Key Text - Ten Most Cultural Trends of The Last Descade

After realising the importance of acknowledging the deeper aspects that will influence the design of my characters, inside and out, I decided to carry out some research into some of the most significant cultural changes that have gradually been evolving in recent years. The reason for this is because, the term "Culture" is something I have often steered away from. Not because I have a lack of interest in it, but because I have often been quite lost when trying to establish what the term "culture" refers to. However, after coming across an online article "Ten Most Significant Cultural Trends of The Last Decade" by Andy Crouch, I feel my general knowledge on the topic has become more enhanced. 

(Crouch, A. (2016) ‘Ten most significant cultural trends of the last decade’, Available at: http://qideas.org/articles/ten-most-significant-cultural-trends-of-the-last-decade/ )

This article covers areas such as:

• Changes and growth in the area of technology and communication 
• Growth in travel and transport
• Popularity for urban life; such as big cities 
• The end of the majority - this refers to specifically the area of ethnicity and religion
• The self shot - the growing urge to refine and adapt our physical appearance due to the growing standards of society
• Informality - the casual appearance, even in the working world is becoming more and more acceptable. 
• The fact that money, has become more and more of a common goal. The pricing of basic things such as housing and food, have fluctuated massively. 

Reading this article was so useful for me, because it actually made me realise how broad the term "culture" is, and how other aspects I have been considering such as religion and ethnicity also fall under it. 

How has this influenced my practical? 

For my two characters, I have decided to have two very differing back stories. This is not just to assist me in creating two completely different characters in themselves, it is also about the audience. I feel it could be quite effective to have a modern day female character who is from a background that is causing her to be on the receiving end of a lot of abuse, both verbally and over the internet, despite the fact that she is a good, hardworking person.

For the second character I have decided to go for something the total opposite. A young boy, who is living during the second world war, and has been evacuated to the country side, who has a love for animals and exploring, and has a strong desire to become a doctor. 

I plan to write up more detailed back stories for these characters when the design work is more thorough, however at this point I feel it is good for them to differ in the way they do because it is not just about the differentiation in their appearances, but also the deeper aspects of their lives and how their living in different time zones has an impact on this.