Analysis 1

 

Taylor Swift can be looked at as a myth and an icon.  An icon is something or someone that people look up to.  Some icons do not last in society, but few last decades.   Icons can help people get through certain life experiences.  They can be something religious, an actor or actress or a singer or songwriter.  There are many icons today but one stands out.  A myth is “the belief that material superiority automatically brings happiness”(Browne 2005 pp. 13).

            In today’s society a popular icon would be Taylor Swift.  She is looked up to by millions of young girls.  If a teenage girl is going through something in life, there is a Taylor Swift song to get her though it.  She can be looked at as the girl next door, like a kind young woman who grew up in your neighborhood.  Not only is she a singer, she writes her own songs, and she is an actress.  She maintains a positive role that young woman can look up to.  When enjoying one of Taylor Swift’s concerts, you will feel good about yourself.  She tries to make people feel good about themselves.  She has also been known to visit children who are ill or who have been through a tragic experience.   Taylor Swift is also known throughout the world.  I love how she seems to be such a great role model for women in today’s society.  When I think of Taylor Swift, there is no better word to describe her than an icon.

            Taylor can be looked at as a myth because “myths explain us to ourselves and tend to keep us standing tall and looking up at our greatness or could-be greatness” (Browne 2005 pp 13).  She was a teenager when she wrote her first song.  Now in her twenties, she is a multi-millionaire.  I think that it is great to see that someone can follow their dreams and become something they have always wanted.  This is a very positive message to send to anyone.

            In all, I think that Taylor Swift is an icon and a myth.  She is a positive person that people can look up to.  Also, she shows people that there is potential to be whatever you want to be

Pop Culture Icons

 

 

To me a pop culture icon is someone or something that almost everyone knows about.  This can be a person, thing, T.V. show, movie, or even a song.  To be an icon, it has to have had some impact on some part of society.  The first things that came to my mind were people.  Marilyn Monroe was first.  I have her pictures all over my room and love her quotes.  The second person I thought of was Meredith Grey(Ellen Pompeo).  In my house we mostly watch Food Network, so the last person I thought of was Gordan Ramsay.  I believe all of these people are pop culture icons.

These icons are all very different from each other.  Marilyn Monroe was an actress, singer, model, and a sex symbol of the 1950s.  Today, you can see her face almost anywhere, from t-shirts in the halls of the high school, to wall art at most any store.  She was a very beautiful woman, and I think today she is most idolized for being beautiful and not being a tiny super model.  Meredith Grey is the main character on the hit show Grey's Anatomy.  She was a lucky person to be married to Derek Shepard(McDreamy).  She is a character that had a rough relationship with her mother who had Alzheimer's.  Meredith is a very smart woman.  She is a person that you feel for when you watch her show.  The last icon I chose was Gordan Ramsay.  He is a world known chef with many television shows.  When it comes to cooking he is a genius.

I chose these icons for many reasons. Meredith Grey and Marilyn Monroe have some quotes that I love. Marilyn is a very beautiful woman, even though for todays age she is considered on the larger size.  I think it is great to know that women of all sizes can be looked at as beautiful. My favorite Marilyn Monroe quote is "I believe that everything happens for a reason-People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together." She may have left the world in a horrible way, but I still look up to her.  I also think it is inspiring to see someone who lived her life in foster homes grow up to be everything she was.  When I think of Meredith Grey, I feel a lot of emotion.  I love some of the things that she says in Grey's Anatomy.  My favorite quote of hers is "It's all anybody wants, right? Clean slate. A new beginning. Like that's going to be any easier.  Ask the guy pushing the boulder up the hill.  Nothing's easy bout starting over.  Nothing at all." Gordan Ramsay is very different from these two women.  I think it is awesome that he can be himself and he does not care what other people think.  He has made something of his self and does not fail.  All three of the icons I chose mean a lot to me.