Pop Icons

I am so fascinated by all the news articles about Anna Nicole Smith, that I can’t think of a word to accurately describe my state. Disgust? Horror? Dysphoria? Upset? Confused? The last article I read said that she was a “pop-culture icon!” What does that say about our culture? What does that say about icons? What exactly is an icon? Icon has a few meanings, since the ubiquity of Windows, it simply means a symbol.

For example: There are unused icons on your desktop!

It also means a religious article of great significance, including body parts or clothing of dead saints and portraits, statues, or other likenesses… “Icon,” must be Greek. The Greek Orthodox revere their icons. That’s why there is word which means someone who doesn’t approve of symbols, “iconoclast.”

Okay, I did it. I brought up popular culture, but found a way to sneak in some interesting words and not actually criticize or explore popular culture itself.

Ubiquity means that it is present everywhere, omnipresent. It’s derived from Latin.
Icon means an image or symbol. Also, a representation or picture of a sacred Christian personage, itself regarded as sacred especially in the tradition of the Eastern Churches. Originally from Greek.
Iconoclast is someone who destroys icons, or one who attacks traditional ideas or institutions. From Medieval Greek, image-breaker.
Dysphoria means depressed or anxious. Must be derived from Greek.