In an ironic tone and through the use of diction and symbolism, Price looks down on the American culture and their egotistical obsession with being the top dog.
The title of the essay, The Plastic Pink Flamingo: A Natural History, juxtaposes natural with plastic and is the first hint that the piece will be highly sarcastic. The italicising of flamingo in line 3 expresses incredulity that the frivolous flamingo is exceedingly popular in a nation as powerful as the United States of America. Price explicitly states the irony in the situation, “This was a little ironic since America had hunted flamingos to extinction…But no matter.” This is where Price introduces the idea that America is a vacillate country, whose culture is based on following
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the proposed trend from a different culture. The main purpose of flamingoes before their demise was to provide the land of liberty with plumes and meat, but now they are a sign of wealth. Price’s tone is dripping in sarcasm when she rhetorically asks, “Why… call the birds ‘pink flamingos’- as if they could be blue or green?”(46-47). The diction and precision to detail in The Plastic Pink Flamingo: A Natural History is the main key in deciphering Price’s attitude towards America’s culture.
Price uses words such as “extravagance”, “pizazz”, “flamboyant”, and “flashy” to convey that American culture was part gaudy, part distasteful and fully excessive. Whatever opposition to flamingos was weak because they could be seen from Florida to New Jersey and were prevalent in both the upper class and middle class. When flamingos emerged, they were meant for those living a lavish lifestyle, but eventually the popularity of the flamingos spreads and “draw[s] the working-class down too” (16-17). The cultural norm in America is to follow the trend that was fostered by celebrities. The importance of a flamingo being pink should be very minimal as there is no other colour they existed as but Price appeals to ethos by including quotes from Tom Wolfe and Karal Ann Marling, both figures of authority in their respective …show more content…
time. Flashy hot pink flamingoes is the symbol most closely related to Americans and their vain cultural values: wealth, appearance, and superficiality.
“Back in New Jersey…flamingo[s] inscribed one’s lawn emphatically with Florida’s cachet of leisure” (17-18). The flamingo on a lawn was the homeowner silently bragging that he had more wealth than his neighbors and he was better than them. In this case, the flamingo symbolizes the superficiality in America and how citizens value the materialistic aspects of life. In other nations your social status could be based on your intelligence, the size of your house, or the amount of cars you have, but in the states, your prestige is judged by your flamingoes. The pinkness of a flamingo embodies the appearance value in America’s culture. A normal flamingo, in natural form, will stick out from anything that surrounds it, but still Americans adapted plastic flamingos to be hotter and pinker than their namesake. The hues in the plastic flamingo is the representation of the change in America’s wealth. After The Great Depression, the flamingos came to mean new beginnings, from old-fashioned to modern, and from an economic crisis to newfound
prosperity. Price ends the excerpt with comparisons of different cultures’ interactions with flamingos. The example she uses shows the flamingo as being a respected, meaningful and special symbol which contrasts with the states relating flamingos with a materialistic perspective and viewing it as a sign of wealth. “New England reproduced it, brightened it, and sent it wading across an inland sea of grass” (60-61). Reproduced because the examples of flamingos in the world are all from earlier times in history, emphasizing that USA is simply following a trend but trying to put their stamp on it. The plastic flamingos were brightened to stand out more and go along with their braggart ways. Sending it across a sea of grass models when a flamingo is put on the lawn for all to see.
In the example of sorting the first urn has blue d and r marbles, gray i marbles and red d and r marbles. When sorting occurs, r marbles are all red and the d marbles are all blue and the gray i marbles remain in the middle. The proportions remain essentially the same, however appearing more polarized. This is what the author believes has occurred in America, especially in the southern states and now individuals disregard where they live and choose based on who they are. He continues with the idea that Americans have both traditional and modern values.
Class politics are introduced to the story when the Phonies arrive in Stella Street. The Phonies are disliked as soon as they arrive in Stella Street because of the renovations they make on Old Aunt Lillie’s house and the children of Stella Street make fun of the fact that the Phonies refurnish the house (p.13). Henni encourages the reader to make fun of the high class Phonies about the way they speak, because the Phonies use words such as ‘dinnah’ and ‘daaaarling’ (p.18). This shows the Phonies in a negative way enticing the audience to take Henni’s side or a middle class approach to the story. When the Phonies send a note from their lawyer to Frank’s family for a proposal of a new fence (p.22) they are once again looked at poorly.
Frederick Lewis Allen’s book tells in great detail how the average American would have lived in the 1930’s. He covers everything from fashion to politics and everything in between. He opens with a portrait of American life on September 3, 1929, the day before the first major stock market crash. His telling of the events immediately preceding and following this crash, and the ensuing panic describe a scene which was unimaginable before.
How truly grateful are we for our possessions and what we have earned from the work we have done? Are we thankful for what we possess, or are we still jealous of that one friend, colleague, coworker, or even extended family member that has nicer belongings than we do? Jacob Riis opened our eyes and gave us a true, vivid description and idea of how American families in New York during the late 1800’s lived and worked. This eye opening account shows us today that we should be grateful for what we have and never think that everyone is better than us. Throughout How the Other Half Lives, Riis uses a variety of writing techniques such as word choice, imagery, and .
Pleasantville is a film set around two teenagers who happen to fall into the predictable 1950s’ black and white sitcom, Pleasantville. The show represents a very stereotypical image of what American culture was known for in the 50s’, in regards to gender roles, segregation of races, and basic societal standards. With a society, so bland, David and Jennifer bring along their personalities that influence new ideas and innovation, keenness for knowledge and most importantly a display of freedom. As the citizens of Pleasantville became exposed to new experiences and opportunities, an eruption of “intense” emotions took over the town, which led to the outburst of the symbol of colour. These abrupt changes to the society’s norms highlight the uneasiness that follows change: unrest, an eagerness to break out of gender roles and most importantly the grasp for freedom.
In his Sports Illustrated article, “The Indian Wars,” S.L. Price argues that there is no easy answer to whether or not the use of Native American mascots by high school, college, and professional sports teams is offensive. “It's an argument that, because it mixes mere sports with the sensitivities of a people who were nearly exterminated, seems both trivial and profound -- and it's further complicated by the fact that for three out of four Native Americans, even a nickname such as Redskins, which many whites consider racist, isn't objectionable.” Whereas Price provides ample evidence that his claim is true, I disagree with the way it was presented and I still insist that Native American names and mascots are offensive.
In “This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona,” Alexie creates a story that captures the common stereotypes of Native Americans. For instance, in the story the narrator states, “Who does have money on a reservation, except the cigarette and fireworks salespeople?” (Alexie). This quotation shows that the narrator addresses the idea that all Native Americans must own businesses that sell fireworks and/ or cigarettes in order to be successful. In this example, Victor is shown to not identify with the Native Americans because he does not pursue the same job opportunities as many Native Americans do. Victor's character is used as a contrast to the stereotypes that , there he represents reality. Another instance in which the author incorporates a stereotype about Native Americans is when Thomas-Builds-the-Fire first makes conversation with Victor. Thomas-Builds-the-Fire informs Victor about the news of Victor's ...
The United States, possibly more than any other country, was not very welcoming during the early 1900s. Foreigners, who were uneducated about America’s customs, were unable to find jobs or prevent swindlers from causing their already insufficient wealth to subside. Because of this, Jurgis and his family’s economic and social lives changed drastically. For insta...
"This was a little ironic, since Americans had hunted flamingos to extinction in Florida" (Price lines 13-14). Price may be putting down American because Americans tend to follow the crowd and copy what everyone else is doing. The flamingo could be a metaphor of how Americans are followers and do not come up with their own ideas. The plastic pink flamingo gave an "extra fillip of boldness" (Price line 20). The flamingo was a way for Americans to stand out in the crowd and be noticed. Americans were flashy, cocky, and maybe even a little bit conceited.
The author Justin Angle says how in a study the mascots and names were shown to people unfamiliar with Native American culture and the sport teams, in the end of the study most of the participants viewed Native American’s as “war like”, which can carry negative consequences in the real world affecting the views of some future employers, creating a view that though Native American’s can be seen as strong and bold they can also have been perceived as violent and irrational. The uses of Redskins also create the belief that it is culturally appropriate for the constant use of Native American culture this has led to thousands of schools and sports teams to have questionable mascots and names. Such as the Savages from Salmon High school and the baseball team the “Indians” whose mascot was a hooked nose red skinned Indian with bucked teeth. Comparing this to the now frowned upon depiction of African American as black red lipped stereotyped popular in the 1920s advertisements does it not show similarities in a cultures becoming a caricature. While one is view as racist the other is view and honorable due to it representing one of the greatest passtimes in America,
In 1959, American Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev came together at the American National Exhibition in Moscow, a “showcase of American consumer goods” (May 18), for “one of the most noted verbal sparring matches of the century,” aptly coined the “kitchen debate” (16). As Khrushchev applauded the Communist system and its hardworking women, Nixon “extolled the virtues of the American way of life” (16), emphasizing America’s “successful breadwinners supporting attractive homemakers in affluent suburban homes” (18). Although Nixon’s emphasis upon the suburban lifestyle may have successfully displayed America’s superiority in consumer goods, Nixon grossly “exaggerated the availability of the suburban home” (20). For many black Americans, despite postwar socioeconomic gains, the domestic suburban dream was difficult, if not impossible, to obtain because “race made them outcasts in the suburban housing market” (Wiese 99). If the model American home represented the “essence of American freedom,” clearly it was a freedom withheld from a significant portion of America’s population (May 16).
After a close analysis of “America” by Tony Hoagland, the poem warns and points out the problems with our consumerism. Hoagland uses metaphors and imagery to describe the actions of American, while throwing in counteracting themes. And uses thoughts and dreams to bring in metaphors that complex the poem.
The Miami food was corn, beans, and squash before supermarkets came. The men hunted buffalo. Their dishes are soup, cornbread and stews. Miami women wore skirts with leggings. The men wore breechcloths and on as shoes they wore leather moccasins. The Miami’s didn’t wear headdresses but they wore beaded headbands with red feathers. Both the men and women painted their face for different occasions and tattooed themselves permanently. The men shaved their hair into a Mohawk and wore a porcupine roach. Before cars, the Miami’s made dugout canoes by digging up big trees. Some of the Miami’s used dogs as pack
In his essay, “The old Man at Burning Man,” Wells Towers presents several rhetorical “tools,” such as “twist a cliché” and “logic-free values”, to express how his father, his father’s friend, his family and himself attempt to speak their audience’s language (218, 228). This is expressed to the audience through dialogue as Towers references the conversations that took place at the Burning Man festival. In the dialogue, we see all the men, specifically the 69-year-old economics professor, Towers father, adapt very quickly to the “hippie” styled culture of the festival (Towers).
In short, this story expresses the feeling of an outsider judged for his culture and the acceptance of this reality in everyday life. On another note, the poem “Impact” presents the idea that corporate constructions should not replace sacred land occupied by animals in their natural habitats. To highlight the importance of nature, the Eagle is used as a symbol of protection, looking over the land to prevent Northern American land developers to disrupt nature by building a