The Television Show Duck Dynasty

For this paper, I have chosen to analyze the sitcom That 70s Show. This show follows the lives of a group of teenage friends: Jackie, Donna, Hyde, Kelso, Eric, and Fez. The show addresses many social issues of the 1970s, including: Sexism, sexual attitudes, drug use, and the recession. It also highlights many of the inventions and developments of the entertainment industry, such as the remote control and Star Wars.

In the introduction of Chapter 1 “Consuming Passions” “The Culture of American Consumption,” it talks about how American popular culture is grounded in consumption. With the media in our hand, it is a huge influence towards the advertising world. With how styles of clothing have been changing over time, this talks about how from the earlier times wearing a simple type of blue jeans can change between who wears them over the years. As stated, “ By the 1950s, however, blue jeans began to bear an additional class significance as “casual wear” for middle-class Americans.” (72). In 1970 these pants have then become a simple fashion wear. They have also been introduced as a hipster type wear. Then in 1980 through the early 2000s, baggy jeans were

As the book progresses through the years, Blevins begins to introduce several famous faces that call Arkansas their home, in what he calls the Heyday of the Hillbilly. He mentions everyone from musicians to actors, athletes to novelists, and intellects to political figures. For each one mentioned, Blevins describes their experience with the Arkansas image, whether they found a way to embrace it or let it bring them down. It's

In the text, “The Cult you’re in” Kalle Lasn, discusses a cult-like nature of consumer culture on Americans. Lasn uses the work ‘cult’ as a metaphor; he does not mean an actual cult but American consumers seem to be in a cult-like nature. The ideal example of Lasns argument is the text, “The man behind Abercrombie and Fitch”, Benoit Denizet-Lewis, goes in great depth of the life of the CEO, Mike Jeffries, of Abercrombie and Fitch. Denizet Lewis’s piece on Jeffries life displays how accurate Lasns claim is about American consumers in the cult-like atmosphere.

In this week’s application project essay, I would like to compare an older television show that projected family life as it was in the 1930’s as compared to how family is viewed from a sociological viewpoint today. “The Walton’s” may not have been an idealistic portrait of family, but the series did portray family as it really was in that era, since it was based on the autobiographical writings of Earl Hamner, Jr.

In society today, consumerism is a major component in the lives of not only Americans, but around the world. People are constantly looking for the next best thing to replace the things they already have. The purpose of this essay is to break down consumerism by using rhetorical analysis on the commercial for Kia’s new crosstrek, the Niro. This commercial relies heavily on the appeal to humor by having unrealistic, comedic actions. Along with humor, it establishes credibility by having a well-known comedic actress, Melissa McCarthy, as the star. The advertisement also plays on a person’s wanting to be a hero by having the commercial title be “Hero’s Journey.”

The vast majority of Southerners do not own a distillery, nor understand the process to properly function one. Simply put, Southerners live by a strong moral code. Family and hard work epitomize these morals. The most popular television show, with a Southern based cultural view, is “Duck Dynasty”. During Duck Dynasty’s season premiere, the show captured 11.8 million viewers, doubling the number of viewers for the iconic television show “Breaking Bad”(Chandler).

The phenomenon of consumerism is quiet powerful due to the impact on individual’s lives. Society has come to the point, happiness is associated with consumption. However, the way consumerism works, is if the items being purchased gives temporary happiness. There individuals are always buying the latest products to remain happy. In the text, “The Cult you’re in” Kalle Lasn, discusses a cult-like nature of consumer culture on Americans. Lasn uses the work ‘cult’ as a metaphor; he does not mean an actual cult but American consumers seem to be in a cult-like nature. The ideal example of Lasns argument is the text, “The man behind Abercrombie and Fitch”, Benoit Denizet-Lewis, goes in great depth of the life of the CEO, Mike Jeffries, of

As something people tend to hold the most dearly, culture can be a sensitive topic to discuss and engage in. Often, it is made even more difficult due to issues of the past and the way different cultures influence one another. Moreover, the concepts of cultural assimilation and mainstreaming have brought light on problems regarding the treatment of minority cultures within American culture, specifically with the use of stereotyped imagery and hijacking outside cultural ideas. The issues of cultural stereotyping and assimilation, as seen in South Park, have garnered attention due to the nature of offence and its subjective nature.

Since its start, the television industry has been criticized for perpetuating myths and stereotypes about African-Americans through characterizations, story lines, and plots. The situation comedy has been the area that has seemed to draw the most criticism, analysis, and disapproval for stereotyping. From Sanford and Son and The Jefferson’s in the 1970s to The Cosby Show (1984) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the 1990s, sitcoms featuring black casts and characters have always been controversial. However, their significance upon our American culture cannot be disregarded. During the 1950s and 1960s, 97% of the families were Caucasian. In the first five years of the

As early as 1950, television families have depicted not only the way we live today, but also the way we ought to live (Tueth, 2003). Hence, television has continued to present comedies about family life that ranges from the didactic model of domestic conventionalist and gradually to non-conventionalist ways of life. By conventionalist, I mean the depiction of the “nuclear” family that consists of clear roles, responsibilities, and gentle lines of authority that flow from the wise dad and understanding mom to the obedient children (Kutalas, 2005). Examples of these types of shows between 1947 to 1990 that constructed more than 60% of family sitcoms included: The Cleavers, The Cosby Show, Father Knows Best, Family Ties, and Growing Pains

The Television shows “Full House” is based on six individuals that live in one house that aren’t the typical “family”. The character Danny is a widower who is forced to raise is three daughters on his own. His best friend Joey and brother in law Jessie moved in to help Danny raise the girls. The three girls from oldest to youngest are: Donna Joe (DJ), Stephanie, and Michelle. In 1993, season seven of the television show presented episode five entitle; “Fast Friends”. This episode was based on Stephanie starting her first year in junior high school. Stephanie meets a new friend named Nicki, and realizes that Nicki and her friends are not a good crew to be associated with. Stephanie feels pressured to smoke cigarettes while in the school bathroom however, she decided against it. Stephanie really like’s her new friend Nicki but knows she could never become a follower. Meanwhile, Jesse and Joey begin to host a radio show and can’t seem to find a decent name for the show. DJ, DJ’s boyfriend, and best friend Kimie are force to pick a side. While watching this episode the cast displayed both verbal and nonverbal cues.

The TV show Tyrant has been met with critical backlash since its inception. Airing on the channel FX, it has been hailed as one of the most racist TV shows currently running. The premise of the show is that the main character, Bassam Al-Fayeed, is enjoying his comfortable life in California where he works as a physician. This is contrasted with Bassam at age 16, when he escaped the fictional country Abuddin under a self-imposed exile. His family is comprised of the dictatorial rulers and Bassam could not tolerate the oppressive lifestyle any longer. However, after 20 years away Bassam decides to go back to Abuddin alongside his wife and children to attend his nephew's wedding. He is thrown back into the brutality of the nation, and when his

The Believers are people who support traditional codes of family, church, and community, wearing good Republican cloth coats. These are predictable people who wear and recognize brand names. The Achievers are not only successful, but they demonstrate their success by buying objects such as prestige cars to show it. The Strivers are usually a little unsure of themselves. They are willing to buy brands as long as it is a prestigious name brand. According to Twitchell, “Money defines their success but they don’t have enough of it” (Twitchell). The Experiencers live life on the edge. They are enthusiastic, impulsive, and even a little reckless sometimes. The Makers are practical people. They are conservative, suspicious, and respectful. The Strugglers are usually chronically poor people who enjoy materialism whenever they can afford it. It’s amazing yet spooky how the advertising industry can categorize us into these stereotypical profiles so accurately just by watching our behaviors, observing our lifestyles, ascertaining our disposable income, and studying our set of values. Is our buying pattern really connected to the things we believe in and what we do for a living? Whether we are consciously aware of it or not, it is personally amazing just how much a simple purchase can reveal about am individual to marketing research strategists. Little known to the public is just how far advertising and marketing companies will go

The Walking Dead is a televised American drama series about a group of people trying to survive a zombie apocalypse developed by Frank Darabont. The series stars Andrew Lincoln as sheriff's deputy Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma after the world yields to a zombie plague (Griffiths, 2011). Dazed and confused from months in the hospital he wanders out to figure out why he cannot find anyone alive. He makes his way home only to find his wife and son missing. He sets out to locate his family and finds many other survivors on his journey (Tucker, 2010). The Walking Dead coordinates with many social themes such as