Throughout this course we have been analyzing different popular culture theories surrounding Hurricane Katrina. Some of these theories include icons, myths, heroes, rituals, and formulas. The theories that best relate to Hurricane Katrina are the popular culture theories of icons and the theory of myths.
There are plenty of iconic images that come from Hurricane Katrina. Forever etched into our minds will be sight of people on rooftops, the Superdome with the mass of evacuees surrounding it, and the countless other images that came after the hurricane hit. “The devastation in reminiscent of Hurricane Katrina” is now a popular phrase by reporters in the mass media.
In the regards to myths, the most interesting thing I found lies in the myths that Hurricane Katrina created. The first myth is that Hurricane Katrina was a superstorm and that all future hurricanes will be superstorms because of global warming. In reality, compared to other storms that have struck the United States in the last one hundred years, Katrina was a relatively minor storm. The second myth is that “society will be left to fend for themselves after a disaster” (Harper, 2012) . This myth has led to the development of a number of different apocalyptic genres such today’s virus and zombie apocalypse fad. In reality, while there were some issues, the government did have resources positioned before the hurricane and did respond to the disaster quickly as could be expected, given the scope of the disaster. Nevertheless, Katrina will always be known for the government’s perceived slow response.
As an eye-witness to Katrina, I know I look at the disaster in a different light. I enjoyed looking through the materials and being able to put some of the icons and myths on paper. I have also begun to use the analysis that I performed during the course on other events of national significance. This analysis has truly opened my eyes.
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