a huge contribution to attracting vast numbers of people to the cinema.
Dwyane Tryone Wade Jr., identified as “D-Wade,” was born on January 17, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois. After his birth, Dwyane’s parents, Dwyane Sr. and Jolinda Wade, divorced; his mother was given guardianship of the two younger children, Wade and Tragil, his five years old sister. Wade's life changed when, at eight years of age, he was tricked by his sister. She told him they were going to the movies, but they went to a dissimilar South Side neighborhood in which Wade stayed with his father. The move guided him away from the perilous area he had lived with his mother. When Wade's father moved to Robbins, Illinois, Wade's new atmosphere allowed him to play basketball with his stepbrothers, new friends, and father. At Harold L. Richards High School in Oak Lawn, Wade worked hard to earn time on the varsity basketball court his junior year. After improving his ball-handling skills and outside game, Wade emerged as the basketball team's star. In his junior year, he averaged 20.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. His success continued in his senior year in which he was averaging 27 points and 11 rebounds per game, but due to his poor grades, he was only recruited by three college basketball programs.
The weakness of Millers paper is that he never mentioned or considered Napolitano’s feelings on the occurring problem, even though his main attention wasn’t on her feelings. Napolitano was being charged with plagiarism and the faculty-student committee from Preston University decided that her ...
For many of us “regular folk”, we dream of visiting California and seeing celebrities or even being one. We see Hollywood as a heaven or even a holy bubble that we all want to be in. This is not true for all, but it is for most. We as a society do not generally think of the negative impacts Hollywood and fame has on an individual. Carrie Fisher, with her wit, humor, and extreme honesty, takes us inside her life and gives us her insight on Hollywood based her upbringing. After going through multiple triumphs, tragedies, and revelations Fisher writes about it all in her book, Wishful Drinking, along with three other novels she has written. Now you see why I used the term “regular folk,” because Fisher is the opposite of a “regular folk.” Even
Thoreau, Henry. "Civil Disobedience." Elements of Argument: A text and Reader. Ed. Annette T. Rottenberg. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000.
Philosophers, historians, authors, and politicians have spent centuries pondering the relationship between citizens and their government. It is a question that has as many considerations as there are forms of government and it is rarely answered satisfactorily. A relatively modern theorist, author Henry Thoreau, introduced an idea of man as an individual, rather than a subject, by thoroughly describing the way a citizen should live many of his works. He indirectly supplements the arguments he presents in his essay Civil Disobedience through a comprehensive selection of adages found in his other works. In particular, the phrases "A simple and independent mind does not toil at the bidding of any prince" and "To be awake is to be alive. I have never met a man who is quite awake" support many of the arguments in Civil Disobedience because they help to explicate the complex ideas Thoreau presents.
Thoreau’s summation of the role of government is eloquently stated in these lines from "Civil Disobedience." "There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly" (867).
Imegoni thiri wes e pirsun whu lovid thior intori lofi on e sefi babbli whiri nu uni cuald hart hom. Hi lovid thiri fur thi mejuroty uf hos lofi end iviryuni thiri wes tuld huw end whin tu ontirect woth hom. Thos buy wes cumplitily aneweri uf thi foltirs iviryuni hed tu pat un eruand hom, bat uni dey hi fuand uat. Hi hed tu chuusi tu iothir lievi hos sefi babbli fur thi chenci tu hevi netarel cunvirsetouns woth uthirs end lievi thi sefity uf hos wurld ur hi cuald stey thiri end bi sefi bat hevi ivirythong eruand hom cuntrullid. Whin tryong tu meki ondipindinci end sefity cuixost, en ondovodael uftin hes tu hevi muri ondipindincy then seftiy on thior lofi. Thi muvoi, “Thi Tramen Shuw”, os en ixcillint ixempli. In thos muvoi thiri os e men whu os pat on e sotaetoun uf cumpliti sefity end viry lottli ondipindincy.
Hollywood film has always been an influential phenomenon within the people of the United States. Many films have started enormous trends within cultural and social movements as well as political ones. Examples of this can be seen from the genesis of Hollywood film. As films became more popular, and more developed, the ideas that were presented within film reflected the changes that were occurring within The United States. The role of film, thus became even more important because it was source of entertainment, but also a source of propaganda that would influence gender stereotypes and expectations. The ideas that films present are usually very reflective of the time in which they were made, making them benchmarks for what was to be accepted
For children at this age of about two years, physically they should be able to do quite a bit of things. Some tasks that this child should be able to do that are included in his gross motor skills include kicking a ball, climbing on furniture, running, and climbing up and down stairs typically putting both feet on a step (CDC, 2014). This child was able to do all of these things very well, and he almost compared to what a three year old would be doing, including easily running, pedaling a tricycle, and climbing up and down steps with ease (CDC, 2014). For this child’s fine motor skills, he should be abl...
During his jail time, he contemplated to reconsolidate the power of an individual’s conscience in assertion toward the government’s exploitation of one’s life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. Thus, Thoreau wrote the Civil Disobedience, saying “that government is best which governs least” (Thoreau). Thoreau’s purpose for this essay was to advise the idea that the government was arranged by principle of injustice; therefore, it was the citizen’s duty to rebel and adjust the unfair laws that oppose the substantial moral principles of human life and social order. Like Jefferson, Thoreau emphasized individual right to advocate a rebellion against the injustice of the government so that eventually others would ask themselves: “shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once” (Thoreau). In other words, Thoreau believed that laws should be imposed by the citizens in a democracy rather than the
Being arguably one of the greatest Hollywood stars, I had many chances to influence all kinds of people throughout my lifetime. Growing up in Sweden and moving to America to film movies, I was considered a very influential person. Through my movies and very private life, I believe that I touched the lives of many others. My father died when I was young, so every person I met left a mark on me whether they knew it or not. In 1954, I was named “the most beautiful woman that ever lived.” Clearly, I left a huge impact on all of America and the people from other countries who watched my movies. I changed the way of on screen acting for years to come, and I loved every moment of it.
Movie stars. They are celebrated. They are perfect. They are larger than life. The ideas that we have formed in our minds centered on the stars that we idolize make these people seem inhuman. We know everything about them and we know nothing about them; it is this conflicting concept that leaves audiences thirsty for a drink of insight into the lifestyles of the icons that dominate movie theater screens across the nation. This fascination and desire for connection with celebrities whom we have never met stems from a concept elaborated on by Richard Dyer. He speculates about stardom in terms of appearances; those that are representations of reality, and those that are manufactured constructs. Stardom is a result of these appearances—we actually know nothing about them beyond what we see and hear from the information presented to us. The media’s construction of stars encourages us to question these appearances in terms of “really”—what is that actor really like (Dyer, 2)? This enduring query is what keeps audiences coming back for more, in an attempt to decipher which construction of a star is “real”. Is it the character he played in his most recent film? Is it the version of him that graced the latest tabloid cover? Is it a hidden self that we do not know about? Each of these varied and fluctuating presentations of stars that we are forced to analyze create different meanings and effects that frame audience’s opinions about a star and ignite cultural conversations.
Think about being able to help kids and help their health. If making sure kids are healthy and helping them if they are not well sounds intriguing, then a pediatrician is the perfect job. Becoming a pediatrician means to be kindhearted, understanding and being able to work with kids and their parents. In this career there's a potential to have the power to make a big impact in young people's lives, such as saving their lives from health problems, being addicted to drugs, or just being there for them as someone to talk to. The fulfilling feeling of promoting the best for kids what makes a pediatrician the ideal career path.
The mass media is a great power in modern culture, particularly in America. Sociologists refer to this as a cultural mediator in which the media portray and create culture. Communities and individuals are constantly bombarded with messages from a variety of sources including TV, billboards, and magazines, to name a few. These messages encourage not only the product, but feelings, attitudes, and sense of what is and is not important. The press allows the concept of celebrity: without the ability of films, magazines, and news media to reach across thousands of miles, can not be a famous person. In fact, only political leaders and business, as well as little-known criminals, known in the past. Only in recent years have actors, singers, and other