Aids Hiv And The Pursuit Of Happiness - 1366 Words

The AIDS epidemic has been a controversial debate for many years. As Sturken says in her text, there is discourse on AIDS of hysteria and blame, but AIDS also produces a discourse of defiance and criticism (Sturken 147). Using Sturken’s article AIDS and The Politics of Representation and the film Living Proof: HIV and the Pursuit of Happiness I will discuss the two different discourses and views of AIDS. These simultaneous discourses on AIDS, result from the variation of ways people in our society are affected by the disease. There is a clear divide in discourses between people who have and people who do not have HIV/AIDS and these become evident when we look at how they perceive the disease. For example, through a medical representation, people who do not have AIDS may blame the gay community for its epidemic. However, AIDS patients may defend themselves and critique the medical representation, using popular culture such as films and activists groups such as ACT UP to educat e the public on an alternative representation of AIDS. Together the public produces two separate discourses occurring simultaneously. People who are not infected with the AIDS disease may view AIDS as a gay man’s disease or blame gay men for the AIDS epidemic due to medical representations of AIDS. For example, in Sturken’s article, she quotes â€Å"in the eyes of straight people, gay still means AIDS† (Sturken 165). She continues to talk about how the media identifies people who have AIDS as â€Å"victims† ofShow MoreRelated Repression and Fear of Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, and Transgender Americans1610 Words   |  7 PagesAmerican normal life. Stereotypes of the homosexual worsened with the appearance of AIDS in the 1970s. Gay people find themselves metaphorically welded to an image of lethal physical deterioration, and religious fundamentalists blame acquired immunodeficiency syndrome on the sin of homosexual acts. (Rubin, p. 34) The government relied on its Western religious principles in attempting to prevent the spread of AIDS. As opposed to embracing and funding safe sex education and drug rehabilitation forRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?844 Words   |  4 Pages The effects of marijuana on certain health issues, diseases, and cancers are unreal. Cannabis oils can be put to great uses. It has been known for years that marijuana is effective in alleviating the symptoms associated with multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS, chemotherapy-induced nausea, and intractable pain. More recently, the use of medical cannabis in children with epilepsy has gained much attention. 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