The Cowboy from a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....

Over the past year or two, I have noticed a large "resurrection" in the Cowboy/Western settings in media. From video games to movies I have seen it all rise again in popularity. However, my favorite cowboy has been around since 1977, Han Solo. Han Solo is a very popular character from the Star Wars saga. He first appears on the desert planet of Tatooine next to his hairy, 7.5-foot tall sidekick Chewbacca. Before his character evolves within the events of the movie, he is a space scoundrel who takes no sides. He is an outlaw who is constantly on the run from the Empire (The oppressive government in the films) and evading bounty hunters who want to take him in for money, dead or alive.



Han Solo, while it is unorthodox, fits the cowboy aesthetic quite well. To his hip is a blaster, ready to fire when need be. His steed, The Millenium Falcon, his ship which has got him through some pretty close calls. Han Solo originally comes off as the loner type. His only friend being Chewbacca. He has little regard for anyone else and only cares for his own personal gain. The setting that we first meet Han on is on the desert planet of Tatooine. This planet only harbors the lowest of the low. Slavers, bounty hunters, and just like Han, outlaws. Han Solo proves he isn't afraid to use his blaster when he is confronted by Greedo, a Rodian bounty hunter (Refer to picture below) who says that he is too kill Han for not paying back Jabba the Hutt (The galaxies most powerful gangster.) Han is snarky for a bit before shooting Greedo to die. (And yes, despite what you have heard, he shot first.)















The video was deleted so I am unable to respond directly to it. However, Han Solo holds many similar attributes to that of the more traditional Cowboy. His first appearance is in a Cantina on Tatooine, he is an outlaw who evades the law, he is often running from bounty hunters, he works for his own gain, is an expert pilot, and has a blaster right on his hip ready to quick draw.

Module 2: An Example of Popular Culture

PROMPT

Using An Example of Popular Culture (10:36 minutes) as an approach, take a look at some form of popular culture (other than coffee or gaming) from a variety of angles to understand the ways and means people interact with it and make sense of it. 

 It should be something largely known and recognized so, therefore, you can use specifics to draw out different angles (similar to the coffee where coffee was generic but then discussed different forms of coffee to distinguish different identities).

Some other ideas or areas you might consider (but are not limited to):

• Anime
• Baseball
• Basketball
• Cars
• Comics
• Crafting
• Do-It-Yourself
• Fashion
• Food
• Football
• Hockey
• Movies
• Music
• Music festivals/concerts
• Soccer
• Television

Due Sunday by 11:59pm.

Relevant Tags: Pop culture studies, [Name of specific popular culture being explored]

Example:  Gaming 

I found this week's video on Coffee to be fascinating and got me to thinking about how I consume coffee and what it means to "get coffee" with someone.  That lead me to think about other areas of popular culture and one that I participate in quite off, which is "gaming."

Gaming is much more multi-faceted than the six-letter word lets on.  First, there is the traditional console-based gaming that occurs on Wiis, Gamecubes, Playstations, etc. While these used to be for singular or dual use, they are now open for much more interaction with players able to join entire community of gamers online through their consoles.  Or gamers can also access different and new games rather than buying them at a store.  We've moved from a 2-input console (hello Atari joystick!) to consoles that can read your motion (and therefore, change gaming from inactive to a very active past-time). 

After my recent semester finished, I played this for many hours on my Wii.

We also have mobile games and these too are curious.  Some are simply time-killers to occupy us in the in-between spaces of time when we would be twiddling our thumbs or growing impatient with waiting in line.  Others like one of my favorites, Ingress, brings us into the physical world to explore it, play with others, and learn more about the world than we knew otherwise.  Other games pit us against our friends (Words With Friends) or we look to help out our friends in the game. 

There are games with rich and complex graphics that really does make you feel you are in another world or the games wherein you put in hundreds of hours to complete--hours that can feel like "work" but are still somehow rewarding.  Such games require an amazing amount of concentration, dedication, and intellect to complete.  Other games are equally demanding but don't necessarily have a "complete" phase wherein the person feels they have "beat" the game. 

Then, of course, there are the secondary elements of gaming--the critique blogs, vlogs, and podcasts (Geek and Sundry is one of my favorites), the gaming competitions, Twitch tv, LARPing and Cosplaying around video game characters or when video games become movies. 

 We "play games" for many different reasons: to relax, to engage our brains, to be social and connect with friends, to enter the "zone", and many other reasons.  We can often see the word "game" used derisively and yet, the modern gaming world is such a rich world of interaction and exchange among people. 

It seems like games are everywhere in our culture and I know that some people see that as a sign of being somehow lesser and yet, I can't help but think about how I've seen games be a place where I make friends, learn more about the world, and even a place that brings me a lot of joy. It requires a variety of skills from hand-eye coordination to social interaction to critical and creative thinking to even physical ability. Thus, I tend to think there's a lot more going on with gaming than many people realize.