Week 2-Cobb, Chapter 2 (Cultural Studies)

Do we live in a "hyperreality-driven" culture? Cobb gave several inclinations that we live in a culture that thrive off of aesthetically satisfying materials. One of the examples that we can all relate to are movies. Movies give us a sense of a new reality in which we can live another person's life. I would have to agree with Cobb and Jane Addams who argues that we actually live our lives in drama that is being performed as an art for us. We tend to live our lives in such a way that you have to ask yourself, "Am I living my life or someone else's life?" We are attracted to symbols, colors, music, art, dramas, and romance, but I wonder what we desire most out of life? Is it that we look at the elite of our culture today and strive to be more like them or are we satisfied in what God has blessed us with and take advantage of those opportunities? Another interesting thought that ties into this conversation is this idea of hegemony. "...the process of negotiation through which the oppressed are presented with the ideas around which they are expected to organize their lives..." This certainly rings true today in our Western culture. There seems to be this added expectation to live your life and if were to journey outside those expectations, you may be alienated altogether. So then, what expectations should we seek to fulfill? God's expectations or culture's society? Maybe we seek to fulfill both expectations to a certain degree.