Write an essay that applies Horkheimer and Adornos The Culture Industry and Adornos On
Popular Music to one of the following case studies:
Battle Royal video games (PUBG, Fortnite, Call of Duty: BlackOps 4 Blackout, H1Z1,
Realm Royale etc.)
YouTube vloggers/ challenge videos
A romantic comedy
An action movie
Genre of reality TV
o e.g. competition (Idol, Top Model, Project Runway, Survivor, The Challenge etc.)
o fly-on-the-wall (Big Brother, Love Island, Real World etc.)
o dating/romance (Bachelor/Bachelorette, Are you the One, Love Island, Ex on the
Beach etc.)
o labour (Gold Rush, Wicked Tuna, Border Security, Dangerous catch)
Shnen or shjo manga
Marvel Cinematic Universe
You own case study (after consulting Prof. Kjosen)
To organize your paper, you should pick one example as your primary case study (e.g. Fortnite
or Top Model).
In your paper you have to give a brief overview of the general argument that is presented by
Horkheimer and Adorno in the two texts. This means that you have to break down their
argument and define relevant terms and concepts. In other words, you have to explain those
terms and concepts that you will use to analyse your case study.
You also need to introduce your case study briefly; this is important because otherwise you will
not be able to demonstrate why it set the standard or why it is an imitation, and what the
standardized elements are.While researching and writing your paper, you should consider the following questions (note,
you dont have to directly answer these questions in your paper, but I ask them in order to guide
you on to the right track):
Why does the culture industry standardize their commodities/products?
Why do Horkheimer and Adorno argue that the element of the culture industry is
repetition? (p. 108)?
Why do Horkheimer and Adorno argue that culture today is infecting everything with
sameness? (p. 94).
What does Adorno mean when he argues that pop music/pop culture is predigested?
What is pseudo-individualization and why does Adorno argue that it is the necessary
correlate of standardization?
Questions to ask of your case study:
How original is the case study?
Did your case study set the standard or is it an imitation?
o What is it imitating?
o If it set the standard, what elements have other entertainment commodities
imitated?
o Note: this is not either/or: your case study could both be an imitation and set the
standard for others to follow. What are the standardized elements of the case study?
o How can you provide proof for these standard elements?
How was the case study pseudo-individualized?
o I.e. how was it marketed as being different?
Use the order calculator below and get started! Contact our live support team for any assistance or inquiry.
[order_calculator]