Political Theater And Consumer Culture Essay

In the excerpt from Empire of Illusion by Chris Hedges, he argues that “the most essential skill” in political leaders is artifice. This means that a political leader’s connection with their citizens is fake and created purely with propaganda. The issue at hand is that too many political leaders are using artifice and are deceiving all of their citizens and are then able to lead as they want and not as their citizens wish. The most essential skill for a political leader should be a balance of skills and not just one skill; Integrity, being honorable, being a good communicator should all be skills (and more) a politician should have to be a great ruler.

The art of deception is an essential skill, especially in moments such as political debates and commercial promotions. In today's society, artifice is a widely utilized skill to persuade the public. The commercial market connects producers to consumers through propaganda which appeals to consumers through elements such as pathos, ethos, and logos. Utilizing these elements, the audience is immediately drawn into the viewpoint of the deceiver. Politicians tried to appear as ordinary and modest as possible to seem more appealing to their audience. But, it can be a deception. As Chris Hedges said in his Empire of Illusion, a story is the best form of artifice because the “consistency and emotional appeal of the story are paramount.” Often politicians tell stories to create a persona making themselves look more trustworthy.

In The Complete History of America (abridged): Special Election Edition, the men become different significant persons in America’s history. Using minimalistic costumes and props such as hats, masks, and aprons, the actor fully immerse themselves in the characters, making it obvious to the audience who they are becoming. Through and through, it is still obvious to see their original characters shine through. They are acting in roles which forced them to become different characters while still playing those characters on stage. That is something that makes this production extremely distinctive and intriguing for the audience. Martin, Cotin, and Ticheno keep every audience member laughing while at the same time giving a humorous and ironic history

In the early twentieth century movies signified modernity by becoming the most prevalent medium of culture in the United States in a period of time where the social makeup was shifting from a predominantly middle class to working class neighborhoods that were made up of many different communities. As a direct consequence, nickelodeons, temporary storefront theaters, and vaudeville programs all flourished in the working class districts. By the late 1920s, almost every large American city showed off a new “picture palace,” an elaborately constructed movie theater. Moreover, with this transition from previous vaudeville houses and nickelodeons to the rise of these so-called picture palaces in the United States, new spaces of consumerism were forged that focused on enlightening the average spectator as movie moguls such as the notable Samuel “Roxy” Rotahfel who envisioned a specific function for all major theaters. Consequently, I would argue that these new spaces of consumerism transformed and transfixed its audiences architecturally (looking at the physical space of the theater) and psychologically (reading space as consumerist fantasy) in Roxy’s picture palaces such as the Family Theater and the Regent Theater and how these theaters fit into the market of mass consumerism in creating desire as well as a release from modern societal pressures. Additionally, I would like to explore how Roxy and his team carefully created an

Today, the fool is more likely to be a late night comedian or an internet sensation than someone who is placed near people of power. In Shakespeare, the words of these not so foolish individuals may have been masked in humor but were directly spoken to the leaders of the world and eventually taken to heart. While there is no true modern equivalent to the Shakespearean fool these “comedians” serve a purpose. Much of the populace may listen and find them entertaining, the wisdom offer falls to the wayside once the bit is up. Additionally the majority of these individuals subscribe to the same philosophies and their words do not often make it outside of their ideological groups. While the Shakespearian fool still exists, their position in society has limited their ability and led to the downfall of rational politics. Their reliance on audiences and the media to convey their message further reduces the effectiveness of the message. The diminishing ability of the fool is an issue of proximity to leaders, education of the deliverer and the unwillingness of leaders to

I have been in high school for three years, every year I have either joined or tried to join the theatre class my school offers. My school offers theatre classes one through three; I have taken one and two. This school year, I had to make a decision between and academic class and a class that I am intensely passionate about. I chose to take the academic class over theatre because I am focused on my studies and knew I was still able to join the club. For three years, I have been fiercely involved in every activity and school production the theatre class and club have presented. By being selected to attend AGS in this field of interest, I will be given the opportunity to improve my skills and extend my knowledge on the art of theatre. As a result

Hedges’ argument that “the most essential skill… is artifice” can be true to an extent; however, there are other skills that are also essential in both political theater and consumer culture.

have weighed in on whether or not House of Cards reveals political reality. This is proof

The play Our Country’s Good, written by Timberlake Wertenbaker, illustrates the characters’ exploration of identity, whether through their belonging to a society, through theater and thus language, or through the social experiment the setting up of the play represents.

In an examination of the role of audiences in culture, several key terms must first be established. The definition of 'culture' discussed in this research is 'culture as a particular way of life' and 'as signifying practices' (Williams, 1983). 'Active participants' refers to people who can 'freely and consciously exercise decision-making capacities' when it comes to their interpretation of culture and cultural products (Kirchberg, 2007). Structuralism, is defined as a way of understanding how 'all texts ... and all signifying practices can be analysed for their underlying structures' (Phillips, 2013). I will first examine structuralism in relation to popular culture.

My generation, specifically Generation Y, has grown up with computers. Whether it was DOS or Windows or Macintosh, my peers have a knack for the virtual interface. Our parents and grandparents do not understand it. They fumble uncomfortably with their cell phones and become frustrated by the oncoming new media of video games (especially when my brothers and I would rather play Halo 3 than Pac-Man with my dad). Whereas we effortlessly communicate with each other like each button is an extra organic limb on our body. It is as if technology was in our blood, but not theirs.

Consumer culture has developed over the years for many different reasons such as the demise of the social class and embourgeoisement which are both key factors in capitalism and has therefore led to the argument that consumer society merely reflects the rise of capitalism which I plan to discuss within this assignment. The origins of consumer culture have been discussed by Grant McCracken (1998) who argues that there is minimal agreement in regards to the origins of consumer society. McCracken took on the viewpoint that it would not be beneficial to look at a specific point in time in which consumer culture arose but to primarily focus on patterns of changes within culture and how these pattern of changes led to the reformation of society.

it deeper it takes you back to itself, this is referred to as homogeneity. "But

The study of human-environment interactions has been a major focus for environmental sociologists for the past 40+ years. One key line of research has been the investigation into who engages in pro-environmental behaviors, which can range from voting for political officials and pro-environmental legislation (Gruber 2003) to recycling (Bamberg et al. 2007), leaf burning (Dunlap and Van Liere 1978), and even public transportation habits (Carrus et al. 2008). This line of research has given us a clear picture of who tends to engage in environmental behaviors and who does not. As societies change and new technologies develop human-environment relationships also change that include new ways to act environmentally. With the advent of new

History often repeats itself, as if it is a windmill blowing in the breeze, such as “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare. “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears”, the influential Mark Antony spoke to the Roman people just hours after Caesars death. Mark Antony and Brutus both spoke with conviction and purpose, a purpose to persuade their audience to ascend victorious for the cause of truth and justice against tyrants that would suppress their freedom. Neither realizing their words and actions would lead to a battlefield of hate, guilt and bloodshed. All strong and formidable leaders like Brutus and Mark Antony use psychological techniques such as logic and reasoning to emotion and sentiment, to persuade and manipulate others to respond with zeal as they deliver their speeches like an adhesive punch that sticks to the people of Rome like glue, concerning the death of Julius Caesar.