About the Book
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This full-color popular culture reader helps students see the world as a text and equips them with the analytical and composing tools to become strong academic writers.
This full-color, richly illustrated cultural studies reader directly engages the process of reading and writing about the “texts” one sees in everyday life. Using the lenses of rhetoric, semiotics and cultural studies, students are encouraged to become effective academic writers while gaining deeper insights into such popular culture categories as movies, technology, race, music, ethnicity, television, media, public space, and more. Just as important, the book teaches students the usefulness of actively reading their surroundings.
Table of Contents:
Contents
Alternative Table of Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
INTRODUCTION
Reading, Writing, Culture, and Texts: An Introduction to the Introduction
Semiotics: The Study of Signs (and Texts)
Systems of Reading: Making Sense of Cultural Texts
The “Semiotic Situation” (or the “Moving Text”)
Texts, the World, You, and Your Papers
Rhetoric: Writing’s Soundtrack
From Rhetoric to Writing
Reading the World as a Text: Writing’s Overture. Three Case Studies
Case Study 1–Reading Public Space: Starbucks
Case Study 2–Reading Fonts: How Type Can Say a Lot About Type
Case Study 3–Can We Laugh?: Reading Art and Humor in Geico Commercials
Reading This Text as a Text: Tips on Using this Book
The World Is a Text: Writing
The World Is a Text: Reading
SECTION ONE- THE WORLD IS A TEXT: WRITING
A Short Guide to The World Is a Text: Writing
Part I.
"How Do I Write a Text for College? Making the Transition from High School Writing " by Patty Strong
Part II.
"From Semiotics to Lenses: Finding an Approach for Your Essays" by Dean Rader and Jonathan Silverman
Lenses, Microscopes, and Windows
Language and Elements of Literary Interpretation
Context, Historical and Otherwise
Race, Class, Gender, Sexual Orientation, Region, Age–and More
Academic Disciplines
Landing on an Approach: An Entrée to the Essay Itself
Part III.
How Do I Write About Popular and Visual Culture Texts? A Tour Through the Writing Process
Understanding the Assignment
Freewriting and Brainstorming
Outlining
Constructing a Good Thesis
Building an Opening Paragraph: A Case Study
Building Good Paragraphs
Drafting the Whole Essay
Editing and Revising, Editing and Revising, Editing and Revising
Turning in the Finished Product
Part IV.
How Do I Argue About Popular Culture Texts? A Guide for Building Good Arguments
Knowing Your Arguments
Making Claims
Using Claims and Support to Make Arguments: Some Helpful Tips
Synthesis: Pulling It All Together
Know Your Audience
Use Common Sense
Part V.
How Do I Get Info on Songs? Researching Popular Culture Texts
Researching Nontraditional Texts: One Method
Nuts and Bolts Research
Guerilla Research
Part VI.
How Do I Know What a Good Paper Looks Like? An Annotated Student Essay
Part VII.
How Do I Cite This Car? Guidelines for Citing Popular Culture Texts
Using Parenthetical References
Building the Works Cited Page
Plagiarism
Works Cited Examples
Part VIII.
How Am I a Text? On Writing Personal Essays
SECTION TWO–THE WORLD IS A TEXT: READING
1. Reading and Writing About the World Around You
Elisabeth Piedmont-Marton , "Reading and Writing About Fashion"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Jonathan Hunt , "Reading and Writing About a Bicycle"
Peter Hartlaub , "Reading and Writing About Video Games"
Cristina DeLuca , "Reading and Writing About Social Networking Sites: Making Friends and Getting “Poked”"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Lee Transue , "Reading and Writing About Family Guy : The Semiotics of Stream of Consciousness"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Brandon Brown , "Reading and Writing About a Laboratory"
*How I Wrote This Essay*
Jonathan Silverman , "Reading and Writing About the Road"
Catherine Zimmer , "Reading and Writing About YouTube: The You in YouTube"
Dean Rader and Jonathan Silverman , "Reading and Writing About Advertising: Two Case Studies"
*Phil West, "Reading the Puffy Taco"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
2. Reading and Writing About Television
Worksheet
Katherine Gantz , "'Not That There’s Anything Wrong with That': Reading the Queer in Seinfeld "
*How I Wrote My Essay–reader annotated.
Garance Franke-Ruta , "Beyond Fear: Heroes vs. 24" Student Essay: Dave Rinehart, "Sex Sells: A Marxist Criticism of Sex and the City "
Student Essay: Dave Rinehart, "Sex Sells: A Marxist Criticism of Sex and the City"
Student Essay: Hillary West , "Media Journal: The Rosie O’Donnell Show "
The Reality TV Suite
Laurie Ouelette and Susan Murray, "Reality TV: Remaking Television Culture"
Student Essay: Maribeth Theroux, "The NEXT Plague: MTV’s Sexual Objectification of Girls and Why It Must Be Stopped"
*Thea Lim, "The Bachelor/Bachelorette’s White Elephant"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
3. Reading and Writing About Public and Private Space
Worksheet
*Liz Swanson, "Architecture, Experience and Meaning"
*Dean Rader, "Reading the Rural"
Daphne Spain , "Spatial Segregation and Gender Stratification in the Workplace"
Bob Bednar , "Making Space on the Side of the Road: Towards a Cultural Study of Roadside Car Crash
Memorials"
*How I Wrote This Article
The Campus Suite
Dean Rader , Reading and Writing About Your Campus
*Frances Halsband , "Campuses in Place"
Student Essay: Matthew King , "Reading the Nautical Star"
*PHOTO ESSAY: Campuses
4. Reading and Writing About Race and Ethnicity
Worksheet
Beverly Daniel Tatum , "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?"
Amy Tan , "Mother Tongue"
Jim Mahfood , "True Tales of Amerikkkan History Part II: The True Thanksgiving"
Zebedee Nungak , "Qallunaat 101: Inuits Study White Folks in This New Academic Field"
Teja Arboleda , "Race Is a Four-Letter Word"
Betty Shamieh, "Censoring Myself"
Student Essay: Amy Truong , "Gender Expectations and Familial Roles Within Asian American Culture"
Mini Suite: The Native American Mascot Issue
A Suite of Mascot Poems by Leanne Howe
A Suite of Cartoons
“Which One Is the Mascot?”
“But I’m Honoring You, Dude!”
“Pow Wow”
*The Obama Suite
*James Taylor, "Target: Obama"
*Katia Bachko, "Professor Obama"
*Dean Rader, "Obama, CA"
*Jonathan Silverman, "Obama and Fantasy Football"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
5. Reading and Writing About Movies
Worksheet
Roger Ebert , "Great Movies and Being a Great Moviegoer"
Jason Silverman , "Deciphering I, Robot : Random Thoughts from an Evolving Film Reviewer"
*How I Wrote This Essay:*
*Film as Cultural Commentary: Two Reviews from The Weekly Rader
*Greg Barnhisel, "The Dark Knight"
*Scott Andrews, "Smells Like Teen Superheroes"
Student Essay: Whitney Black, "Star Wars and America"
*The Avatar Suite
*Stephanie Zacharek, "Avatar: Dances with Aliens"
*Slavoj }i~ek, "Return of the Natives"
*Mikhail Lyubansky, "The Racial Politics of Avatar"
*Ari Y Kelman, "Avatar and the Gluttony of Technology"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
Interchapter: Reading and Writing About Images
*Photo Essay: Signs
The American Signs on Route 66 Suite
Worksheet
6. Reading and Writing About Gender
Worksheet
Deborah Tannen, "Marked Women, Unmarked Men"
Annette Fuentes ,"Out of Style Thinking: Female Politicians and Fashion"
*Ariel Levy, "Girls Gone Wild: Girls Get Wild for T-Shirts and Trucker Hats"
*STUDENT ESSAY: Pjeter Dushku, Υ”Vaya, Vaya, Machismo!:Almodóvar and Spanish Masculinity”
*PHOTO ESSAY: Judith Taylor, "Mannequins and Dolls"
The Third Wave Feminism Suite
Patricia Pender, ‘Kicking Ass Is Comfort Food’: Buffy as Third Wave Feminist Icon
Student Essay : Catherine Kirifides, "Classically Different: Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette Takes a New Look at
What It Means to Be a Girl"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Student Essay: Lara Hayhurst , "Putting the “Me” Back in Medical Drama: Grey’s Anatomy’s Adventures in
McFeminism"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Student Essay: Gwendolyn Limbach, “'La Femme Veronica': Intelligence as Power in Veronica Mars"
*How I Wrote This Essay
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
7. Reading and Writing About Visual Art
Worksheet
The “Is It Art?” Suite
*Eric Hongisto, "Reading a Mural: Diego Rivera's Man at the Crossroads"
Diana Mack , "It Isn’t Pretty¼But Is It Art?"
Steve Grody, "Graffiti: The Anatomy of a Piece"
Student Essay: Theresa George , "The Multifaceted Nature of Street Art"
*Student Essay: Anna Rose Tull, "No Sense of Absolute Corruption: Damien Hirst and the Art Question"
Scott McCloud , Sequential Art: “Art”
*PHOTO ESSAY: Public "Art?"
The Reading a Photograph Suite
Cheryl Aaron, "Reading a Photograph"
Frank Rich, "Whatever Happened to the America of 9/12?"
David Plotz , "Frank Rich Is Wrong About That 9/11 Photograph: Those New Yorkers Weren’t Relaxing"
*Thomas Hoepker, I Took That 9/11 photo
Gert Van Langendonck, "Award-Winning Photo Puts Subjects On Defensive"
Errol Morris , "Liar, Liar Pants on Fire"
*Student Essay: Anne Darby, "Reading Cindy Sherman and Gender
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
8. Reading and Writing About Music
Worksheet
Alessandro Portelli, “Coal Miner’s Daughter”
*David Byrne, "David Byrne's Survival Strategies for Emerging Artists - and Megastars"
Daniel Nester , "We Are the Champions, Another One Bites the Dust"
*How I Wrote my Poems
Student Essay: Sarah Hawkins, "Right on Target: Revisiting Elvis Costello’s My Aim Is True"
*How I Wrote My Essay
The Authenticity Suite
David Sanjek, "All the Memories Money Can Buy: Marketing Authenticity and Manufacturing Authorship"
Carrie Brownstein, "More Rock, Less Talk: Live Music Turns Off the Voices in Our Heads"
Stephen Metcalf, "Faux Americana: Why I Still Love Bruce Springsteen"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
9. Writing About the Media
Worksheet
Robert Love, "Before Jon Stewart: The Growth of Fake News. Believe It"
Chris Anderson, "The Long Tail"
Clint C. Wilson and Felix Gutierrez, "Advertising and People of Color"
Student Essay: Brittany Gray, "Hanes Her Way"
William Lutz, "Weasel Words"
Mark Glaser, "Techno-Optimism: 10 Reasons There’s a Bright Future for Journalism"
*THE GOOGLE SUITE
*Virginia Heffernan, "The Google Alphabet: Googlealphabet"
*Nicholas Carr, "Is Google Making Us Stupid"
*Siva Vaidhyanathan, "No, Google Is Not Making Us Stupid"
Reading Between the Lines
Classroom Activities
Essay Ideas
Assignment: The Rhetorical Analysis
10. Reading and Writing About Technology
Credits
Index
