The idea of “fan” arose from John Fiske’s (1989) analysis of popular culture containing polysemic text. Polysemic literally means ‘many-signed’, an image in which there are several possible meanings depending on the ways in which its constituent signs are read. This polysemic analysis of text, Fiske (1989) allowed for “fans to construct alternative readings and [...]
Ethnic identities are interestingly and slowly being undermined by popular culture forms. This happens in two ways:1) newer generations being exposed to changing modes of communication, information accessing, and the distribution of capital wealth and 2) the effect of bifurcating the members of ethnic identities until the final result is a dichotomy representing the [...]
The prevailing debate regarding the effect of global popular culture industries (Globalization) on local cultures and local identities are significant today more than ever. The reason for this importance lies in the preservation of the traditional cultures and values that are carefully being sewn into the entanglements of globalization. The spread of capital across foreign [...]
Subculture & Fandom
Fandom doesn’t always apply to the geographical area
Invariably means a description of age
Not specifically talking about a collective appreciation of followings or forms, if we’re talking about subculture, we’re talking about the groove. We’re looking at the ways the groove articulate, formulate, and understand the object or fashion.
The communal concept of fandom is [...]
Critical theory and cultural activists, although opposed about how they effect the audience, they are in tune to the idea of the meaning of popular culture in the ways in which traditional capitalist systems mirror the use of popular culture today.
Defining Postmodernism
Concept difficult to define—has been adopted and used by many different disciplines.
Art
Psychologists
Sociologists
Geography
Basic premise for [...]
Frankfurt School
initially founded in 1966, home base was “The Institute of Social Research @ the University of Frankfurt)
Founded in the wake of the successful soviet union in 1917.
Firstly to observe the developments of communism through Marxist ideas, consider the developments of Marxism in western society.
Key theorists include:
Theodore Adorlo
Jurgen Habermas
Hebert Marcuse
All of them left-wing German-Jewish
Take the [...]
What is Popular Culture?
A series of commodities, material items, demands some kind of cash relationship (materialistic economy).
Amounts to something more than entertainment leisure.
Popular culture –> ideological attachment.
Inseparable from our society, but not the culture; hence, it shapes society’s character.
Influences the way we look at the world; hence leading to academic interest.
1950s, social scientists [...]
