Sometimes a single object – a Twinkie, hair extensions, a mail-in ballot– can represent a much larger cultural meaning – mass-produced convenience foods, cultural assimilation and resistance, and the looming presence of Covid-19 after a recent presidential election.
• These specific objects can provide us with a foundation for discussing the shape of the world around us. They can give us a tangible way of doing exactly what we’ve been doing all semester – engaging with culture. In your cultural analysis essay, you will pick apart a facet of popular culture and offer an interpretation on its significance.
For this assignment, write a 4-5 page essay that analyzes and comments on a specific feature of modern culture. Your focus should be on a concrete, recognizable object or phenomenon, but not a broad historical or political trend (though you may want to use a historical lens to analyze your object of choice).
A list of some subjects to consider:
• A food or food trend (not coffee, but Starbucks holiday cups)
• Phenomenon: Storming of the Capital, Astroworld, Free Brittany Spears, Cancel Culture
• Public Health (masks, vaccines, hand sanitizer, mandates)
• The MAGA Hat
• Black Out Tuesday (the black square posted on social media platforms)
• Sports (Cleveland Guardians, Chief Wahoo)
• Music (not just hip-hop culture, but Beyoncé’s Netflix special, Black Is King)
• Technology & Social Media (the iPhone, Filters, the blue check, influencers, branding, recording injustice)
• Fashion or Art (Y2K Fashion, Fenty Beauty, Statues being taken down or being put up)
• A leisure activity (not the trend of self-care, but specifically adult coloring books)
• Public Figures: George Floyd, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Kobe Bryant
• An activist movement (#BLM, #MeToo Movement, Justice For Breonna Taylor, Stop Asian Hate)
• Popular TV Series: (Squid Game).
• Education (books that are banned, critical race theory, remote/virtual learning, university budgets)
Here’s a list of steps to get you started:
- Describe your object/phenomenon
- Describe who uses your object/phenomenon
- Think about why it has become popular
- Explain the values or beliefs it embeds or conveys
Sample Solution
