1.3: Power and Ideology - Assessment

Reading Culture | Assessment | Spotting Ideology in the Wild

As discussed in our homework materials and class discussions this week, ideology is “a term we use to describe the prevailing ‘ideas’ of society, the beliefs and assumptions any given cultural/social/political group holds to be true and self-evident and unassailable” (Lindsay). Ideology, in other words, is a way of speaking on the interlocking ways of thinking/seeing/being that hold us together—the unwritten, unspoken doctrines we hold to be obvious and unquestioned, the mores and customs and guiding structures of any given society. That said, as Lindsay notes, depending on the cultural group/historical period, some ideologies are more prevalent than others—these are the ‘dominant ideologies,’ the beliefs most widely-held and commonly enacted within any given social group.

For this post, I’d like you to first identify a dominant ideology within our current time and place. If you’re feeling stuck, our reading materials and class activities named quite a few. Next, I’d like you to find of a piece of media (movie, song, TikTok trend, book, podcast, TV show, etc., etc.) you’ve encountered that reinforces that ideological perspective. In what ways does your chosen media reinforce the dominant ideology you selected? In what ways, if any, does it not? What social/cultural/political effects do you think could result from your chosen media?

Your post should be at least 250 words, and, if possible, contain a link to your example (like, say, the clip of the movie trailer or scene, the image of the ad, the Youtube of the song).