(But you really really never heard of Andy Griffith? Or Dick Van Dyke?? Or leave it to
Beaver? These are the TV classics- in the same way certain literary works are to
society. )
A good point. In every generation (at least literate generations!) there is a common culture. For a long time in Europe it was the Bible, fables, myth, etc. As I was growing up in the 40s and 50s, for children it was the Wild West (the little orange biographies we read about, Wyatt Earp, Dan'l Boone, etc.--don't forget, back then there were still people who had met Buffalo Bill Cody and lots of the other "legends,"), the Pilgrims, Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift. We all knew these stories, we all related to them.
Well, no. Not quite all. Every generation has some people who don't adopt the common cultural icons. jbe seems to be one of those in this generation. That's her choice, but if she really doesn't know who The Beaver or Archie Bunker are, she simply doesn't have the informational background to discuss sitcoms and their effect on society other than by hearsay. Not necessarily a bad thing, but just out of the mainstream. |
