popular-culture

Our Blog at the Modern Language Association Conference, 27 December 2008, San Francisco

cosana — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 06:17:49 +0000

The blog will be presented as a pedagogical case study.

On new Web 2.0 capabilities

cosana — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 20:08:58 +0000

Is this scary or what?

Soft murmurs about the Academy Awards 2007

cosana — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 01:56:37 +0000

After having watched the almost 4 hour long, blue staged Oscar awarding ceremony last night, I have to say that I would have chosen the Mexican -Spanish Pan’s Labyrinth over the German The Lives of Others for the best Foreign Film. Also, I would have voted for Babel as the best film and for Martin Scorsese only as the best director. And to go on with my bickering, I wouldn’t see Ellen DeGeneres as the best entertainer of them all so far… However, the latest March 5 issue of Time magazine contends DeGeneres is having a great year as a pop-culture mainstream person with her host show on TV and, if anything, DeGeneres’ sexual orientation may help her with female audiences, since "to straight women – who are socialized to be more intimate with one another anyway – she’s a kindred spirit and funny pal, without the complicating factor of sexual competition." (James Poniewozik, Yes, She’s Mainstream)

On a different note, I just have to add that Nicole Kidman looked fabulous in her red Balenciaga dress, which is something some of the "fashion police" commentators noticed as well.

WE GO OUT INTO THE WORLD

cosana — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 09:13:08 +0000

After a semester spent in " privacy ", we are going public. We are the first pedagogical blog in Romania , stemmed out of the popular culture course in the American Studies Program at the University of Bucharest in the fall of the year 2006. Hence, the semi-didactic notes, the reverence of some comments, a number of non-native speaker mistakes but overall the same fresh blogging spirit that is already a mark for postings of this kind. And we will go on…

2006 in Music

cosana — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 13:06:24 +0000

Here you have an article about what happened to music industry during this past year under the influence of user -generated websites.

NBCC

cosana — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 23:51:05 +0000

While browsing on some American cultural sites, I found excellent and updated information on recent literary events in the U.S. on the official blog of the NBCC board of directors. That is, high culture takes full advantage of the tools that the digital world provides. What is NBCC? It is the acronym for National Book Critics Circle, the organization responsible for the yearly prestigious prizes called National Book Critics Circle Awards. The address is: http://bookcriticscircle.blogspot.com

Memento Reggae

cosana — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 23:28:10 +0000

Very interesting documentary on the history of reggae, Jamaica , Rasta(fari Movement), Dancehall, Shabba, Soundsystem and stuff on History Channel, Saturday, December 9 after 11 pm. As Bob Marley sang, "when (the music) hits, you feel no pain"…

About “McDonaldization”

cosana — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 09:12:27 +0000

I am posting this on behalf of Costinela Dragan.

McDonaldization
is a term invented by George Ritzer to describe a sociological
phenomenon that is happening in our society; it is “the process by
which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to
dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as the
rest of the world”.

In essence,
McDonaldization is the process of rationalization, taken to
extreme levels, for example a task is broken down into smaller tasks.
The result is efficient, easily controlled, so the
outcome is predictable.

George Ritzer introduces
the concept of “the new means of consumption” to illustrate the
ways in which not only business, but culture, practices are
threatened by McDonaldization (e.g. fast-food restaurants, credit
cards, mega-malls, home-TV etc).

(His post-modern analysis
of the new means of consumption relies upon Baudrillard’s notion of
simulacra).

So… we may talk about
McUniversity, McJobs, McBirth/McDeath, McChidren, and almost
everything becomes McDonaldized. There is one question left: what can
not be McDonalized?

See:
http://www.mcspotlight.org/people/interviews/ritzer_george.html

Unmissable and unforgettable or just forgettable?

cosana — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 18:38:14 +0000

Since the topic to be discussed in the nearby future is going to be "the body as a costume", I think that we cannot possibly not bring to attention concepts such as "queer theory", "gender" and "sexuality". But, since examples or pictures are always more fun than just plain talking, I’d like to bring forth a case in point: Brokeback Mountain . I know that it’s been talked about hundreds of times that it almost got to the point that even mentioning this movie has become a cliche, but I think most people don’t really stop and think about the message or the idea behind the movie. So, with this in mind, I would like everyone to comment on how they think gender, sexuality and the self are depicted and/or linked in Brokeback Mountain. While very nicely and politely asking you not to use the terms "that gay cowboy movie", I would like to suggest other possible questions as well: Is it just an unconventional story about two guys who are straight but happen to share a special bond? Is it a modern version of a great romance? Is it realistic in its depiction of the struggles one has to face when looking for one’s sexual identity? Does it have an agenda? Has it affected or changed your view on the topic of queer culture in any way?