Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Today's Blog Assignment

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/20/opinion/inequality-and-the-modern-culture-of-celebrity.html?src=me&ref=general

Please leave a comment.  Aim for 3-5 sentences minimum.  Due Wednesday.

60 comments:

  1. I do agree that the roaring 20's created the ideal celebrity. While our celebrities today may be drastically different then the one's in the 20's so is everything else in our lives today such as technology, communications, economy, and even government. While the article states that these new celebrities may have started as "drop outs" or "crack dealers", so did the majority of the celebrities in the 20',"These new celebrities are all more or less start-up entrepreneurs, and they live by the hacker’s code: ask forgiveness, not permission." Majority of the celebrities from the 20's were criminals in the business or gangsters; they weren't all legal riches. I found it very interesting how Packer, believed our celebrities today vs 10 years ago are closer to the one's of Gatsby's time because the celebrities of our age have grown so huge that they dwindle the aspirations of ordinary people, who are asked to yield their dreams never being able to fulfill them.

    -Cassidy Murphy P2

    ReplyDelete
  2. I find it very interesting how people who were literally nothing or somewhat like they used to be can be turned into a celebrity. Peoples names change to keep up their image, and that can say a lot about the person. Obviously they are more comfortable being famous in their other body, than themselves as normal people. Image is everything to these celebrities. For Gatsby, he had money and that's what gave him his image and why people liked him.

    Becca p6

    ReplyDelete
  3. i found this article interesting because it all true, the 20's were very roaring. it explains how the celebrities were different from the 20's and how they are now. there is a lot of things that changed from then to now. people think so many different things of what makes a celebrity be a "celebrity." in the article its saying the celebrities now a days are more advance and far more exclusive and i agree because things now are better because of the technology and everything else.

    lacey M

    ReplyDelete
  4. i agree that celebrities are glorified to a maximum these days. they give the media and everyone who pays attention to the media something to think about; something aside from their every day lives to talk about. however, i don't think its such a bad thing. some people take it to an extreme and cross the line when obsessing over these new celebrities, but for the most part their just another source of entertainment. they can set a bad example, especially when their wrong doings are broadcasted for everyone to watch, but its up to you to make sure they don't have a negative effect on you.

    Angel L period 6

    ReplyDelete
  5. I thought what was most interesting was the people that they metioned Martha Stewart and Jay-Z even though they are both famous for there own illegal things they both also have things that they can be proud of. Martha for all her cooking, and how she taught everyone her ways, and Jay-Z for his inspirational music. Gatbsy was only famous for his money in bootlegging also which was also illegal. People become famous for many different reasons, and doing illegal things can change their social status.
    Shyla P6

    ReplyDelete
  6. What i found most interesting in this story is how the publisher talks about how someone becomes a celebrity from doing certain things. what really caught me is how he connected it to the great Gatsby and what makes him so great. like what he has done to get the label from throwing party's and just having money just like the celebrity's today just for being in movies or whatever it is it makes them famous and great
    Justin R p6

    ReplyDelete
  7. This article was very interesting to read about the difference from celebrities in the '20s to celebrities in our culture now. What i found most interesting was how George Packer described the self invention to the rise of the celebrities today. I like how he said "The person evolves into a persona, then a brand, then an empire, with the business imperative of grow or die." This is basically explaining that once an ordinary person becomes famous they'll grow quickly into a huge deal throughout the world and it's their decision whether to keep growing or to stop and be that "once famous person" forever.


    -Heather Beedle P6

    ReplyDelete
  8. I liked in the article how he talked about many different types of famous people at more wouldn't classify "famous" like Steve Jobs and Donald trump. i believe the two things that make people famous are money, drama, and the ability to get people to like you. "There is a quality of self-invention to their rise" many famous celebrities have to invent themselves in the article the writer talked about have they create a self persona with the way they show themselves or they changing in there names. the media is a be aspect to the creation of celebrities using over exaggeration and lies to make a story sound more dramatic making the reader more interested in the person.there are many ways to become famous its all about doing something big.
    -Jackie R. P6

    ReplyDelete
  9. I thought it was very interesting how the writer mentioned that all the wealthy people are interconnected and use each others products so the regular people feel outside of the group and purchase things to try to be "in." This is similar to how some people believe the Illuminati is real and is in place to make the rich richer.

    Griffin P5

    ReplyDelete
  10. What first captured my interest from this article was the mention of how both Martha Stewart and Jay-Z had changed their names. They had different names before, but for some reason decided that their new names would be more exciting new identities, just like Gatsby. He went from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby because with a new persona, he needed a "cool" new name to match it. There's also something to be said about the illicit aspect of celebrities, which this article put very nicely. "These new celebrities are all more or less start-up entrepreneurs, and they live by the hacker’s code: ask forgiveness, not permission." There's a certain mindset that goes along with being a celebrity that tends to make them think they can get away with anything. They do what they want, and afterwards when they're caught they just say "oops, sorry" and the world forgives them because they're famous.

    -Amy B Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  11. This article was interesting because it had such a different perspective than most people would think of celebrities. George Packer explained his take on what makes today's celebrities so different than the ones in the 20's. In his opinion, the "stars" back then weren't really the center of attention, which I also agree with; if you think about today though, you realize how different things are. Packer puts it well by saying, "They can be found in every sector of society, including ones that seem less than glamorous." Along with the odd celebrities he lists that aren't actors and whatnot, I also thought of all the celebrities that are infamous, Lindsay Lohan for example. Believe it or not, people still idolize her and she is still followed around by the paparazzi. But why?

    Katlyn G. P2

    ReplyDelete
  12. I found this article very interesting because it made me think more about how we perceive celebrities. They're people just like us, aren't they? Not really. Yes, they found a way to make it to the top, but so many people are caught up with the people in the spotlight that we often forget about everything else going on in the world. Yes, the media is often a guilty pleasure, but as the article states, "Instead of a vibrant literary culture, we have Oprah’s book club. Instead of investments in public health, we have the Gates Foundation." This quote says something about our society and what we value as opposed to what we should value. Yes, The Great Gatsby takes place in the 1920's, but how much has actually changed since then? Reading this article definitely made these questions pop into my head.

    -Lizzy B Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  13. I found the comparison between celebrities of the 20’s and today very interesting. I do think that the 20’s was the ultimate time period where American celebrities were “invented,” and they have evolved overtime. What I found most intriguing was that however much our world has evolved; the lives of which some celebrities come from are still quite similar. George Packer states, “They can be found in every sector of society, including ones that seem less than glamorous.” Although our world is drastically different from 90 years ago, this statement is still very true.

    Rebecca W. Period 2

    ReplyDelete
  14. The author explains that "the American dream quietly dies, a victim of the calcification of a class system that is nearly hereditary." It is upsetting to think that the American Dream of anything is possible is slowing slipping away as a result of the wealth gap. In my opinion,today's society is sadly turning into the one portrayed in the Great Gatsby.
    David E P5

    ReplyDelete
  15. This article was very interesting to me because it showed that, since the Roaring 20s, the wealth gap between rich and poor has gradually increased. The author alluded that some of today's celebrities recieve too much hype in their respective field and, as a result, become even richer. These wealthy people can take advantage of today's technology and become bigger and more powerful than they could ever have imagined. The last two lines of the article really sum everything up: "We know our stars aren’t inviting us to think we can be just like them. Their success is based on leaving the rest of us behind. "

    Justin W. Period 5

    ReplyDelete
  16. This article highlights the influence that celebrities have on us and the importance we give to these people. Sometimes, we get so caught up in their lives that we forget to live our own. We imitate them and try to be like them. As the article states, "We know our stars aren't inviting us to think we can be just like them. Their success is based on leaving the rest of us behind." It was also interesting reading about the connection between the 1920's and now. It made me realize that the 1920's marked the beginning of a materialistic nation, which we are still stuck on now.
    -Ayeshra A Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  17. I found this article very interesting, especially this part,"the person evolves into a persona, then a brand, then an empire, with the business imperative of grow or die." This describes celebrities perfectly, they change their image over and over to try and grow in fame and money. I think this evolution is sick because becoming a celebrity means you are selling your soul to an agent, whose interest is to siphon as much money as they can out of you. Also the best part of being a celebrity is when you fall, you find out who your rel friends are. In the end this article was very interesting and eye opening.


    Conor Smith
    period 5

    ReplyDelete
  18. This article has strong views on society and celebrities and I have to say I agree with them. One of the most interesting lines of this article to me is, "It obliterates old distinctions between high and low culture, serious and trivial endeavors, profit making and philanthropy, leading to the phenomenon of being famous for being famous. " So many celebrities are famous for being famous and it makes me question why certain people are idolized in society today.Society was not like it used to be in 1920's and I definitely think I would've liked it better back then.

    Anna Atkinson
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  19. I think that it is very interesting. Something that stood out to me was, "The person evolves into a persona, then a brand, then an empire, with the business imperative of grow or die." Celebrities keep changing who they are to be more likeable by society and then make more money. We let this happen because we encourage then by being so interested in everything they have to do by reading about then buying their clothes, cd's, etc. The 1920's seems to have started a very materialistic era and now we are all living in it.

    Jessica Beler
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  20. I find it funny how the author of this article calls our celebrities today lousy. To me throughout the article the author seems jealous of the celebrity life. He tries to show that they are not that great, they aren't as special as they are supposed to be. He highlights some celebrities that earned their way to stardom but the author does not credit them for their great accomplishments, such as Mark Zuckerberg.

    Christina Smith
    P.2

    ReplyDelete
  21. I thought the author of this article had an interesting perspective on celebrities. I had never looked at them in this way before. The author claims that celebrities really started up in the 1920's, during Gatsby's time, and have been evolving to fit society ever since. A line that I thought was interesting is, "Their success is based on leaving the rest of us behind." The celebrities count on the ordinary people to worship them; to keep them famous. Celebrities seem to have become almost god-like in today's society. The author's tone seems to be kind of bitter towards celebrities, but I still think his way of looking at them is interesting.

    Haley K. Period 5

    ReplyDelete
  22. I agree with the author with the fact that most, but not all celebrities achieve their fame for the wrong reasons, and not by doing something significantly honorable. Most people become famous because of family legacy, and wealth. We tend to not pay as much attention to some people who should be recognized by their achievements, and instead focus on those celebrities that appeal to us the most. It's just the way society has become, and I believe that we should start noticing other people, and not just celebrities.

    Cassie F-C, Period 5

    ReplyDelete
  23. It should come as no surprise that the 'success' of celebrities results in the suffering of the masses and the general decline in culture. Few people will read great literature when there is common slop available for instant gratification. And with their great wealth, it is obvious that many people will be left in poverty as a result.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I found this article to be very interesting. It shows us how these days you do not have to be a movie star or singer to be a famous celebrity. People like Donald Trump or Mark Zuckerberg became famous because of the work that they do and how it affects so many people. Another huge example is Steve Jobs. He basically changed the world completely by creating Apple technology. He made our world so much more technologically advanced with iPods and iPhones and such. Another thing that I really found interesting about this article was the last couple of sentences where it says,"We know our stars aren't inviting us to think we can be just like them. Their success is based on leaving the rest of us behind." I found this interesting because it shows us how celebrities don't want us to be like them but instead they want us to follow them and basically worship the ground they walk on. If we were all famous celebrities, then no one would be. Without fans or followers, there are no celebrities.

    Morgan Reed
    Period 1

    ReplyDelete
  25. The way the author described celebrities was very interesting. I do agree somewhat with Packer about how our age is lousy with celebrities. Most people are famous for things they shouldn't be famous and well known for such as a sex tape. I found it interesting when Packer said, "This new kind of celebrity is the ultimate costume ball, far more exclusive and decadent than even the most potent magnates of Hollywood’s studio era could have dreamed up". I agree with what he's saying and personally I think everything is really over the top these days.

    Morgan Lazowy p.2

    ReplyDelete
  26. I thought this article was interesting because the author offered a new perspective on celebrities. What caught my attention was when the author wrote about different celebrities like Martha Stewart who have gotten in some kind of trouble and yet we still admire them. This made me think how in our culture we seem to put the celebrities that we like on a pedestal and they can do no wrong in our eyes. If it was a "normal" person we probably wouldn't still admire them if they made those same mistakes.

    ReplyDelete
  27. The article proposed an interesting view. The author showed that anyone can become a celebrity in their designated field. He gave the example of Donald Trump and rel state. Trump is one of the biggest names in NYC because of his ability to climb from the bottom, to top, to bottom again, and to top again. The author showed that anyone has a shot at making a name for themselves if they know how to work their market and beat out the competition
    Eden W
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  29. The part of the article I found most interesting was where it said "We know our stars aren't inviting us to think we can be just like them. Their success is based on leaving the rest of us behind." If that was true one could assume celebrities are inconsiderate. In which case, I don't understand why we would idolize them. They don't care about us, they just want what is best for themselves.

    Sydney, Period 6

    ReplyDelete
  30. All I see is a few reasons to hold onto money for no while longer. It seems that all it does is create "idols" and people who receive disproportional amounts of one another's time because of one or more reasons and or the use of a mass media system as we have currently in societies across the world. It allows for more continual separation between people and community. These ideas which almost everyone on earth shares but lacks to act upon in a pragmatic manor. I often wonder whether money and having that be the basis of life often ruins what could be so more. What is especially annoying though is the fact that we currently have the abilities to create a society(global scale)neigh a community that would symbolize and literally start an era that would embrace compassion in all of its forms.Everyone would receive attention from everyone. No one would have no friends, no one would be excluded,no one would fear, no one would know secrets. The fact that hundreds if people kill themselves everyday, whilst we spend millions of dollars annually on promotion of the select few good looking ones who act out fantasies on screen, is mind boggleing. This article just makes me reflect on the fact that wealth is not anything to strive for and if anything is a call for the spread of all wealth.

    Steve Z.
    Period 5

    ReplyDelete
  31. Reading this article, I wasn't as surprised to read that "The Roaring ’20s was the decade when modern celebrity was invented in America" because of The Great Gatsby. Reading and seeing people's materialistic ways in Fitzgerald's novel showed people's obsession with money and status which leads into celebrities and why Gatsby was so famous. Something today that I think compares to Gatsby is the Project X movie and how famous the ideas of throwing parties so extravagant got. I think because the idea of celebrities and materialists was introduced, it will never fade away because Americans have gotten so used to it.
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