Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Institution
- Publication
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in American Studies
Robots Are People Too: Posthumanism In Battlestar Galactica, Rebecca Seel
Robots Are People Too: Posthumanism In Battlestar Galactica, Rebecca Seel
Honors Theses
The science fiction television series Battlestar Galactica explores the differences between human and machine and the nature of identity. It expresses both our fascination with machines and our technophobia. In a society of explosive technological advances come technological anxieties. What will happen when we create life? As BSG posits, with autonomous machines come destruction and a new race of people who, not unlike us, are trying to define who they are. As the series progresses, an overarching question emerges: what is a "person"? Is personage determined by biology or by decision? Can machines have souls? This thesis approaches BSG through …
From American Bandstand To Total Request Live: Teen Culture And Identity On Music Television, Kaylyn Toale
From American Bandstand To Total Request Live: Teen Culture And Identity On Music Television, Kaylyn Toale
American Studies Senior Theses
Because television succeeds or fails based on its ability to attract an audience large enough to entice advertisers, this project will operate under the assumption that popular television conveys some important cultural attributes of both its creators and its audience. American Bandstand and Total Request Live (TRL) each presented the most popular music of the day in ways that drew massive audiences from America’s youth, between 1952-1989 (Bandstand) and 1998-2008 (TRL.) I will treat these and related shows as venues through which to view American youth culture. The music itself adds an exciting component to the project: as music changed, …