Hopper’s brand of Americanism was a counterpoint to American optimism. Fifty years after his death, his legacy lives on.
Articles on Pop culture
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Pakistani pulp fiction often portrays Hindu characters as evil demons and Muslims as heroes, an attempt to spread nationalist ideology.
Historically, pop culture has tended to depict transgender people as objects of comedy or monstrous freaks. But attitudes are changing, as a new novel featuring a transgender child shows.
The subtlety laced with satire that graced earlier shows has been replaced by a brash, carelessness. And Homer, while always loud-mouthed, is now positively abusive. After 28 seasons, is it time for The Simpsons’ creators to call it a day?
Eighties culture is big, from nostalgic TV dramas to tours by ageing pop stars. But it’s time for a clear-eyed assessment of the decade, which prized excess and economic rationalism along with synth pop and big hair.
From ‘Machiavellian female princes’ to warriors, assassins and prostitutes, the women of Westeros and Essos are a richly varied bunch. A new book examines their role in the series and explores its sexual politics.
Prince had ‘Purple Rain.’ Michael Jackson had ‘Thriller.’ And now Beyoncé has her own self-reflective masterpiece.
The psychological complexity of Shakespeare’s characters has rendered them timeless. Today, we see The Bard’s influence in shows like ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘True Detective.’
Every time Las Vegas looks like it’s about to die, it demolishes itself and rebuilds as something bigger and better.
Decluttering, spearheaded by Marie Kondo and Japanese minimalist consumerism, has taken on quasi-spiritual connotations. What are we actually trying to get rid of when we throw out all our stuff?
Depictions of women bullying women are a mainstay of reality television shows, just as reports of Twitter fights between female celebrities are regular tabloid fare. It’s a phenomenon with a long history.
We can pursue our own happiness to the exclusion of the real world, but how meaningful can that be? Far better to engage with life and both the happiness and sadness it brings along the way.
How do those who watch low-brow television shows rationalize their behavior? We found out.
By featuring girls who buck the conventions of their world – and ours – films like Insurgent inspire fans to enact real change.
Star Trek fans were especially drawn to Leonard Nimoy’s Mr. Spock – who showed many that it “was okay to be a nerd, that even in the future not everyone fit in, or needed to.”
Art is a cry of distress from those who live out within themselves the destiny of humanity … Inside them turns the movement of the world; only an echo of it leaks out – the work of art Arnold Schoenberg…
In the same week American rapper Nicki Minaj released Anaconda, a music video dedicated to celebrating “the butt”, US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift released a video, Shake It Off, accidentally dedicated…
Give them enough blood and vampires keep on feeding – but give academics Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) and the same phenomenon occurs. Much Ado About Whedon: The 6th Biennial Slayage Conference…
And so we wait, anxiously, to see Australia at an event that celebrates the rich cultural tapestry that is the panoply of European states. Nah, who am I kidding? We’ve got a guernsey at the Eurovision…
This year the world’s most popular superhero, Batman, celebrates his 75th birthday. From inauspicious beginnings in a six-page comic to the transmedia anchor of one of the world’s largest media conglomerates…
Top contributors
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Co-director of The J.M. Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice, Adelaide University
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Associate Professor of English and Writing, University of Newcastle
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PhD student in the Department of Gender and Cultural Studies, University of Sydney
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Reader in Computing & Social Responsibility, De Montfort University
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Associate Professor of Communications, Elon University
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Professor in Cultural and Social Analysis, Western Sydney University
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Joanna Mendelssohn is a Friend of The Conversation.
Honorary Senior Fellow, School of Culture and Communication, The University of Melbourne
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Doctoral Candidate, Monash University
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Associate Professor of Popular Music, University of Sydney
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Senior Lecturer, The University of Melbourne
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Director, Vice-Chancellor's Centre of Public Ideas (CoPI) and Donald Horne Professor of History and Public Ideas, University of Canberra
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Adjunct Associate Professor of Learning and Instruction, University at Buffalo
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Conjoint Clinical Associate Professor, Deakin University School of Medicine and Specialist Pain Medicine Physician, Deakin University
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Assistant Professor of Sociology, Psychology, and Public Health, University of Nottingham
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Adjunct Professor, School of Humanities, Adelaide University