Popular Culture and the Apocalyptic Strain, Term Paper Example

The Mayan apocalypse that was predicted to take place on the 21^st of December 2012 solicited a lot of global attention. Doomsday prophecies have become part and parcel of popular American cultures. Television and film has become full of end-of-the-world scenarios, from zombies rampaging the surface of the earth to secret vampire covens and werewolf packs, airborne toxic events to asteroids and alien invaders that threaten the very existence of the human race. The media has become increasingly obsessed with this “dance of death”. The popular culture in America has become fixated with the creation of a nightmare where the American civilization is reduced to a few individuals surviving apocalyptic events that are marred with monstrous and evil forces that force the survivors to live in meagre living conditions, surviving rather that living. Has doomsday ironically turned into the new American dream? Has the cataclysm of the earth become the wish and desire of the American people?

In order to provide answers to these questions, we have to understand the American dream. There exist numerous versions of the American dream as do Americans themselves. However, the most popular one and the one that is synonymous with all the versions of the American dream is one where one would obtain all material things that would lead to the ultimate state of joy and happiness. These material things would be obtained through a good and solid education, which would lead one to gain a good and well-paying job and finally obtaining the material things that pertain to the American dream. (Storey 56)

The vision of the American dream was founded on the fundamental trust in the American institutions. The longevity of institutions such as financial institutions, medical institutions and various industries would propel the American Dreamer to the heights that they so perceive to be the ultimate state of joys and happiness (Cantor 87). The ultimate institution that the American Dream is founded on is the federal government. Faith in the government to regulate monetary and financial forces to create a conducive environment for success was paramount to achieving the American dream. However, this did not come without challenges and opposition. This came amid the peak of the American Dream conception in the 50s. The faith in the American institutions came under heavy criticism as many voiced their dissent towards the continual institutionalization of the American people.

However the American dream is self-destructing. This is because as many strived to provide a better and comfortable life for their families, they would soon get engulfed in the drive and ambition and end up losing touch with their families and their spouses they supposedly cherish. While a close-knit. Happy family is at the centre of the American dream, however the principles of career always appear to conflict with this concept of family. This is because the lifestyle that a career demanded always ended up leaving little to no time for personal interaction with family and friends. This was a trap, a prison of sorts, which one could not get time to interact with the very people they sought to give a good life, leaving one’s personal fulfilment unattended to. This was echoed in the 50s through cinema. (Cantor 144)The 1957 movie, The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit depicted how the corporate life was dulling and empty.

As the mid-twentieth century came towards a close, the American people increasingly became disenchanted with their institutions. This was amid numerous financial meltdowns, government scandals which questioned the fundamental integrity and honesty of these American institutions. This distrust was reflected in the manner in which home schooling became a popular movement as many lost faith in the academic institutions. These institutions were accused of failing to deliver on their promises. Many Americans started “living off the grid” as they generated their own electricity, fuel and water. One government scandal after another led many American to lose faith in the federal government as polls suggested. As a matter of fact, faith in the presidency and the congress in 2013 is at an all-time low amid the recent partial government shutdown.

This is where popular culture provided the American people with an imaginative to rethink and reshape the American dream. Through imagination, film has provided way in which people can visualize the destruction on the very institutions that are depriving them of self-fulfilling. These fantasies are mainly science fiction and horror. Of interest is the striking similarity with these movies. Most of the movies start with the start of the apocalypse in a small way, growing into a full-blown invasion. However, in the end, the characters seem to struggle and find a solution to the apocalypse. Though the story lines are different, they always seem to take a similar path in the ending. Vampire and werewolf flicks such as Underworld provide the chronicle of the vampire and werewolf race that end up taking over the world and destroying the governmental structure. The famous Resident Evil is about a conglomerate company that controlled major sectors of the market such as pharmaceuticals and other consumer products. A subsidiary of the company would develop a dangerous virus that would turn human beings into zombies. This virus would later be released and infect the whole world, leaving few survivors fighting for the survival of the human race. New movies such as World War Z have a similar story. Alien invasion movies such as Pacific Rim, Iron Man and Avengers all point to the coming of an alien race that would threaten the human race.

According to Bennett (2009) the field of popular culture is structured by the attempt of the ruling class to win hegemony and by forms of opposition to this endeavour (Bennett, Culture, Class, Distinction 45). This is clearly seen in the manner in which faith in American institutions and governmental structures has dwindled over the years. The concept of the American dream has since been abandoned with the minority seeking ways to demolish the ones in authority, the institutions and government that deprive them of realizing self-fulfilment. This is echoed in the manner in which apocalyptic movies have gained so much popularity, becoming the highest selling movies in the world. Out of the highest earning movies in the world as of October 2013, 75% of them were either horror or science fiction movies. This only points to the struggle to win hegemony between the ruling class and forms of the opposition.

In conclusion, all the apocalyptic movies and series that are available in America and the world today are simple a re-creation of the attempt to win hegemony between the ruling class and the opposition. The popular culture that was the need and desire to achieve the American dream has slowly transformed into the need to be free of the institutions and governmental structures.

Works Cited

Bennett, Tony. Culture, Class, Distinction. London: Routledge, 2010. Print.

Bennett, Tony, Colin Mercer and Janet Woollacott. Popular Culture and Social Relations. Milton Keynes: Open University Press, 1986. Print.

Cantor, Paul A. The Invisible Hand in Popular Culture: Liberty Vs. Authority in American Film and Tv. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2012. Internet Source.

Storey, John. Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction. Harlow: Pearson Education, 2001. Print.