Prison Break

I just started watching Prison Break last week and it has basically consumed my life. I'm obsessed with it.

Anyway, I was watching an episode of season 2 last night, and I noticed a few different things that kind of reminded me of our discussion on semiotics.

Michael and Sara were in the middle of nowhere, when all of a sudden FBI Agent Mahone came racing out of nowhere to come and kill them. They hop into Michael's car and take off, with Mahone right behind. Then there's all this cool camera work that shows Mahone, then Michael and Sara, back to Mahone, and then both cars. That's when I noticed that Mahone, who is a "bad guy" at this point is in a black car. Michael and Sara, who are the "good guys" are trying to get away from him and they're in a white car. It was some pretty obvious symbolism, which is probably the only reason I noticed it. Both my roommate and I commented at the same time, laughing that they had the bad guy in a black car and the good guy in a white car.

As I watched another episode, I began to realize that all of the "bad buys" are in black cars and SUVs. Meanwhile, the escaped convicts are in every color car except black. Is it a coincidence? Maybe, but the reading on semiotics made me think deeper into it and I think that the people behind Prison Break did it on purpose. Humans are conditioned to think that black equals bad, and this is just another way to reinforce that.

U by Kotex

This ad came out a little while ago, and I thought it was absolutely hilarious and really unique. Most commercials for feminine products try and make it seem like this is the most wonderful time of your life. I think it's Always that says, "Have a happy period." Seriously, who would actually enjoy having their period?

This ad stepped away from what is a standard advertisement for this type of product. The ad basically says, "Hey, we know this sucks but if you use our product we might be able to make it a little better for you." That is what people like me want to hear. We don't want someone telling us that everything is perfect and awesome. So basically what I'm trying to say is that I feel like Kotex hit their target market perfectly, and they did it in a unique way. They make the audience see how ridiculous other companies are being, and why you should buy their product instead. They really listened to the complaints consumers were having about other companies, and responded well.

After seeing this ad, I actually wanted to buy this product. Usually I'll see ads and I just kind of brush them off, but this one really stuck with me. Most ads don't effect the choices I make, I usually just buy whatever my mom used to buy when it comes to any kind of product. However, I think this one definitely got me, and I'm actually aware of why I am buying this product instead of a different one.

Sons of Anarchy: Promoting Hegemonic Values?

Sons of Anarchy tells the story of a motorcycle club, called SAMCRO for short, based in the fictional town of Charming, California. The members of the club make money through an auto repair business, but they also import guns illegally and sell them to gangs in the area. In order to protect themselves from jail time or legal consequences, the members of SAMCRO have infiltrated local law enforcement and currently have Charming's sheriff on their payroll. Their illegal activities do have some benefits for Charming, as SAMCRO has been able to keep drugs out of Charming and also run a group of white separatists from town.

At first glance, Sons of Anarchy is a story about the bad boys in town. The show is full of alternative readings that promote the values of the base, not the superstructure. The club members lie, cheat, steal, kill, deal, and do just about anything else to get their way. The law enforcement does nothing to stop the club, in fact they end up helping SAMCRO in most episodes. The club president tried to have one of the club members murdered, but the member's wife got killed instead. Then there's that whole business about dealing illegal guns to gangs. All of these are examples of alternative readings, readings that the superstructure does not promote. However, at the end of almost every episode, there is at least one dominant reading that comes about.

Some of the dominant readings are that SAMCRO would do anything to keep Charming and its residents safe. They keep drugs and other gangs out of their town. They also care very deeply about their friends and family. All of these actions help promote hegemony. They show that the dominant readings of the superstructure are always present, even when it might not seem like it at first glance. While the club may not always act in the way the dominant culture wants them to, the end result favors that of the superstructure.



If you watch this video clip you can start to see a little bit of what I'm talking about.

Greek

I'll admit, ABC Family's Greek is totally my guilty pleasure. I watch it every Monday night, and if I miss it then I'm sure to watch it on Hulu as soon as I possibly can. I sit there hoping that Casey and Cappie end up together, that Rusty breaks up with Dana soon, and that Calvin and Heath get back together soon. Mostly though, I sit there wishing that I were one of the characters on the show.

Greek has all the typical characters that you would expect to find on a sitcom about college, but they mess around with the stereotypes, which is awesome. There is the blonde sorority girl named Casey, but she’s not just going to marry some rich man and not have her own career or anything, she’s going to go to law school. There is the popular, good-looking, president of the number one fraternity on campus named Evan. However, he gave up his trust fund because he didn’t like the rules that his parents were laying down for him. Now he has to actually work for a living. There’s also Rusty, the polymer science engineer “nerd”, who also joined the number one party fraternity on campus. Then there’s Calvin, who is gay, but is also in the number one fraternity, and an incredible athlete.

These are some of the main characters on the show, and each one of them doesn’t fit into the stereotypes that are seen in almost every other show that is aimed at teens or early-20s adults. The sorority girl isn’t just some dumb bimbo, the frat guy isn’t a total party animal, the nerd isn’t just into science, and the gay guy isn’t just into going to Gentleman’s Choice, the gay bar near campus.

This is what I love about the show. The kinds of characters shown on the show could exist in real life, outside of Cyprus Rhodes University. These kinds of characters can be found on any college campus. Although there are definitely some stereotypes that are found within the show, Greek at least tries to break away from that a little bit. This is an example of how the media is reflecting society instead of our society just copying what we see on the media. It’s also an example of how we’re breaking down stereotypes more and more, and how that is actually becoming acceptable. That, at least somewhat, is progress.