Popular American Culture Paper - Essay Example

Popular American Culture Culture is essentially a process by which individuals live together in the form of communities. They know what norms, valuesand traditions are acceptable to the majority and respect those in order to be part of a larger group. The group or society thus derives its strength from the unity and uniformity of views of the people. Popular culture is an umbrella term for a whole range of norms, concepts, attitudes, perspectives and ideas which are mutually preferred by a vast majority of the members of a society through informal consensus.

Popular American culture refers to the same phenomenon in the American society. Fashion, arts and sports are three major trends in the American popular culture that have influenced the American society since 1920s. American popular culture has influenced the way people perceive things, think about the alternatives in decision making, and make decisions. Individuals’ decision making has been influenced. Today, people choose to consume food low in fat content because of the emphasis upon obesity and its effects as portrayed in media.

American popular culture has made me conscious about the way I look. In order to hide my chubby look, I tend to wear baggy clothes in the name of fashion. This not only helps me gain the consent and appreciation of people, but also provides me with a way to improve my look. A minority of Americans are not very optimistic about the quality of programs telecast or the movies that are made in US. They also think that other cultures are threatened by the dominance of American culture. However, Americans on the whole display a positive attitude towards increased cultural influences that are being brought into the US as a result of globalization.