Find something (an idea, a claim, an argument, etc.) in Bulman Ch 1 to disagree with. Explain what it is and shy you disagree with it. Note: If you absolutely can’t find something to disagree with, feel free to write about that situation (why you can’t disagree) or simply discuss something that you found interesting in Ch. 1.
In Chapter 1, it argues that many high school movies often have stereotypes, showing less than middle-class students as less capable. I disagree because in reality, I do think they are usually the most driven because of their background, and that shows that Hollywood doesn’t always stick to those stereotypes.
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DeleteHi, Jordan here. Bulman argues that films both reflect and shape society by showing us who we are, he leans toward the idea that movies teach us about ourselves through the values they project. I’m not totally convinced by that. I feel like films mostly reflect the culture that already exists, rather than actively teach or change it. I think they mirror what’s already happening. That said, I did find his breakdown of high school films into urban and elite private school categories really interesting. It gave me a new way to think about how different stories are structured and what messages they carry about class and identity.
ReplyDeleteLizzie Dorsey - I agree with Bulman’s take that American high school films tend to reflect American culture, and I also agree with his thoughts on how class factors into these portrayals. However, I feel it is important to note that very few high school films are considered to be truly accurate. Bulman references Timothy Shary’s character types: the nerd, the delinquent, the rebel, the popular girl, and the jock. These character types are visible in almost every film that centers around high school, but extremely rarely in real life. I have yet to meet anyone that can name any one group of “popular kids” or “the popular girl” in their school. The social divides seen in most high school films are largely exaggerated, along with the characters in them. In addition to this, many high school films, especially in recent years, have been met with jokes about how adult writers don’t know how to connect with teen audiences or represent them properly on the screen. It is already hard to represent a group of people you have not been a part of for many years, and with how quickly pop culture shifts and changes these days, it is nearly impossible for writers and directors to accurately portray child and teenage characters. These caricatures of high school students, social groups, and cliques are not a negative in films, but it is because of them that I believe that while there are many themes, morals, and cultural norms that can be witnessed and absorbed through high school films, I don’t believe that the individual representations of characters in high school movies is an accurate reflection of youth and teenage culture, nor does it shape the larger national culture in any tangible way.
ReplyDeleteJordy- Bulman suggests that the popularity of certain high school films shows they accurately reflect society. I disagree with this. Popularity often reflects entertainment value, marketing, or nostalgia rather than realism. Just because a movie is widely loved doesn’t mean it shows the true social world. Films can exaggerate, stereotype, or distort social reality while still being successful.
ReplyDeleteNadia- How film has influenced society and culture. I was reading that section where he discusses how film has impacted the world, and It made me think about this tv show that I just watched called "the studio". It is phenomenal and is nominated for many awards because how it illustrates how much film has an impact on people. There is an episode where Seth rogans character is in a room full of doctors and they are trying to compare which job is more important, doctors or filmmakers and artists. Artists have such a huge impact on us and the future (so do doctors) but some people definitely undermine the work and creativity that gets put into artwork that absolutely shapes our society. From fashion to product placement, representing different cultures, races, ethnicities, and backgrounds in movies is extremely influential. It's why I love film. That segment reminded me of that show and how it explains how influential film making is.
ReplyDeleteKennedy- There was one thing that i disagreed with and that is some people believe that movie images accurately represent how the world really is and I disagree. Movie images that are centered around high school students or teachers usually play into stereotypes or their experiences with people. Just because a show is popular doesn’t mean that it is an accurate representation of the world.
ReplyDeleteChris Beatty- In Chapter 1, One of Bulman's points is that films are made in a way that alters and influences society. I don't fully agree with this statement, since I believe that film making considers how society already is. I feel that films tend to exaggerate what happens in the real world which emphasizes the culture that they are displaying. This makes it seem like the films are informing the world instead of influencing.
ReplyDeleteHanna - Something I found interesting was the realization that on page 6, the discussion student-focused films and educator-focused films are usually set differently. I've always seen it as a cliche things dictators do but reading through this part of the article made realize how often in films shot through the perspective of the teachers, they are seen as heros trying to help underprivileged kids. We classify them as good teachers, but couldn't we say that about any teacher in any learning setting? then when student focused films present teachers, they come off strict and demanding respect and it's usually more privileged areas were students feel restricted to behave like themselves. I just think how interesting it is to compare and constant the times it's happen in film.
ReplyDeleteJana - Bulman's claim in Chapter 1 that a social-class lens explains high school film representations more well than a racial lens is flawed because it ignores how racial dynamics continue to shape American culture and media - especially how much race plays into the systems we use every day. Although Bulman admits that Hollywood storylines tend to emphasize middle-class virtues, he minimizes how these narratives are often entwined with racism, racial exclusion, and racialized standards of "belonging" in suburbia and private school environments. By giving class precedence over race, the risk of failing to recognize how race and class intersect to shape experiences of power, identity, and education in these movies and often make students of color invisible or portray them stereotypical manners. Examining media through race and class brings a more complex understanding of how Hollywood depicts high school by both perpetuating and reflecting social injustices in the United States.
ReplyDeleteKaila- In chapter 1, Bulman claims that, "Films teach us who we are as much as they reflect who we are. It is challenging for me to agree with that idea because "we" are also very different, coming from different backgrounds and bringing different perspectives. Rather than films teaching us who we are, at times, films may be actually teaching us and shaping our view about other people in society.
ReplyDeleteFinn- in chapter one, Bulman claims that when high school films are popular, it represents their accuracy. I strongly disagree with this. When you look at films like high school musical, it is incredibly apparent that that sort of high school life is not real or accurate at all, but it’s still popular. People don’t tend to like movies or shows because they’re “accurate”, they usually like them for entirely separate reasons.
ReplyDeleteMarissa- In the chapter, Bulman makes a point that there’s a correlation between the popularity of the film and its similarities to real life. I disagree with this idea. I believe that just because a movie is popular doesn’t mean it accurately represents the ideals of our society. An example of this could be a satirical movie such as Super Bad. It’s a popular movie, but that doesn’t mean it’s an accurate depiction of high school life.
ReplyDeleteParker - Bulman argues that the more popular a high school film is, the more accurate it must be in representing real experiences. I disagree because many popular films exaggerate cliques, drama, and stereotypes that don’t necessarily reflect reality. I think if high school films were to accurately depict how high school is, it would make them way less entertaining to watch, which is why I think the more popular ones are exaggerated.
ReplyDeleteNoah Randell - In the first chapter, Bulman says Hollywood high school movies serve as a direct mirror to real teenager experiences. However, I would have to disagree because most of these films create totally unrealistic expectations rather than reflect true reality. They dramatize most events far beyond what most teens experience. If I had to choose one, the most realistic high school portrayal in a movie to me would be from Spider-Man Homecoming... minus the superheroes.
ReplyDeleteVictoria - Bulman points out in the chapter that there is a connection between the movie's popularity and how much it resembles actual life. I don't agree with this assumption. I think that a film's popularity does not necessarily mean that it reflects our society's values. A satirical film like Superbad might be useful as an example of this. Despite its popularity, the film does not accurately portray high school life.
ReplyDeleteKameron- Bulman's argument in this chapter that movies show poor schools compared to upper class schools poorly. He argues the idea of individualism is a prominent theme in most movies but is shown differently depending on the production of the school. I disagree as I believe for individualism to be seen in all school upper or lower class. Mainly because in most movies we can see similarities with how interactions play out from student to teachers, and how there is always common ground being seen between the two groups.
ReplyDeleteKenzie- “Part of the pleasure of popular culture is that it is popular – that others are experiencing the same cultural product that we are experiencing” (p.2). I think that with high school films, especially popular ones, it’s hard to experience the same cultural product because very popular films become more of a parody of itself and for entertainment purposes rather than being something that was originally relatable. This can be seen in movies such as Not Another Teen Movie, Mean Girls, She’s All That, etc. Also, Bulman’s main argument made is also something I don’t entirely agree with, he focuses too much on the depiction of poor urban and middle/upper middle class but fails to recognize or discuss deeper that race is also playing a huge part in that.
ReplyDeleteMicayla~ In Chapter 1 Bulman says that the Hollywood teenage movies are accurate if they are popular when they come out. I disagree, I feel as though lots of movies are popular because they might play to into the stereotypes a little too much to the point it isn't realistic. For example movies from the 70s and 80s to us now aren't gonna be relatable to us now.
ReplyDeleteBulman's argument states that cinema has molded our current society by presenting us with an idea of who we are as people. It seems like Bulman gravitates towards the suggestion that movies and the world of cinema show us a lot about ourselves and our communities through the ideas and standards they portray. Unfortunately I’d say I’m not entirely persuaded though I truly believe that a lot of movies mostly show a culture that already exists in our society. They are almost sort of mirroring what happens in our society today. I will say though I did find this article of high school movies and the urban and wealthy private school divide really interesting. It also gave me an opportunity to think about how different stories are laid out and constructed. One of the key points I do kind of disagree with is the idea that film images can accurately show how the real world really is. I don’t believe that’s true, especially because it seems like portrayals of high school students or educators fall into these over the top stereotypes a lot of the time. They fail to reflect the real personal experiences of students and educators and tend to focus on the bright side of things most of the time. I'd say Just because some form of media whether it's a movie or a show is popular doesn’t mean it’s an accurate depiction of the real world.
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Lee - I agree with Bulman's notion that cultures can collectively explain their beliefs and underlying values through fairy/folktales. However, I disagree that folk tales should be so prevalent when explaining modern day issues. Going so far as to 'summarize' the complexities of long-term events and issues by making a fantasy out of them does more harm than good.
ReplyDeleteErica - I agree with a lot of what Bulman writes. As a photo/film student and a pop culture connoisseur I have expected the impact that films have on the way society functions. From different style trends to new slang movies have always been a reflection of their times. Even if they are over dramatized for entertainment purposes there's still an element of truth and a reflection of how our society
ReplyDeleteBrandon- I disagree with Bulman's suggestion that shows and films accurately describes reality. The shows are supposed to be more appealing or dramatic in order to keep those watching hooked. So in order to do so some falsities are added.
ReplyDeleteSeniece - I agree with Bulman that high school movies show American culture, especially class, but I don’t think they really show what high school is like. The types of characters Shary talks about a nerd, jock, rebel, troublemaker, and popular girl, are all over in movies but not really so clear in real life. Most of these movies make cliques and social groups bigger than they are, and many seem wrong because grown-up writers can't really show what teens are like. While the stories can still show cultural ideas and values, the characters aren’t real pictures of young people.
ReplyDeleteJasper - It was hard for me to find something I disagreed with, so I had to go with something that Bulman had cited. He said that a researcher had concluded that from 1935 to 1977 the idea of a teacher in movies had become increasingly more negative. From my own viewing of movies from those time periods, I feel like teachers weren't necessary becoming more negative, I'd argue it was the same amount of negative and positive teachers, just there were more films being made. If you just look at how many movies had bad teachers, you might see the number tick up, but if you looked at how many movies were being made I think you would see that grow at a similar rate.
ReplyDeleteNadra- In Chapter One, Baulman says that in his analysis, social class is a better lens to analyze the data than race. I disagree because while social class is an important factor when analyzing the differences in movies set in urban, suburban, and private school settings, the race aspect plays a huge role (I'd argue a bigger role) in the way these movies will be written. Of the movies he listed for the urban setting, Lean On Me, Stand and Deliver, The Substitute, and Teacher, the only film that didn't depict a run-down, underfunded, violent school with the lead villain or troubled student being black or a person of color was Teacher. The language used to describe the students was lighter, the school was cleaner, and the man antagonist was not a black student or one of color. In most films set in suburban settings, the cast is usually primarily white, the school is well kept, the students are never labeled as violent, and there is no violent villain threatening students or teachers. I understand he isn't ignoring that the white perspective often takes precedence in film creation. But I find it very hard to separate race and class when analyzing high school films, as race and class go hand in hand when creating the plot.
ReplyDeleteUzziel- When I had read Chapter 1, Bulman said that “films teach us who we are as much as they reflect who we are.” I personally find it very challenging to completely agree with this concept, especially when you consider the idea of “we” and how different we are as people. We come from multitudes of backgrounds, cultures and, we also tend to hold completely different views and perspectives from one another. I believe that rather than always showing us things about ourselves, movies tend to often mold how we view other people our society and impacts all of our understanding of how people are so different from us
ReplyDeleteDakota C - Bulamn saying that class takes precedent over race is something that I disagree with. Race plays a bigger role than class and I find it incredibly difficult to separate the two, especially in film.
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