"Wake Up Call"

Wake Up Call by Rebelution

I think this song is important because it really makes you think and it causes controversy because it talks about how the rich waste money on buying cars and materialistic items while the poor keep suffering, when they could easily donate money to charity. I think that wealthy people tend to be more selfish with their money because they tend to take things for granted. Rather than if they got the chance to see how it is to be poor they would know how good they really have it.

Personally i really like this song and it also goes along with my ideology that wealthy people shouldnt be so selfish, for lack of a better word. They should at least donate to the poor that suffer every day. Thats exactly what this song is about. This song shows us the reality that not everybody lives good and is wealthy.

For example, here are some lyrics that show us:

"But stay on top says the businessman, And let the world be left to strand."

or

"Yesterday I saw a man explain, why he bought his seventh car today, How does it feel to live the life you like, with millions of us left without a ride?"

These lyrics show us that the poor suffer everyday while the wealthy lives strong with no idea. This song really makes me think about what i would do if I had money to donate to the poor. When i went to the Phillippines there were a lot of kids living on the streets that would run up to you and hold their hands out begging for money.


Song & Lyrics: http://rebelution.bandcamp.com/track/wake-up-call

Paragraph 1:
I think the song "The Garden" by Tribal Seeds is important because it relates to the usage of marijuana and not exactly making it legal but talking about how they are going to smoke it anyways even tho it is illegal. There is a controversy going on wether to make marijuana legal or to keep it banded. The song in general is not creating any trouble but it is promoting that there is nothing wrong with smoking and a personal choice. It is also part of an ongoing trend that is growing and getting more popular in the new generation. The song does not say much about America, but is just focusing on the misunderstanding of marijuana and saying that there is not a problem with it and it should be okay. Also that people are going to do it even though it is illegal and it is all over there is no secret that people smoke marijuana.

Paragraph 2:
"The Garden"-by Tribal Seeds

"Sensimilla is a gift from jah
I will not follow your man made law
Nah cause no trouble with jah herb in me pipe
Yes fire me up and yes me feel alright
Blaze up the green when me feeling the blues
To plant tribal seeds is what I and I choose
Never disraspect i will never abuse
It is laws of the book, I follow the rules
In I herbal garden is a sweet medicine for me
In I herbal garden is what inspired this melody"

This is an excerpt from the song and it really explains itself and the point that is trying to get across.

Paragraph #3
The bottom line of the story is that people are going to smoke even though it is illegal. Even the lyrics of the song talk about not following "your man made law." It something that people want to do and are going to do and there is really no stopping it. Look at alcohol, people get alcohol poisoning, people get sick, people black out, there is a lot of accidents because of drunk driving, etc. So if alcohol is legal why shouldn't marijuana?

KIds of South Park

The culture I chose to write about is the popular cartoon, TV show South Park. It is important to discuss because it is not your typical cartoon, where it is for kids to watch, it is a cartoon intended for mature viewers. It kind of broke away from those typical cartoons for kids and was one of the first and more popular cartoons for mature viewers. I think they are critiques to the dominant ideology of a typical eight year old because all of them are portrayed as bad, rebellious kids (for the most part), but in real life a lot of kids are not looked at that they.

South Park is just a cartoon that centers around the four main characters, Eric Cartman, Kyle Broflovski, Stan Marsh, and Kenny McCormick. They all live in a fictional town named South Park that is supposed to be in the mountains of Colorado. Cartman is the obnoxious one that nobody likes; Kyle is the Jewish, red headed guy that gets made fun of by Cartman. Stan is the all around nice guy and Kyle best friend, and Kenny is the poor one that no one really acknowledges. They are all in the fourth grade and half of the time in the show the setting is at school. Every episode they go on or have an adventure that leads to some other bigger problem.

Almost every episode shows many examples of how they are rebellious against their teacher(s), parents, etc. An example of rebellion they show is in the episode named “The Jefferson’s.” They meet a man and go to his house and found out it is like a carnival and they just want to hang out there. There parents then find out and are really worried about them going to a strangers house. Against there parents command they all go back to his house and hang out there again. Another episode that Cartman shows rebellion is the episode named “Ginger Kids.” In this episode Cartman leads a rebellion against kids with red hair and freckles. But his ways soon change when he wakes up morning with red hair and freckles because of a prank his friend pulled on him. There are a lot more other examples in the show of rebellion and how they break away from the dominant ideology of typical elementary school kids.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_park

Be Yourself and Be Proud.

Although Cher is from the past, her influences are still seen today. She is still making music and appearing in movies. When you talk about Cher, you can bring up many different ideologies since Cher is associated with many controversial ideas. Whether it’s her transsexual son, the fact that she is a gay icon, or her relationships with large age differences. I believe that she should be looked at as an icon for her contributions against the stereotype of female singers of her time.

Cher’s career started as a singer with her husband, Sonny Bono, in 1965. They produced many songs, for example their most famous hit “I Got You, Babe”, and had a television show called “The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour.” After Sonny and Cher had split up, Cher continued to make music. She became very famous as an independent singer, and an actress. In 2005, she had a farewell concert, but recently she has reappeared in movies and continues her music. She was in the movie Burlesque in 2010, which featured her newest song “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me.”

When Cher became famous all of the female icons had short blonde hair and a pretty face, for example Dusty Springfield was a very popular female singer at that time. Cher had long black hair, broad Cherokee Indian cheekbones, and a sultry deep voice. She also had ridiculous and revealing costumes, which were unheard of at this time. She helped shape today’s image for female singers, and fashion in general. If Cher hadn’t worn those crazy outfits, you would not see Lady Gaga in the things she wears today. Cher helped look beyond gender roles, and allowed women to be seen as the independent, beautiful people that they are, no matter how they are viewed by others.

Hip Hop changing (explicit Content)

Today I will discuss about the dominant ideology currently happening in hip hop , its not just about money, hoes and clothes , though it seems that way.In today's music industry Hip hop has been going in so many different directions. Artist old and new have been talking about things that contradict eachother. At first hip hop was more spiritual ,it showed self expression with just a mic and MC not to mention breakdancers, dj's and grafitti artist. Its definatley changed over time . Rap artist supposedly speak of the "truth" , but is the truth really about smoking blunts, J's, having hoes and exploiting the money they have obtained. I dont blame them for being on there grind chasing money anyway possible , but I do mind when there stated as artist with deep lyrics.

Luckily there are artist who are changing the way the game is. Musicians with raw talent, that express there thoughts in how hip hop is and what are the true diffuculties in life. To name a few musicains that have that talent and potential are J.cole, Kendrick lamar and Atmosphere. Most of thier songs have big messsages in life to qoute a few J.cole said Ain't no fathers don't take no scholarship to slang no dope Politicians hollerin' bout' problems but I ain't gon' vote.He talk bout change still we floatin' in the same ol' boat" when the word "he" is an acronym referring to president obama , even though the race of a presidents has changed ,people will still be in poverty unless they act upon it.

The main point in this statement is the way artist were five years ago has change in the course of time. They are breaking the dominant ideal trend and shedding light upon a new era of music. The way I see it is that it can only get better. Its nice to know that hip-hop has its ups and downs , but at the moment due to these bright and young artist it's staying consistent.

Pop culture analysis: Parkway drive

Parkway drive is an Australian, straight-edge metal band who believe in equality among everyone. Many of their songs sing of freedom, democracy, and the rights of everyone. Its odd because everyone thinks of them as Evil and Bad and Satanic when they are the complete opposite of that. They are against stereotypes and believe everyone should have equal freedom. They are following in the american ideology of freedom and this one song which is one of my personal favorites and one that speaks to its audience is "The sirens song."

The name of the song is an important metaphor that has to do with freedom and equality. "The sirens song" is a metaphor that goes up against government making the decisions for us and not being a democracy and so on. There is a line in the song that says "...follow the sirens song...and you will lose all right..." Hearing that you may just think oh whatever that has nothing to do with me but in interviews Winston McCall, lead singer of parkway drive, has personally said that those lines mean if you follow the "siren" (the government) you will lose all right which means you will lose your freedom. This song is a great example of bands that metaphorically rise above all the problems in the world using their music.

Parkway drive is a great influence to live freely and be a democrat. They are involved in controversies with people who are republican and also christians. Christians think " hmm their growling and screaming...they must be singing about the devil..." creating a stereotype which goes against parkways whole message to he world. Even when your singing of other problems people judge to quickly. You can never judge a book by its cover...

http://www.lyricsmania.com/the_sirens_song_lyrics_parkway_drive.html !!!!EXPLICIT!!!!!!!

My work of Pop culture is the U.S. Army Motivational Video by Eric Horner. This video shows what we should all do and what we should fight for. The Ideal of this is its name itself which is the Army. It shows the Army values which basically spell out leadership and they are:
Loyalty
Duty
Respect
Self-less Service
Honer
Intrity
Personal Courage

The video shows each indiviual soldier no as a individual but as a group of soldiers. It shows the brotherhood that each of us could be in. It shows the disapline of each soldier and what each soldier wants to fight for. This video tells you to never give up until you cant fight no more. This gives you motivation on what your heart beats on, and what you should fight for in your life.

I like this video because of the way the video shows that we are not individuals and we fight for a good reason. This video shows that anybody can become anythig you want, if your really motivated for what you want. This video will give you motivation on your own dream, its about our heart beats that beats passion for things that we do. The best quote I think that Eric Horner says is " When it is your time, When it is your moment, go and take it!" This shows me that everyone has a moment of in their lives that they should take and not give up. Right when it comes you should take it right off the bat.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brG-4WvYz1Y

Desperate housewives

The tv show desperate housewives is about several women living in a suburban neighborhood where everyone around may think it seems perfect. But behind closed doors these ladies and their families have deep secrets that no ordinary person would imagine. the show first aired October 3, 2004 , and is now about to start the 8th and final season. the show follows the housewives in the eyes of their dead neighbor who committed suicide in the very first episode. this show resists the the dominant ideology of perfect housewives.Desperate housewives shows that although someone might seem perfect and under control on the outside,when you really take a look they are anything but perfect.

The show desperate housewives is about four women and their families who's stories are being told by their dead neighbor Mary Alice Young,who committed suicide because someone found out about her deepest secret. All the women on wisteria lane have some kind of secret that they'd like to keep hidden but unfortunately that isn't possible on the lane. the housewives secrets vary from infidelity, to murder. You never know what will happen next.

One of the characters that really resists the common ideology of a perfect housewife is Bree Van De Kamp who seems like this perfect woman with a perfect family really has anything but a perfect life. Although Bree made it seem like everything was perfect her secrets were starting to come out when her husband announced that he was about to file for divorce in the first season. This show may not be educational but it does teach you not to judge people because you don't know the whole truth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desperate_housewives

"How to Love"

Lil’ Wayne’s song “How to Love” is a part of the hip hop trend. Like many other artists his music talks about life and the struggles it brings him. His music speaks to everyone. It relates to everyone who has had problems in their life or is currently having problems. This songs message is basically about women how are having trouble loving a man. They don’t know how to love because they have low self-esteem.
“How to Love” is a very inspirational song. It speaks to many people who have low self-esteem. For people who haven’t heard of this song they would definitely like it. It mostly speaks to women and girls who don’t feel good about themselves, who have very low self-esteem. Lil’ Wayne’s music speaks to everybody. It talks about the struggles everyone goes through in life. His music helps many people see what problems everyone actually has.
His song “How to Love” talks about girls who don’t know how to love a man because of their low self-esteem. It helps girls see what a lot of other girls go through with men and relationships. The lyrics are straight forward and get to the point. It doesn’t beat around the bush.
http://www.elyrics.net/read/l/lil_-wayne-lyrics/how-to-love-lyrics.html

21 Guns

This song is 21 Guns from 21st Century Break Down Album by Green Day, Green Day is the American band with three members since 1987. Their current members are Billie Joe Armstrong - lead vocals, Mike Dirnt - bass, Tre Cool - drums.  This song 21 Guns is important because our world is always have the wars (maybe just little or big wars... anything that hurt each other I call war), everyone is fighting each other, they want to be higher than other people, and want to be number one. The messages from this song are want people to stop fight each other and stop harm each other, united, be together, help each other, and peaceful. However, this song is showing about American ideology that they do not waste the times on things that mean nothing, sometime you might want to give up, lost your control, and hopeless. But you have to continue your life and do thing that is right to you and other people.

The name of this song is a 21-Gun salute, which is a military symbol for the end. Basicly, this song is talking about why we have to kill each other, even though it doesn’t benefit for each other. What’s worth dying for? Just stop fighting and unite all together.

The beginning of the song "Do you know what's worth fighting for, when it's not worth dying for?" it means that why do we have to waste time on the thing that doesn't help much? but it also can be mean that why do we have to fighting for, eventhough it doesn't resolve the problem. "One, 21 guns, throw up your arms into the sky, you and I" means stop doing meanless things. Or it can be mean that stop the fight with both sides. "Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone." it means that like the person who did bad things trying to finding the forgiveness from the grave, that no one will respond them. "When it's time to live and let die and you can't get another try. Something inside this heart has died. You're in ruins" means that if you don't do what you need to do and you lost that oppotunity, then you might want to give up.

For More Information About Green Day.

Lyric and More Meaning of The Song   

Music Video     

The Power of Two

For my cultural analysis, I chose the book The Power of Two: A Twin Triumph over Cystic Fibrosis which
has turned into the movie, The Power of Two. The movie was filmed almost a year and a half ago, but it
just came out. The book discussing the issue of organ donation hasn't been in the news recently but it is
still talked about by many doctors and medical personal. Yes, the work is simply part of a broader trend
that has been building for a period of time. This work shows that some Americans take their health for
granted and they don’t respect what they have and that life is too short and live life through the good
and the bad.

The Power of Two is about identical twins Anabel Stenzel and Isabel Stenzel Byrnes. At the age of
three days old, they were diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis (CF) which is a genetic disease
that affects the lungs, pancreas, kidneys, and sinuses. At the moment there is no cure for CF. It is
most common in people of European descent. In the darkest hour of their life, breathing became the
Stenzel’s biggest challenge. In the brink of death, they both received double lung transplants in 2000
and 2004 respectably. Since their lung transplant, they have both done marvelous things such as
competing in the Transplant Games, running marathons, and climbing mountains. Now that they have a
new chance, at life, their only fear is living without treatments, medicines, and each other…

The Power of Two defeats the dominant ideology that Americans and other races take their health for
granted. How many people do you know that smoke just to be cool? The problem is should a person
that has lung cancer, be a candidate for a transplant. I feel that people who have live threatening
diseases need a pair of lungs, much more than someone who is just going to destroy their lungs or any
other organ just by drugs. I feel like many American’s in general take their health for granted and not
every American takes what they have for granted.


References:

The Power of Two

Cystic Fibrosis

Be Yourself

With the new trends and styles out in the U.S., some people have lowered their self esteem. They don't think they look nice because they don't have what others have. My pop. culture focuses on being yourself. Bruno Mars's "Just The Way You Are" song is a builder for this ideology. The song was released on July 19, 2010. In the song, Bruno Mars sings about a girl who doesn't like who she is. I feel that the message being sent from the song is to be yourself.

Bruno Mars starts off by singing about how amazing the girl is. He says that "her eyes make the stars look like they're not shining, her hair falls perfectly without her trying" However, the girl doesn't believe that she is all that. She doesn't know if she looks good or not. She's basically lost. He goes to say that he wouldn't change a single thing about her. To him the girl is amazing. In the end of the song, Bruno Mars closes it off with "Cause girl you're amazing, JUST THE WAY YOU ARE."


People are different. They have different personalities and most definately different styles. Like the girl in the song, a lot of teenagers try to impress others when they should be trying to impress themselves. "But everytime she asks me do I look okay..." is a line from the the song that shows that she is trying to impress another person. People should just be themselves. Some people who follow trends have low self esteem because they aren't happy with what they are following. Instead, they should be just the way they are.

Words I Never Said by Lupe Fiasco (explicit content)

The song that I chose for my pop cultural analysis was “Words I never Said” by Lupe Fiasco. I chose this song because it has to do with war or complications that are between two countries and how people normally react to it within there communities or friends. That, and in each verse you can pull out some sort of message from each and its different for each one. One is that some people are affected more than others and instead of war and complpications we could be helpin those people.

The main point I think he is trying to get across is the fact that most people keep quiet during or in front of horrendous truths.

The Pursuit of Happyness

The pop culture topic I am discussing about is the movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness" was released in 2006. It is pretty old but this movie is still related to society today. Society believes that poor people are all uneducated and that they are incapable of being successful in life. However, "The Pursuit of Happyness" contradicts this stereotype.

"The Pursuit of Happyness" is about the struggle a man, Chris Gardner goes through financially in order to take care of his son and himself. He has to face through many obstacles such as coping with his taking care of his son as a single parent, competing in a rigorous internship, and even stuggling to find a place to sleep at in the end of the day. Despite all his hardships Chris is determined to reach his goal of becoming a stock broker.

There are many examples of how this movie shows stereotypes of being poor. One example is when Chris goes to an internship interview, the interviewers hesitate to give him the job because of how poorly he was dressed. They were automatically uncertain of giving Chris the job without even realizing how intelligent he was. Another example is that Chris had to lie about his social status often because no one would take him seriously if they knew he was homeless. This movie challenges society's view because despite living in poverty, Chris recieved the one job of stock broker out of twenty people and eventually upgraded to become a multi millionaire.

Glee

In high school many kids get bullied and feel like they don't belong. Glee is an on going show that portrays bullying and other controversial things that goes on in high school. When it first aired in September 9, 2009 it generally received favorable reviews from critics. It was based on the directors own experience as member of his high school's Glee club and what he wanted to see on TV instead of all the sci-fi, people with guns, and lawyers running around. He envisioned real topics not just corny high school moments and guys who are craving sex. This show tries to set an example of how people should treat each other on a day to day basis.

In Glee, they deal with relationship, sexuality and social issues. And since its about a glee club of course they sing. Its not just burst out with a song out of no where. They get assigned a theme every week and choose songs that somehow relate to what's going on in the characters' life. By relationships they sometimes have shows that are talking about break ups, make ups, and even getting pregnant. Sexuality themed shows are obviously some people being interested in the same sex and being bullied for it. Social issues on this show would be like family deaths, controversy between some students and teachers, and not being accepted.

It is relevant to the dominant ideology of accepting others for who/what they are and being free to do what makes you happy. One example of this would be,when in the show Kurt, a homosexual, got bullied all the time and was harassed by a football player that threatened to kill him because of his sexual orientation. Only to find out that the football player that was bullying him was also homosexual and kissed Kurt. Kurt ended up moving schools because he was so afraid of people. Not so much of being judged but being hurt by others' words. This just shows that people are so insecure about themselves that they choose to bully others because they're not happy with their own lives. And this is something that even when we were little growing up and still to this day get taught and try to teach others about.

Warning! this blog contains harsh language!

This song "Gucci Gucci" by the new up and coming artist Kreayshawn is important because it brings up the usage of drugs, and it brings up subjects of fast food, cars, and clothes. Those subjects are the main ideas people would probly say that our society is all about and what she is basicly saying is that logos and name brands don't give you style. kreayshawn is aginst the ideology that name brands give people "swag" jus because you wear it. Every teenage or anyone growing up in this community will be all about these things. and what if people only like a couple of the things listed. soo im on the wall with this question. this song to me is of a broader trend that has controversy for sure.

okay soo kreyshawn was a underground rapper for a few years, until May thats when this song came out and once it went world wide she signed a million dollar deal with the lable "Sony". but before she was brought to the spotlight, pretty much no one knew a single thing about her, not even if she was a real. but since then she surely has shown that she is real, and here to stay. that just goes to show that the people either like what shes saying because she's speaking the truth, or jus like the song becuase its about drugs. Either way it brings the out the ideals of todays society. just in these lyrics you can see it.

"And we stunting like
Gucci Gucci, Louis Louis, Fendi Fendi, Prada
Basic bitches wear that shit so I don't even bother"

"I smoke a million Swisher blunts and I ain't never coming down
Bitch you ain't no Barbie I see you work at Arby's
Number 2, super-sized, hurry up I'm starving"

in todays community all i see and hear are things about: weed, fashion/swag, peoples cars, and fast food. when im at work or just walking down the halls at school i hear things or storys of people having weed, or how they had just smoked this last weekend, and i see the contravsy of all these people making disitions that could whind up ruin their futures, but they dont see it just yet. the fact is that most of them wont see it till its to late and their 25 years old and they dont have anything to show for it. just the other day i got a call from my buddy joey and he needed help with his truck, because he needed something done with his brakes. and all the time i see all these nice trucks lifted and cars lowerd, so i believe that in todays community people tend to make thier "ride" unique. everywhere i go i hear about guys swag or girls and their designer cloths they got on. so to me fashion in todays community is forming a new youth. in the way of way that obey, or metal melishia, and all these new brands, they have the design that catch peoples attention and just draws you to wear their products. and today people use the word "swag" for alot of things, like this dude i know mr. shawn jankns uses it in almost every sentence.

this is what i see in todays community, we live in.

http://youtu.be/6WJFjXtHcy4

TAYLOR GANG OR DIE

"On My Level" is a song by Wiz Khalifa.The song starts out with him talking about a typical night he has when he is out at the club. Like many kids in thier 20s going clubing is very much part of todays pop culture as is smoking. Many teenagers live by this role of smoking illegal drugs not realy carring about school and there future.

Like I said this particular song influences many people not just teenagers to do some of the task like in the music video. It has impacted many kids. This type of pop culture is not the good kind and produces many stereotypes, as in (no offense) how "blacks" are typically criminals. Hip Hop and Rap as most parents say would be the worst of pop culture and todays music. In this song the line "On My Level" refers to the state and how you feel when you are messed up.

Most of Wiz khalifa's songs are about smoking substances and other bad influences. A good example is "On My Level" is getting played is getting played while people are under the influence.

Nicki Minaj: A SEX SYMBOL

Nicki Minaj is important because she is a female emcee who has young female fans, but is started to be looked at as a sex symbol. She hasn’t always been looked at as such, but her recent music and fashion trends have influenced many opinions. Nicki Minaj reflects the dominant ideology about women AND rappers because she is portrays the sexy, nasty female rapper image like previous artists such as Lil’ Kim, Foxy Brown, and Trina. One of her songs “Failure” featuring Gucci Mane (rapper) shows her portraying that image.

During my research I learned that Nicki Minaj is female rapper with a sex image. She has that image because of the music she makes and the way she dresses (EXPICIT CONTENT). She also attracts a young female based audience because of the other image she portrays, which is a Barbie. Her Barbie image is her being animated with different color hair and voices she use when making music or performing.

This proves my thesis about female rappers taking on the roll that society expects from us, which is to be sexy and rap dirty lyrics. Nicki Minaj is a great example because she's relevent to today and portrays that exact image. Most of her music and outfits shows this in one way or another. From her song "Failure" to the lollipop picture. She is sexy rapping dirty, expicit lyrics.

Connected or Disconnected?

For the past couple of years, social networking websites have exponentially grown in popularity. One site that particularly stands out among all the others is Facebook, it is the leading social media of people of young adults. Along with its great appeal comes various debates and discussions. Now the question is: is the existence of Facebook accepted as a positive contribution to society? Many agree, however, there are others who disagree and act as though this addition to change has impacted our culture in a negative way. This online community has created a vast range of ideas and perspectives.

With over 750 million users, Facebook is open to all and allows everyone to connect with practically everyone. You are able to share pictures, statuses, pages, events, as well birthday reminders. Essentially, anyone is able to share as much of their lives as they wish. Not sure on a homework assignment? A common thing to do would be to log onto Facebook and ask a classmate.

Over 50 percent of these social network users log on multiple times a day, many of them dwindling their time. Many become so attached to constantly following updates and various applications that they would prefer to be at computer rather than doing other productive tasks. Facebook is great for chatting with friends, but one thing it has done was the changing affect on how society communicates. People acquaint each other through this network. We are so used to talking online that the distinction between friends and acquaintances is becoming unclear. Also, we choose the easy way in contacting a person by sending them a message or wall post as well as socializing behind the computer screen instead of face to face. These are the few reasons why those people who are against Facebook, believe that reality has differed since online social medias have been created. Instead of getting to know a person through our voices, we use letters typed from a keyboard. Ultimately, there are too many of us that rely on the use of social networking sites than necessary.

Facebook assists you in bountiful ways, but something we must remember is that while you are being connected, you may also be disconnecting yourself from society. Although this site was meant to be created with good intentions, it does have its negative aspects.

The Modern Family

"Modern Family" is important to talk about now because you can see that the show goes against the ideal family. This show has three different families all tied into one family. The three families are two gay guys with an adopted daughter, a multicultural family with a stepfather, and a traditional family. Even the traditional family is going against the ideal family. This show is a critic to dominant ideology.

"Modern Family" is based everyday lives that the writers have and we can all relate to in some way. The show is very funny and surprises you every time. One of the families is gay; they are both guys who have adopted an Asian girl. Another family is an old guy who marries a younger Hispanic female who has a son. The last family is more of the traditional family than all of them but still is not the ideal family.

They say the ideal family is a mom, dad, daughter, and a son. Also that the mom and dad are close in age and have good healthy kids but we all know that does not really work in the real world. Some examples are that show this show is going against dominant ideology of family values by the diversity and who they marry like there is a gay and a multicultural family.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1442437/

"That's Alright"

Love The Way You Lie is a duet by Eminem and Rihanna. Teenagers around the world listen to this song, oblivious to the dominant ideology it suggests. As far as I know this song hasn't caused any controversy among the people of this country. It has only been viewed as a popular song with catchy beat/tune, by two popular artists. This song sends the message to the public that it's "okay" to abuse women. Whether it's conscious or not, there is the ideology that it's inevitable that women will be abducted, beaten, and raped. Society teaches girls today not to dress a certain way or present themselves in a certain way, to avoid these things. How often do we teach men NOT to abuse women? Have you ever seen this topic addressed to men?

In this song it starts out with a male describing that his relationship was going great until he saw another man talk to his girlfriend, and he "didn't know his own strength," and he beat her. Then she sings the chorus again exclaiming that its "alright because she likes the way it burns." Later in the song the male explains that he would chain her to the bed and set the house on fire is she tries to stand up for herself and leave the abuser again.

There are seminars teaching women how to protect themselves against rapists and abusers all over the country all the time. My best friend's mom attended one. They make self defense key chains, pepper spray, and much more to help women fight their battles against men who are ready to attack at any moment. While these things are helpful and it is obvious whoever is creating them is trying to help, they are just helping support this awful ideology that we have in our country. In this song the chorus supports exactly what i am claiming. The male role of the song beats the female during a fight. The females response is the chorus," Just gonna stand there and watch me burn? That's alright because i like the way it hurts. Just gonna stand there and hear me cry? That's alright because i love the way you lie. I love the way you lie." Those words, "that's alright," are supporting this ideology that it is "okay" or "accepted" that men are going to abuse women no matter what and we have to deal with it and learn to protect ourselves. By the end on the song the female tries to leave and the male begs her to return. She comes back and he admits that his apology was a lie, that there will be a next time that he'll get angry and beat her, and if she tries to leave again, he'll "chain her to the bed and set the house on fire," killing her. Again she responds with,"Just gonna stand there and watch me burn? That's alright because i like the way it hurts. Just gonna stand there and hear me cry? That's alright because i love the way you lie. I love the way you lie." We are taught by our parents, teachers, and leaders that it is wrong that men beat women. Do they teach the boys not to grow up to be abusive? Media teaches boys and girls that when it comes to abuse," that's alright." Is there really any difference between the two?

ww.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U&ob=av3e

Life aboard the Axiom

How does the movie Wall-E represent some Dominant Ideologies in popular culture today? Wall-E is about a little robot in the future who cleans up trash. He is important because there is so much trash in the future from all of the humans. When this movie came out in 2008, it made a big impact on society because of it's address to world pollution. It is important to discuss this movie now because it enforces the Dominant Ideology of a greener ecosystem. It shows that the way people are living now is unhealthy for the environment, and it opens our eyes to the possibility of using up our own resources and destroying the natural state of this planet.

Wall-E is about the journey of a little robot, Wall-E, who falls in robot love with a robot lady friend, Eve. When Wall-E follows Eve back to her spaceship (where the humans live) he sees that the humans are really fat and lazy and have lost all of their Dominant Ideologies. His mission now is to bring them back to earth and restore natural order on their home planet. Here is a powerful scene from Wall-E that shows what life is like on the spaceship.

So why is this important? This movie is important because of the Ideologies it represents. It shows the importance of respect for our environment, especially in thebeginning when they show all of the trash on Earth. The movie also glorifies respect for the planet and for life, by showing how artificial life can eliminate any respectful way of living. On the spaceship, the humans don't have any control over their life; they don't communicate with each other except through machines, and they don't even exercise. Some people thing that this is a very important issue to address because they see these trends becoming more and more common in today's society. With increasing morbid obesity, and the rise of social networking, our lifestyles are becoming more and more like those of the people on the spaceship. We need someone like Wall-E to bring us back to reality by reminding us of the importance of living.

sublime

''Date Rape'' is a song buy a band named ''Sublime ''. It was recoreded in 1992 deput album ''40 oz to freedom '' . it was released as a single in 1991 . it was requsted song in L.A on KROQ. This is not a main stream song but very popular . This song is still played on radio often on live 105.3.
The song is about a young or middle age women being raped by a nasty middle age guy.Its a very touchy subject,but it helped shape the ideolagy today. It helped because it shows what women can do if they put there minds to it . the song breaks stereotyps
in society .It shows that in america justice is done . this song is diffrent but very good for aqny music lister`s .
you now that she switch`s the i deology whenshe hires the attorney at law .She next filed a police report and took him
to court . she won and he was sentanced to 25 years in state prison .

Sublime - Date Rape

Home is where the war is

Homefront is a video game that shows how people with power can cause fear into lives. In the game, North Korea and South Korea reunite creating a greater Korea. They then continue to spread their power and beliefs by invading other countries and implanting their dictatorship. It’s relevant because it shows how worldwide disputes and the want for power can lead to fighting and conflict between religions and beliefs. It makes you think about how we should all work together and be more accepting of each other more freely instead of wanting to implant or get rid of another religion or culture.

In Homefront, the game’s setting is in the future, starting from about 2013 when North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il dies and his son Kim Jong-un took control. He then sets out to reunite North and South Korea to make a Greater Korean Republic and uses the power he has to spread out to other countries and take control. In the game, you play as a US citizen fighting back for freedom from the GKR.

The game is focusing on the ideal of freedom and how some people think differently about it and enforce it differently. It shows that the GKR believes that it is the ultimate power in the world and that everybody should be ruled under them. The thinking is that we should be more accepting of how people act with each other and how they live and that we are equal and shouldn’t attack and take over each other.

Happily Ever After is So Overrated

America loves happy endings, we were just raised that way.
From the time we were young, we were told fairy tales about love, success, lessons learned, and of course magic.  Girls especially take a liking to the classic romance story where two people, who would ordinarily never be together, are forced together by some tragic event and by the end of the story they're in love.  One of my favorite romantic comedies, which is the genre of movies where you can always find a happy ending, is Life as We Know It.  It was released in 2010 and to me is one of the best examples of the ideal romantic comedy. Romantic comedies and love stories generally have the lead woman being independent, successful, and not very lucky in the love department. They almost always feature a lead male who is strong, arrogant, and also doesn't have much luck in the love department either.  This genre of movies plays into the dominant ideology of gender roles.  The classic romantic comedy involves all of three things;  a comedic dialogue, two people who don’t start off on the best of terms but grow to love and care for each other, and lastly a generally predictable ending.  Life as We Know acknowledges all of these requirements and shows how America likes happy endings.

Usually the plot of romantic comedies can be described, in the simplest of forms, in three to four sentences.  Holly (lead female) and Messer (lead male) hate each other.  When their best friends die in a tragic car accident, Holly and Messer become the legal guardians of Sophie, the oprhaned baby girl.  After hardships, fights, awkward moments of passion, and months of tension in the house, Messer is given a job oppurtunity that he thinks it would be best to take because it would mean him leaving.  Long story short he comes back to visit Sophie and Holly for Thanksgiving, and Holly realizes (after being let out of her current relationship) that Messer is the key for strength and stability in both the house and her own life.

Holly and Messer become the stereotypical family despite the fact they were brought together through the most unlikely events.  The gender roles are portrayed as the ideal stereotypes with Holly being successful, strong and steady, all traits that independent women enjoy seeing on the big screen, yet by the end of the movie you see she is dependent on a man.  Messer starts out as the classic bachelor but soon becomes the family man that makes our hearts melt.  Life as We Know It portrays, as many romantic comedies have come to show, the accepted family values of America and the gender roles that fall in step with them.  No matter how many romcoms you watch, these gender roles will pop up somewhere in the movie, and Life as We Know It is no exception.  This movie would be considered a builder of the dominant ideology and honestly, happily ever after is overrated anyway.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_as_We_Know_It_(film)

"Sky Full of Lighters" by Eminem/Bruno Mars/Royce Da 5'9

"Sky Full of Lighters"

I picked "Sky Full of Lighters" by Eminem, Bruno Mars, and Royce Da 5'9. It came out on June 14th, 2011. It is important discuss it now because it talks about how people should live out their dreams and not just give up and throw every thing away. People should not let any body else get in their way of the path that they want to follow and not let someone ruin it for them. Also Eminem and Royce say how American society is now doomed because people are taking the wrong path downwards and doing bad things and it's going to be hard to get back up but if they put their mind to it and keep fighting it will happen.

In the beginning of the song and in some other parts near the middle and one part in the end, Bruno mars comes on in a chorus and says, were living out our dreams and I want to see a sky full of lighters. Eminem raps about how he isn't going to let any body mess him up and he is going to keep fighting till the end and he refuses to give up. he also says how the other people stayed the same and didn't change. Royce raps about how the society is doomed and how he went thru hard times with his dad but now he has accomplished what he wanted to.

I agree with Eminem when he talks about keep fighting and never giving up and follow your dreams. It is true that people do bad things and they should change that by choosing the right path instead of staying on the dark path. "If I was you, I would duck, or get struck like lightening, fighters keep fighting, put you lighters up, point em' skyward." This quote from the song shows to keep on fighting to get your life together again. this quote here talks about how people usually don't come up from the dark side and its hard to get bak on the right path but he was in that place but now he is out, "What it take to get it through you thick skulls as if this aint some b*@#*$#t, people don't usually come back this way from a place that was dark as I was in just to get to this place."

Here is a link to youtube for the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvcStSu5i0E

Here are the song lyrics: http://www.directlyrics.com/eminem-lighters-lyrics.html

"Handlebars" by Flobots

The song “Handlebars” by Flobots shows how people in search of liberty will rise against the government. It is important to discuss this topic because freedom is what man wants and needs the most in order to live a good and peaceful life. It also shows the potential of the human race for destruction.  When people feel oppressed by their government they have the right to overthrow it and establish a new one.  This work shows how a person rises to power and becomes a dictator; the people stripped from their rights rise up, but are massacred by the government that is supposed to protect them.

The video starts out as two friends who are riding a bicycle down a hill. They reach a fork in the road, they hug, and each goes their separate ways. The first one goes to the right of the sign with a dove and the other one goes to the left of the sign that had a “C”, for corporate. The first one walks in a normal street, while the lyrics make him look like a person who lives a simple life. The friend at the other side of the block gets involved in a dangerous world and slowly works his way up to the top and becomes president; but soon turns the government into a dictatorship corrupted by his lust for power. His friend leads a group of rebels in order to overthrow his friend, but they all end up massacred. 

Whenever someone deprives a person form their rights that person will try to overcome their oppressor to achieve freedom. The friend on the corporate-side starts to rise in power and rapidly begins to think about himself and how powerful he is at the same time taking rights away from the citizens.  In the song when the friend in the dove-side sees his friend in the corporate-side in the television as a dictator he nods his head in disapproval he then gathers people to form a group of rebels to overthrow the dictator.