Literature’s Influence on Present Day American Culture
Present day American culture is not the way it used to be. If you were to compare the America in the 1950s to the America today, a long list of differences can be spotted. In today’s America, culture is something that is used to express one’s individual character. There is no true American culture because it is composed of numerous and diverse cultures from around the world. Literature is apart of these cultures. Over the years, the “rules” of literature have changed. Authors have come and gone, creating art with words that have had an impact in American society throughout the years. Motion pictures have been produced based off of these works. These motion pictures then become part of our …show more content…
Some are born into a rich family, and grow up spoiled and cruel. Some come across fortune and become cruel and greedy over time. In the novel The Pearl, a family man named Kino comes across a pearl that not only brings him riches, but also brings him misfortune and causes him to become a greedy man (Steinbeck). This is how a lot of people in our society in the position of power are today. Many people let fortune get to their heads, and they become cruel people. For example, Donald Trump is a man who has found himself surrounded by billions of dollars. However, he has let his wealth get to his head, thinking he is higher than everyone else around him. His wealth only makes him a cruel man with a skewed view of others that don 't fit into his mold. He has also decided to run for president, which is the culmination of his need to be in power.
Over the past few decades, technology has become more complex and advance. In the novel Fahrenheit 451, technology has replaced books and occupied the lives of Americans (Bradbury). Over the years, this has sadly become a reality. In our day in age, we have seen the quick progression of technology, which has become a crucial part of everyday life. Instead of schoolbooks, students now carry around a computer, and our one-on-one interpersonal interactions have been replaced with text messaging and Facebook …show more content…
Among the numerous categories of television shows to view, reality television seems to reflect similar situations found in the novel The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games is based on a post-apocalyptic America in which the United States is divided into factions around Capitol to form a country called Panem. In Panem, an annual fight to the death among adolescents, called the Hunger Games, is broadcasted live to the entire nation (Collins). The Hunger Games is not different from what is televised to us today. For example, Survivor pits multiple contestants against each other in a fight to survive. Although no one dies or is forced to resort to murder, they get eliminated one by one until there is one remaining victor. This is a source of entertainment, much like the Hunger Games is for the people of the Capitol. The Capitol has control over what happens within the countries borders. The nation’s residents are under constant surveillance. We live in a dystopian society, much like the novel. We are also under constant surveillance and war is occurring all around the world. We are taught to believe that this is normal and that war is an age-old solution to solving our largest problems. Killing people is the only way to keep our society alive. In the novel, this is exactly what happens. Innocent teenagers are murdered in order to “keep peace” between the districts. Peace is not made through
Present day American culture is not the way it used to be. If you were to compare the America in the 1950s to the America today, a long list of differences can be spotted. In today’s America, culture is something that is used to express one’s individual character. There is no true American culture because it is composed of numerous and diverse cultures from around the world. Literature is apart of these cultures. Over the years, the “rules” of literature have changed. Authors have come and gone, creating art with words that have had an impact in American society throughout the years. Motion pictures have been produced based off of these works. These motion pictures then become part of our …show more content…
Some are born into a rich family, and grow up spoiled and cruel. Some come across fortune and become cruel and greedy over time. In the novel The Pearl, a family man named Kino comes across a pearl that not only brings him riches, but also brings him misfortune and causes him to become a greedy man (Steinbeck). This is how a lot of people in our society in the position of power are today. Many people let fortune get to their heads, and they become cruel people. For example, Donald Trump is a man who has found himself surrounded by billions of dollars. However, he has let his wealth get to his head, thinking he is higher than everyone else around him. His wealth only makes him a cruel man with a skewed view of others that don 't fit into his mold. He has also decided to run for president, which is the culmination of his need to be in power.
Over the past few decades, technology has become more complex and advance. In the novel Fahrenheit 451, technology has replaced books and occupied the lives of Americans (Bradbury). Over the years, this has sadly become a reality. In our day in age, we have seen the quick progression of technology, which has become a crucial part of everyday life. Instead of schoolbooks, students now carry around a computer, and our one-on-one interpersonal interactions have been replaced with text messaging and Facebook …show more content…
Among the numerous categories of television shows to view, reality television seems to reflect similar situations found in the novel The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games is based on a post-apocalyptic America in which the United States is divided into factions around Capitol to form a country called Panem. In Panem, an annual fight to the death among adolescents, called the Hunger Games, is broadcasted live to the entire nation (Collins). The Hunger Games is not different from what is televised to us today. For example, Survivor pits multiple contestants against each other in a fight to survive. Although no one dies or is forced to resort to murder, they get eliminated one by one until there is one remaining victor. This is a source of entertainment, much like the Hunger Games is for the people of the Capitol. The Capitol has control over what happens within the countries borders. The nation’s residents are under constant surveillance. We live in a dystopian society, much like the novel. We are also under constant surveillance and war is occurring all around the world. We are taught to believe that this is normal and that war is an age-old solution to solving our largest problems. Killing people is the only way to keep our society alive. In the novel, this is exactly what happens. Innocent teenagers are murdered in order to “keep peace” between the districts. Peace is not made through