Beautiful people, or simply Philistines???

The website beautiful people, has been one which has caused controversy since it was launched. It is simply a dating site for yes you guessed it "beautiful people", and excludes ugly people from joining the website.

Hmm shallow I know,well I decided to probe a little further and decided to apply for this membership, not because I am looking for a date, believe me I am more than capable of finding a date, without the help of a dating site.
 Anyways I applied to join this service, in order to get an insight into what the dating site was about.
I was shocked beyond belief at my discoveries.
 Contrary to the media coverage, this wasnt an exclusive website, where attractive people found their soul mates, but merely a forum where... err not so beautiful people, but a group of sad people went and hoped their egos will be massaged, by people who the only thing they had in common, was probably the size of their peanut brains.
Before, I carried out my research, I was certain that these people and website could be termed as Philistines, simply because they were simply shallow, and were very interested in the materialistic ways of the world, and most of all the pettiness of finding an attractive soul mate.What happened to "dont look for love, let it find you",... I guess Mathew Arnold was right, old traditions are fading away, gone are those days, were men courted women!
As I digged deeper into the process, I found out that after you applied for your membership, exisiting members would then vote as to whether you were considered beautiful or not. Ok fair enough, pass the judgements if that helps you feel better about yourself right?? Oh no... I discovered that the applicant created forums where they pleaded with existing members to vote for them..
Having made my discoveries, I changed my opinion about this website and decided they werent even worthy to be called Philistines, at least Philistines were middle class, these people were simply the populace, the masses, a bunch of low- class, shallow minded people who simply either wanted to pass time by, with endless, revolting and smutty conversations, or were simply looking for a sex buddy.
My research then took a turn for the better, when I stumbled across an article in Pr week, claiming that the Pr company responsible for Beautiful people, had aimed to provoke media attention with controversial press releases. They hoped this would spark a debate and attract more hits and application.
It makes my stomach churn, to admit that their pr campaign worked, as their websites has been flooded with several applications.
This made my research slightly more difficult, because I went back to viewing them as Philistines, a bunch of money grabbing, attention seeking individuals, interested in Petty little things.
Judging this website as a Leavistist, I believe this is a very shallow media text that is not worth viewing or visiting. It is far from being an intellectual media outlet, it seems to be spreading through the masses, as more people seem to be applying to join this website.

I am sure you are all wondering, if i got accepted, No i didnt, only because I refiused to participate within the groups, I didnt beg for votes or even have a profile picture, so yes there was nothing to vote for, I could have been a three eyed monster for all they knew.

Sweetness and Light

Sweetness and light" simply nice things asscociated with culture,  such as horse riding, pheasant shooting, fox hunting, ballet, opera etc. But unfortunately, I dont do any of those things, even though my parents seem to have exhausted their means in trying to get me to be more "cultured".
Seems I have to pick a generic media text then, seeing that everything I do and enjoy will not fall into this category... (gigs, and booze).
A media text that may be viewed as  providing us with "Sweetness and Light", may possibly be a day at the ballet, which Im sure is lovely, or an evening at the Opera, which again I'm sure is a pleasurable way to pass time. However I am inclined to put forward a day at a show such as Cirque du soleil..
I recently visited the Royal Albert theatre, to watch a performance of the Canadian circus, Cirque du Soleil, and I think it is an absolutely brilliant show.
Unlike, various Circus's out there, Cirque du Soleil, combines show stopping acrobatic performaces with emotional and well composed songs, whilst telling a dramatic story.
In order words, combines the elements of ballet, and an opera performance.... doubt you can get any closeness to "Sweetness and light".
The often emotional and instrumental songs, playing softly in the background, whilst watching an intense and dramatic performance, evokes a feeling of warmth and injects a taste of "Culture" that is so sought after by many.

The performance, captures the mind and attention of the audience,conjuring up the same feelings you would achieve at the Opera, or the Theatre, and this feeling is definitely my "Sweetnss and light". Simply watching, and consuming, the art and talents of these performance, transports me to a place, a place of solace and calm..
The show communicates very strong messages to those who enjoy art and creativity, as it leaves room for translation. The audience would need to allow themselves to engage with the acts on an emotional level, which then enables them to translate the show. It conveys the message to theatre lovers, that to enjoy a good performance one does not need to limit oneself to classic theatrical shows, but can enjoy the combination of diferent elements of theatrical art in a show like Cirque du Soleil.

Mass Civilisation And Minority Culture

I read this piece, which is somewhat confusing, but after a couple of reads managed to get the jist of it, and found that it was a somewhat interesting piece.
In this article, F.R Leavis basically talks about the problems we face today in describing culture,he believes that in any given period or era, only a small minortiy understand art and literature which culture is heavily attached to. He believes there is the minority that believes that there is a certain way to respond, i.e how to act, what is right from wrong.
However he believes that the modern phase of human history has changed this dynamics,a term he names "The machine", e.g the automobile, he believes has broken up families and revolutionised custom. He also mentions films as a strong influence, as they target emotions, thereby causing a passive direction which leads the masses not to think for themselves.
Furthermore, he argues that the landmarks have shifted, the distinctions and boundaries are all gone, and so there is no definite term for "culture" as everyone has their own idea of what culture is or should be.
In addition, he believes that it is impossible to resist" the machine" or attempt to create a new "mass culture".

The Couture Culture

Ive always tried to understand the difference between individual identity and culture, and  at this stage I'm still unable to do so.. I dont know maybe this confusion has stemmed from my African background, the fact that my parents do not believe in anything creative. The pure mention of my passion for fashion and interest in fashion is usually the root of all arguments in my household.
So when I was asked to pick a media text that could describe my culture, it was inevitable that it would be a fashion publication, and ofcourse it had to be every fashionistas style bible... VOGUE!
I believe vogue represents my culture, as I live by this book, to me Vogue is not just a magazine, its a way of life. It is every model, photographer, and designers dream. We worship Anna Wintour, editior of US Vogue and believe Andrea Leon Talley is a god. Some may view vogue as another fashion spread but this is a view shared by the ignorant. For a young designer a feature in Vogue and the backing of the magazine could be a life long ambition achieved.
To a girl like me, Vogue signals hope, and strengthens my ambition to succeed in the fashion media industry. Vogue frames my thoughts just like ones culture, the way I view a hand bag is different from someone who reads "more magazine", I do not view a hand bag as just a hand bag, I reflect on all details.
Vogue influences my personal choices and most of all my personal appearance.  As a student who is aspiring to work in fashion Pr, Vogue embodies strong journalism, and connects with its audience in ways which every media text should.

Vogue is the pinnacle of couture and high fashion, and therefore appeals to me more than any other fashion media publications. I am very interested in high fashion, and I believe that every fashion piece even if bought in Primark, owes its root to high fashion designers, and Vogue simply places me in the heart of these creations through its publications

Some may criticise this culture as a slightly elitist and snobbish culture, which is chracterised by the ditzy park avenue princess or the incredibly underweight girl strutting the Vogue offices in her new Christian Louboutins and Chloe paratay hand bag, but to me Vogue isnt a magazine, its food for the soul...