Culture Studies Terms
The segment of a culture that incorporates the activities of everyday life, including the consumption of consumer goods and the production/consumption of mass-produced entertainments.
Popular Culture
According to author Gary Johnson’s essay “The Western,” what accounts for the popularity of the Western genre?
It's simplicity. Westerns reply on common archetypes that are easy to understand like natives vs. settles and outlaws vs. civilization.
Give an example of something "high culture."
Opera, Ballet, Poetry
A figure (often a celebrity) who enjoys a commanding or representative place in popular culture.
Icon
Books or works that are considered essential to a literary tradition, as the plays of Shakespeare are in terms of English literature.
Canon
What is the paradox of the American Dream that author Jack Solomon discusses the concept in his essay "Masters of Desire."
It has "two faces" because Americans want both social superiority (to rise above the crowd and experience glory) and social equity (to fit in and be popular).
Give an example of something "low culture."
Fast food, reality TV, comic books, commercials
A sign whose significance is arbitrary.
Symbol
This term involves classifying works of art into categories that contain other works that have similar aspects. These can be similar narratives, characters, filming/painting/literature/etc. techniques, or other formal features.
Genre Theory
In his essay “Why We Crave Horror Movies,” author Stephen King states horror movies encourage adults to think like children. What does he mean by this claim? Why might adults want an opportunity to think like children again?
We can set aside our penchant for analysis and see the world in black and white (simply). Horror movies also provide psychological relief because the opportunities to indulge in simplicity and irrationality are rare in adulthood.
Name a film directed by David Lynch.
Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Dune, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, Lost Highway, The Straight Story, Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire
The method of examining culture involves the study of signs and sign-using behavior. It is interested in studying signs, what they mean, and how they are used.
Semiotics
The products of the elite arts, including classical music, literature, drama, opera, painting, and sculpture.
High Culture
Why, according to Paco Underhill in his essay “Why We Buy,” do stores like Wal-Mart employ elderly people as greeters?
People are less likely to shoplift if they are greeted by a "sweet old lady."
Name the renowned BGSU scholar who is widely credited as being “The Father of Popular Culture Studies” in academia. The BGSU Popular Culture Library is now named in his honor.
Dr. Ray Browne
The group within a multicultural society whose traditions, values, and beliefs are held to be normative, as the European tradition is here in the USA.
Dominant Culture
The condition in which minority groups participate fully in the dominant society yet maintain their cultural differences. The smaller groups maintain their unique cultural identities/values/practices and are accepted by the wider culture.
Cultural Pluralism
What did culture scholar Roland Barthes mean when he coined the term “Mythologizing Effect” when discussing celebrities?
He meant that celebrities appear "larger than life" giving them a "mythic" status as if they are more than human/godlike.
A recurring character type or plot pattern found in literature, mythology, and popular culture.
Archetype
The commercial forces behind the production of mass entertainment.
Culture Industry