I found that the aim of success to be more prevalent in songs, specifically wealth (although, fame and power can be found quite easily too). I feel that this aim was easier to find because in our culture most of us want more “stuff” which requires money. Additionally, I feel that many people want to be famous too, typically wealth and fame go hand-in-hand which in many cases constitutes having power. They put pop culture icons in commercials so that we buy those products; this method of advertisement has shown to be successful because we want to be like our favorite celebrity. Thankfully the aim of liberation wasn’t particularly difficult to track down either. America has had its fair share of obstacles to overcome concerning liberation (women’s/African American’s rights and other civil liberties). We are still trying to obtain liberation for groups that are not allowed to partake in basic civil liberties, such as marriage. Furthermore, some political groups feel that we need more liberation than we currently have.
I believe that the Hindu aim of worldly success is essentially the same as the American view. There aren’t many different ways of interpreting wealth, power and fame across the world. However, the way in which we interpret and obtain liberation is completely different. Both cultures are looking for a sort of physical liberation but Americans want it while they are living and in Hinduism, they want it after death so that they no longer have to endure the hellacious samsara (*dun dun dunnn*). America was founded on the need to be ‘free’ from government and we have essentially stayed in this realm since then. We want to do whatever we want, when we want. This viewpoint has mostly been very heroic and effective in shaping our country; I believe that it will stay on this route for quite sometime. Hindus are also trying to obtain liberation while they are living but I don’t feel that it contributes to the four aims of Hinduism. The liberation from samsara is a spiritual one that is obtained through good karma.
I think it is great that you linked success and consumerism. That could not be more true in the world we live in today. To many people to have success means having a lot of money and all of the "stuff" that makes a person happy. This is not true happiness if you ask me. Happiness is a feeling not the measure of "stuff" a person has. This is a great post and I think your songs do a great job of showing the aims as they are seen in American popular culture.
ReplyDeleteI like how you highlighted the interrelationship of money, success, and power. Power is a big thing in our culture, especially in reference to success. Also, great idea referencing the civil rights movement. American culture has been in love with the idea of individual liberation since the country's founding. Starting with the revolutionary war though today, our focus has been on liberation, but not exactly the same as described in the Hindu aim. All in all, I really enjoyed reading this. :)
ReplyDeleteI think that success songs were more popular and easier to find because we aim for success more than liberation. If we think about wealth and success, we need money in order to survive. So right now, we can't really be liberated from wanting money, otherwise we'd all end up homeless and hungry. Also, when I went about finding songs for liberation, I didn't understand the obvious meaning of being liberated in terms of the country you live in. If I had taken this interpretation, I could have founded songs about India or America gaining independence and this assignment may have been a little easier. So good going on that, it seems so obvious now!
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