Writing Assignment 1
Laurier Raymond IV
Authentic Masculinity
Writing Assignment 1
Popular culture is the ‘quantity over quality’ result of a society’s generational interests. Trevor Dunn, an American musician once said “Pop culture is not about depth. It’s about marketing, supply and demand, consumerism.” Pop culture defines the extremes of real culture; we want to see and hear and feel things that push the norms and limitations of everyday life. America has become desensitized to the violence, the scandal, and the oversaturated reality of popular media. It’s important to remember that society only follows popular culture; it’s merely the creation of the few rich, selfish individuals who put it on for us to mindlessly enjoy. Sexuality is a major part of popular culture. America has made sex both alluring and taboo. Advertisers however know that sex sells. Once again, only the extremes are used. Commercials and ads use models to promote; women with tan skin, white teeth, big eyes, and large breasts. Men buy things when an attractive woman is telling them to, and the reverse is true for women. These advertising everywhere from television, to the internet, to magazines. This is very detrimental to society, because it promotes objectification of sexuality and both genders. Camel cigarettes, for example use an appealing woman as an object to sell another object. The model is no longer a woman, and she’s only as valuable as what she is selling. People buying the product support all of this, and the cycle never changes. The “Tough Guise” is America’s extreme notion of masculinity, what a man is and should be. This perception is created by movies and television in popular culture, and thus men feel the need to “act” manly, as if it were some performance. Men learn that they need to be strong and rough like professional athletes, violent like Rambo, hardened and individualistic like the Marlboro Man, invulnerable like Rocky, and dominant like The Godfather. Men and boys see these
Authentic Masculinity
Writing Assignment 1
Popular culture is the ‘quantity over quality’ result of a society’s generational interests. Trevor Dunn, an American musician once said “Pop culture is not about depth. It’s about marketing, supply and demand, consumerism.” Pop culture defines the extremes of real culture; we want to see and hear and feel things that push the norms and limitations of everyday life. America has become desensitized to the violence, the scandal, and the oversaturated reality of popular media. It’s important to remember that society only follows popular culture; it’s merely the creation of the few rich, selfish individuals who put it on for us to mindlessly enjoy. Sexuality is a major part of popular culture. America has made sex both alluring and taboo. Advertisers however know that sex sells. Once again, only the extremes are used. Commercials and ads use models to promote; women with tan skin, white teeth, big eyes, and large breasts. Men buy things when an attractive woman is telling them to, and the reverse is true for women. These advertising everywhere from television, to the internet, to magazines. This is very detrimental to society, because it promotes objectification of sexuality and both genders. Camel cigarettes, for example use an appealing woman as an object to sell another object. The model is no longer a woman, and she’s only as valuable as what she is selling. People buying the product support all of this, and the cycle never changes. The “Tough Guise” is America’s extreme notion of masculinity, what a man is and should be. This perception is created by movies and television in popular culture, and thus men feel the need to “act” manly, as if it were some performance. Men learn that they need to be strong and rough like professional athletes, violent like Rambo, hardened and individualistic like the Marlboro Man, invulnerable like Rocky, and dominant like The Godfather. Men and boys see these