Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Blog Post #9 - Meme Critique

"18 Things You Will Miss If You’re A Brit In America"
URL: http://www.buzzfeed.com/scottybryan/18-things-you-will-miss-if-youre-a-brit-in-america

As I searched for an article to analyze on Buzzfeed, I came across a perspective of what it is like to live in America as an individual from Great Britain. Although I am not British nor have I visited the country, I consider myself an “insider” of the American culture and can conclude that the author of this post, in ways, is incorrect depicting our country while comparing it to Britain. The images throughout the list are mixed when it comes to accurately representing what the writer is trying to say. For example on meme number nine, two U.S. newspaper covers are compared to a British front page. He implies ours are quite boring and there is a stark difference to the stunning and colorful example given. The images he chose directly link to the provided text and his valid point attempted to be made. However on number eleven, there is a picture of Boots which is the author’s opinion of the best pharmacy in the world. Right beneath it, the author then goes on to make the claim that U.S. pharmacies sell cigarettes. Even though this may be the case, his picture used to link this claim shows cigarettes behind the counter of a gas station. This is an invalid representation. After comparing the size and drive times across both countries, The Simpsons picture has one of the main characters from the show commenting regardless how small Britain is, everything it has to offer could not fit in America. I find that this was a strange choice made by the author since the Simpsons is widely known as an American television show and contains nothing but culture of the United States. Recycling this meme from the intended culture is a clash while it is currently being used to positively comment about Britain. I believe everyone should have the right to their own opinion, but it is necessary to appropriately and accurately address these opinions with support. When this author places mismatched images to his text, it shows that he has incorrect stereotypes about particular aspects of the American culture. 


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