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Barney Stinson That Guy Awesome
For those who don't know Barney, he is one of the five main characters on CBS' How I Met Your Mother played by the totally adorable Neil Patrick Harris. He is self-proclaimed awesome, seemingly immoral (although he does live by , always up for a challenge, and the ultimate womanizer (by his count, he has bedded over 200 different women). From a pop culture point of view, Barney Stinson is representative of multiple forms of cultural capital. Barney gains his persona through embodied cultural capital. Though embodied cultural capital is usually acquired over time through socialization, Barney has a single encounter with a stranger that essentially changes his life. A flashback in one episode shows Barney as a peace and love hippy who dreams of joining the peace corps with his girlfriend, http://www.metadress.com/ - http://www.metadress.com/ , only to discover she has been cheating on him with a suit wearing wallstreet type who tells him to start wearing a suit if he wants to get the girl, http://www.newdresstore.com/ - long formal dresses . This moment of cultural exchange between Barney and the man who stole his girlfriend leads to a new embodied cultural capital that governs the way Barney lives his life (Check out Barney's physical transformation here). Barney's new lifestyle turns into a form of objectified cultural capital because he defines himself by the things he has which he feels symbolically represent his worth. He prides himself on wearing only the finest of Italian suits (which he loves more than he loves women), having the biggest television, http://ebeir.com/plus/view-74717-1.html - http://ebeir.com/plus/view-74717-1.html , and living in a stylish bachelor pad. His job is also part of this capital. He holds a prominent, yet mysterious position with Goliath National Bank, and deals with business associates whom all invest in the same objectified cultural capital, drinking expensive scotch and wearing expensive suits. Barney has all of the necessary attributes that allow him to partake in the elite culture where he works. As a male, he automatically has more capital in the business world, and he solidifies that capital by being a white, heterosexual male. Barney makes sure that everyone knows at all times that he is heterosexual, often making reference to sexual exploits with women. These three aspects of Barney are the most obvious, http://www.azerisite.com/ - long evening dresses , yet at the same time easily over looked when thinking about the cultural capital Barney has and invests in. The only contradictory aspect of Barney's new lifestyle are his friends. As mentioned, he works with elite businessmen, who are all invest in the same cultural capital he does, http://legacy.jam.si/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=128060 - http://legacy.jam.si/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=128060 , however his friends are not part of this culture, nor do they appear to be interested in investing in it. It is interesting that this contradiction exists because if his friends were removed from the equation, it's easy to read Barney as completely invested in his high culture lifestyle, http://www.bbccons.com - windows 7 professional 64 bit . However when you look at the whole picture it makes you question his investment. He still holds the feeling of superiority because of the cultural capital he has in terms of the things he owns, and the position of power he holds in business, but maybe this is just a façade necessary for his job. Sound confusing? It is, http://www.metadress.com/ - long evening dresses ! Barney is a rather complex individual and we will likely never know whether he truly believes in the cultural capital he invests in or if he does it all for appearances.
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