“‘Get Back’ To Talking About Politics”

The debate surrounding social and political expectations being placed on celebrities is a very popular topic of discussion in today’s celebrity landscape. Last year Sarah Friedmann took HIST 329: The Beatles in the US and UK class with Dr. Laura Mayhall and she became very interested in this question of the responsibility celebrities have on our culture today and what we can learn from studying one of the most popular bands of all time. 

The Beatles were used to show the inception of the “celebrity” as a figure in popular culture that people can look to for inspiration and influence, especially in the political and social spheres. This idea of looking to celebrities as activists is something that is still strongly rooted in our culture today and by studying The Beatles we are able to understand the celebrity landscape today better and how it has changed over time including its connection to social and political developments from the 1960s to the present day.

Sarah had never used Svideo or movies as evidence in a paper before but she found movies like A Hard Days Night (1964) greatly aided her in her research. She said one of the challenges she faces when incorporating visual evidence is trying to figure out how to translate something visual to something that is written.

Celebrities are everywhere nowadays and everyone participates in celebrity culture in some way, whether it's listening to music, watching a movie, or attending a concert. Sarah wants readers to ask themselves “Why is it that we put political expectations on celebrities?” Because it’s important to look at history to make informed decisions about the future. 

Sarah’s professor, Dr. Mayhall, was the one to recommend that she submit her work for publication. She also wanted to share her work with other people due to her paper’s accessible topic and being that it's not a topic typically talked about in history papers. 

Sarah is a History and Archaeology double major, from Sterling Heights Maryland and she has plans to graduate in August 2025. She is involved with residence life, working as a residence assistant,  and is also involved in Campus Ministry,  Peers, and  the dean of students. 

Read Sarah's piece,"Get Back to Talking About Politics" , in the upcoming issue of Inventio Volume 10!