Popularity Pressure

         Popularity can be such an evil word. I mean, who could honestly say they did not want to be popular or at least liked, especially in high school. For me, I guess I can say I have seen many types of "popularity", since so far I have been to two different high schools and two different colleges. During class we all shared our experiences about popularity and our high schools. But, no one said anything similar to mine. In my town, there are four high schools, each with graduating classes or 300-400 students (crazy, I know, especially compared to those of you who said you graduated with a class of 24). But instead of having "clicks" in schools, our schools themselves were clicks. I mean, yes we had clicks inside of each school, but they were not as important as what school you went to. We had a school for the kids who liked to party and do drugs, a school for music, "weird", really super smart kids, a school for "stuck up" rich kids, and a school that mostly consisted of black or hispanic kids. First, I went to the party school, but then left and went to the school with black and hispanic kids. It felt as though you "formed" to the schools stereotype, instead of going to that school because you were that type of kid. I find that very interesting. Also, a couple people said in class that as new students in their high schools, they were not given much attention by other students. I however was attacked with attention (good attention, that is) when I came to my new school. It was like "Oh my gosh, new girl. Gotta go meet her!" (Not complaining, it was awesome). But still, I find it interesting the way that different schools function, and what they consider to be popular.
          None of our schools really had "popular" kids. I guess the only way we considered someone popular was if they had a lot of friends, were outgoing, and like-able. I find this similar to the story we read, Bernice Bobs Her Hair, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Although Bernice was considered to be pretty, everyone still thought she was "sorta dopeless" and was "no fun on a party." This just goes to show that contrary to what many think, your appearance is not all it takes to become popular. Bernice eventually chops all her hair off into a bob hairstyle, in the name of popularity, but it all goes downhill from there, and ends up ending her moment in the spotlight. I think this gives a very positive message that appearance is not everything. In today's society, it seems we are obsessed with how we look. Reading this is refreshing in the fact that it is opposite of what society is telling us. The personality should be golden.

                                                      Example of a bob haircut from this era

I just found this awesome video that explains everything you need to know about popularity in high school. Watch it!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaBljXZFcLw

Spirit Photography

          Speaking for most people, I think it would be safe to say that if a person saw a "spirit" in a photograph, they would automatically just assume it was photoshopped and would not think anything more of it. But, in the 19th century, people thought just the opposite. In fact, people would pay to get their picture taken, to see spirits of their loved ones in the background. This was known as spirit photography. It seems hard to believe in this day in age that people could be so oblivious to think these images were true. However, during this age, photography was just being invented, so many people did not know how it worked. Photography especially became important during the Civil War, specifically the Battle of Gettysburg. Since this age was the era of the rise of science, rise of x-rays, and photography, there were many new things that were still unexplained, resulting in so much belief in spirit photography.

          There were also many different passionate religious beliefs during this time period, with many extreme beliefs and many extreme skepticisms. Both of these sides are extremely important, in the fact that they both depend on each other. Without one, the other would not exist. Certain religious groups took different sides on spirit photography. For example, Puritans, being strict, traditional, and straightforward, took the skeptic side. One strong argument for the skeptic side is that of Freud. He argues that, "Spirits and demos are only projections of man's own emotional impulses. He turns his emotional cathexes into persons, he peoples the world with them and meets his own internal mental processes again outside himself." However, many found comfort in believing in spirits. Many thought "there is a strange feeling of comfort and hope expressed in such ghostly surveillance." Spirit photography was a symbol of national mourning. Since there were so many casualties during the Battle of Gettysburg (over 50,000), people needed a way to cope with death. Thus, "spiritualism's belief in the afterlife and the possibility of communication with the dead manifested itself in the realm of the visible by means of these photographic proofs imprinted upon glass-plate negatives."

          One component of spirit photography that I found interesting (and even kind of morbid) was Momento Mori. This included taking family portraits, for example, with a recently deceased member of the family. To even consider this today would be appalling to most individuals. However, in the 19th century, it was a way to hold onto loved ones a little longer. In class, someone mentioned the "worlds most beautiful suicide." This almost seems like a modern day example of Momento Mori, since the photograph of the deceased was used in an almost advertising way. Here is the picture:

          So, although we do not participate in spirit photography anymore as a society (thank goodness!), we still are involved with the fascination of spirits. It seems that no matter what, we will always wonder about the deceased and the afterlife. Even if it is not the same as the 19th century, we find different ways to mourn, such as visiting the person's gravesite (people did not have individual grave sites back then). It is fascinating to research the different beliefs about the dead and to find similarities with how we think now. It seems we will never really know for sure about life after death!
         

Wild, Wild West

          Buffalo Bill's Lost Legacy. Everyone has heard of Buffalo Bill. Or at least the football team. But, how many people could actually tell you who he was? This article by Nancy Peterson demonstrates deep insight into the life of William F. Cody. Peterson explains Cody's quest in creating a film that demonstrates battles between the United States Army and the Indians and its lasting legacy.
           Buffalo Bill was a white, middle-class man, who Peterson describes as being, "arguably the best-known, most-pictured man in the world." He is most famous for his killing of Yellowhair, and leading rich people on buffalo hunts. As Peterson describes Cody, she does so in a way that reflects him as being a generous, kind-hearted man. In July 1913, Cody thought about all of the members in his cast, how they were left with no food, water, or shelter. It, "Broke [his] heart" that his cast was being treated like this. As a result, a $500 donation was made, along with a public auction to raise money. According to Peterson, even though Cody did not have much money himself, borrowing $20,000 from Denver Post co-publisher Harry H. Tammen, he still aimed to help his cast and neighbors.
          Nancy Peterson also glorified Buffalo Bill by explaining his other accomplishments. Many people depended on him, in fact, he employed 4,000 and another 400+ in his show. Some of his workers were involved in irrigation projects, working mines and staffing papers. But, Cody's most glorified moments came from his Wild West shows:

This is a picture of Buffalo Bill Cody reenacting his victory over Cheyenne Chief at Warbonnet Creek.

          It is interesting to note that in Wild West shows, Indians were allowed to participate, even though they were not being portrayed as "human". However, Indians actually enjoyed participating. Since their reservation land was not good, it gave them an opportunity to get away from it for awhile. They could also practice their culture, while performing, even though it would be illegal to do so outside of the show.
          Peterson suggests that in Cody's quest for realism in his shows, he may have gone too far. His shows may have become to intense and too real for the audience at the time. She suggests that the calvary was portrayed to much as a killing machine. But, however, audiences enjoyed watching the shows, since "comedy is injected into an otherwise very serious affair."Just has you and I enjoy going to the movies, people enjoyed seeing Wild West shows, and still do today!
          Overall, I think Nancy Peterson glorified Cody very well, just as she intended. She truly believes in his accomplishments and the legacy he has made. She made all of the now called horrible things we did to the Indians seem like something that needed to be done during the time, and that the Wild West shows portrayed just that. The very end, in 1890, the Battle of Wounded Knee, was the Indian's last armed stance, where they were outnumbered by the United States army, and were defeated.
          Here is a link to a wild west show I found on youtube. Wish I could have made it to the real one in Sinclairesville!
          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcnkv6ZVBCo


Link to this article: http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=6&hid=22&sid=29c3cdb2-44db-488e-a546-8aaafc0bed6f%40sessionmgr112&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=ahl&AN=10473087