An idea that was discussed in the “The Rise of Popular Culture: A Historiographical Sketch,” that I stood out to me was the example that James W. Cook when he said “neither the producers nor the consumers of this culture maintained complete control.” James W. Cook said this is his book Arts of Deception: Playing with Fraud in the Age of Barnum which discussed culture going beyond race, gender, or social classes. With his statement, I have to agree to what he is saying. Culture is thrown in our faces every day from magazines, blogs, commercials, and social networking sites. Basically anything technological can get its hands on. Culture is something that is not controllable not matter by what social economic class its audience is in. But culture can be shaped and manipulated by people.  After studying popular culture for a few weeks I can see the manipulated ways it pulls people in. The magazines showing skinny fit women, the commercials showing gourmet food that we need in our cabinets, and the video games that show the players killing people without the feeling of remorse and guilt that real life people would display. Seeing all this makes you see the in the society you live in; where women are not praised for being smart but for being pretty and where children are seen killing people and getting angry when their isn’t enough gore. And what does it come down to? Ratings? Sales? Money?

 After seeing and studying all of this, popular culture doesn’t just show you what the latest fashion is or what is the biggest show on TV, but shows you a society that you were raised in. What values and beliefs it tries to instills in you and what should be expected of you as the consumer. By studying popular culture we see not only the ways it tries to grab you in but ways to get you out and see the bigger picture and effect it has on people.