Folk and Popular Culture

Definitions (general) • Culture: a way of life of a particular people

– combines:

• Material culture:

–Anything that can seen on the landscape or the

“built environment”

–Carl Sauer proposed a “cultural landscape”

» could be natural features but with human

consequences/cultural connections

• Nonmaterial culture:

–Nontangible things such as language, religion,

values, entertainment, institutions,

– and aesthetics

» what a society finds “beautiful”

Definitions (chart) Folk culture

• Traditionally practiced by

small, homogeneous

groups

• “Local culture” (de Blij)

sees itself as a

community, shares

experiences, customs,

and traits, and works to

preserve those traits and

customs to distinguish

the group from others

Popular culture • Characterized by large,

heterogeneous groups of

people who share common

habits despite differences

in other personal

characteristics

Where are these found globally (chart)? Folk culture

• Found in isolated, rural

areas – mainly LDCs

• because they lack – communication tech.

– transportation networks

– leisure time and disposable

income

» spend all day tending to

farming, etc.

• there are few exceptions

to LDC rule – the Amish in the US.

Popular culture • because they can combine

– communication technology

– advanced transportation

– disposable income and leisure

time

• product of MDCs

– esp. N. Amer, W. Europe, Japan

– but diffused almost everywhere

– globalization

The Amish in America

Where are these found globally (chart)? Folk culture

• mainly LDCs

• because they lack – communication tech.

– transportation networks

– leisure time and disposable

income

» spend all day tending to

farming, etc.

• there are few exceptions

to LDC rule – the Amish in the US.

• Local cultures can be

found anywhere,

remember – What distinguishes them is

their DESIRE to be unique

Popular culture • because they can combine

– communication technology

– advanced transportation

– disposable income and leisure

time

• product of MDCs

– esp. N. Amer, W. Europe, Japan

– but diffused almost everywhere

– globalization

• Non-exclusive

– Exclusivity diminishes profit, so

they make it for anyone and

everyone.

– to create products that will be

acceptable by a large group to

increase profit.

How does this type of culture

vary? (chart) Folk culture

• Traditions are stable

• isolation creates local

diversity

• lasts a long time but

varies by location

– “traditions” persist

but vary across

space

Popular culture • less traditional

therefore changes

rapidly

• Varies more greatly

across time rather than

location

Where do these cultures

originate (chart)? Folk culture

• anonymous heaths

• anonymous sources

• at unknown dates,

• through unknown

originators

Popular culture • well-known hearth

• known developers

• and dates of innovations

Music folk

• Music of folk cultures =

indigenous music – unknown hearth, innovators

– themes center on daily activities,

life-cycle events or mysterious

natural occurrences.

• Understand difference

between “Folk” and “folk”

music. – Folk = music genre

• Woodie Guthrie, Pete Seeger,

Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Peter,

Paul and Mary, etc.

• goal is to incorporate traditional

styles to sell records.

• Therefore…”Folk” Music is part

of popular culture →

Popular

• Originated around 1900

– Tin Pan Alley

• NYC Music publishing

district (sheet music)

• recordings later displace

sheet music

– Armed Forces Radio,

• US dom. after WWII

– innovation

• hierarchical diffusion

– later rapid diffusion

• contagious

• Rebecca Black goes viral

– = like a disease

– Purpose?

• Appeal to a wide variety of

people in order to make $

Diffusion?(chart) Folk culture

• thru relocation

diffusion

• small scale

– Example: once again

the Amish

Popular culture • Initially via hierarchal

diffusion.

– mostly to well-connected places

(cities).

• then contagiously

– once it has penetrated an area.

– communication networks

facilitate (make easier)

• rapid, large scale

Diffusion of TV

What type of foods are eaten in these

cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• from local environment.

• Terroir = sum effects of local

environment on a food item

• “taboos” – Social restrictions on behavior

» Environmental concerns » Jews = pork b/c it spoils easily in

hot climates not suited for herding

» Muslims = pigs compete w/humans

for resources like water/grain

» Hindus = beef b/c cows provide

oxen needed as beasts of burden

during short planting season

» Social values » Jews use kosher laws to stress

distinctiveness

» local cultures use to measure how

genuine they are.

Popular culture • attractive to all

regardless of ethnic

background – fast food

– frozen meals

– chips

• very profitable

• fast-to-make

Food

Folk Culture Food Popular Culture Food

What type of foods are eaten in these

cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• from local environment.

• Terroir = sum effects of local

environment on a food item

• “taboos” – Social restrictions on behavior

» Environmental concerns » Jews = pork b/c it spoils easily in

hot climates not suited for herding

» Muslims = pigs compete w/humans

for resources like water/grain

» Hindus = beef b/c cows provide

oxen needed as beasts of burden

during short planting season

» Social values » Jews use kosher laws to stress

distinctiveness

» local cultures use to measure how

genuine they are.

Popular culture • attractive to all

regardless of ethnic

background – fast food

– frozen meals

– chips

• very profitable

• fast-to-make

• differences in

consumption due to: – preference for locally

grown items

What type of foods are eaten in these

cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• from local environment.

• Terroir = sum effects of local

environment on a food item

• “taboos” – Social restrictions on behavior

» Environmental concerns » Jews = pork b/c it spoils easily in

hot climates not suited for herding

» Muslims = pigs compete w/humans

for resources like water/grain

» Hindus = beef b/c cows provide

oxen needed as beasts of burden

during short planting season

» Social values » Jews use kosher laws to stress

distinctiveness

» local cultures use to measure how

genuine they are.

Popular culture • attractive to all

regardless of ethnic

background – fast food

– frozen meals

– chips

• very profitable

• fast-to-make

• differences in

consumption due to: – preference for locally

grown items

– cultural factors

What type of foods are eaten in these

cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• from local environment.

• Terroir = sum effects of local

environment on a food item

• “taboos” – Social restrictions on behavior

» Environmental concerns » Jews = pork b/c it spoils easily in

hot climates not suited for herding

» Muslims = pigs compete w/humans

for resources like water/grain

» Hindus = beef b/c cows provide

oxen needed as beasts of burden

during short planting season

» Social values » Jews use kosher laws to stress

distinctiveness

» local cultures use to measure how

genuine they are.

Popular culture • attractive to all

regardless of ethnic

background – fast food

– frozen meals

– chips

• very profitable

• fast-to-make

• differences in

consumption due to: – preference for locally

grown items

– cultural factors

• But still similar due to: – income

– lack of national advertising

How do these cultures create and use

materials like clothing/art (chart)?

Folk culture • clothing usually come from

daily life

– environmental needs • parkas, snowshoes, etc.

• Dutch = “wooden shoes”

Popular culture

Dutch “Wooden Shoes”

How do these cultures create and use

materials like clothing/art (chart)?

Folk culture • materials usually come from

daily life

– environmental needs • parkas, snowshoes, etc.

• Dutch = “wooden shoes”

• Handmade using local

materials

Popular culture • leisure time & disposable

income

– buying items that change over

time and are not necessities

– most of the time (fads).

• Hollister, Uggs, Abercrombie &

Fitch, etc.

– Clothes indicate job status

• White-collar vs. blue-collar

– Clothes indicate income

• Designer handbags and shoes

How do these cultures create and use

materials like clothing/art (chart)?

Folk culture • materials usually come from

daily life

– environmental needs • parkas, snowshoes, etc.

• Dutch = “wooden shoes”

• Handmade using local

materials

Popular culture • leisure time & disposable

income

– buying items that change over

time and are not necessities

– most of the time (fads).

• Hollister, Uggs, Abercrombie &

Fitch, etc.

– Clothes indicate job status

• White-collar vs. blue-collar

– Clothes indicate income

• Designer handbags and shoes

• Corporate made and using

supply chains that are global

Handmade vs. Corporate Made

What type of housing is found in

these cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• building materials available in

local environment – log cabins, sod houses

• current fashion

• functional needs – cooling, heating

• cultural heritage – purdah in Islam

What type of housing is found in

these cultures (chart)?

Popular culture

• Efficiency in bldg. – Similar styles reduce costs

• make the appearance

appealing to all.

• homogenization of

American culture – garages are prominent

– TV rooms/dens

• Suburbanization – More space

• Ranch homes

• McMansions

Vernacular Regional Housing (chart)

• Vernacular regional housing

styles take environmental

conditions into play. – Hearths

» New England

» Mid-Atlantic

» Chesapeake/Tidewater

Vernacular Regional Housing (back)

• Vernacular regional housing

styles take environmental

conditions into play. – Southern houses

» One room wide for cross

ventilation (shot gun)

» High ceilings and windows for

heat to rise

» Screened breezeways (dogtrot)

» Porches/verandas to protect

house from direct sun and

provide outdoor living space

» Raised first floor in floodplains

and ventilation

Vernacular Regional Housing (back) • Vernacular regional housing

styles take environmental

conditions into play. – Why would houses in the North

have steeply pitched roofs and a

large central chimney.

» Snowfall and cold conditions

» Examples:

» Cape Cod

» Saltbox

– Why were adobe houses built in

the southwest?

» building materials

» “thermal mass”

» thick walls take a long time to

heat up during day and give off

heat during night

» “diurnal”

What type of families are found

in these cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• Tends to be patriarchal

• women's sphere of

influence is the

household,

• imposing a limit on the

education for women

• total fertility rate high

in these cultures.

• Families tend to be

large.

Popular culture • Gender differences are

diminished

• women are empowered

• seek higher levels of

education

• reducing the total

fertility rate.

• Families tend to be

smaller.

How do these cultures view

population growth (chart)? Folk culture

• Large families

reinforce gender roles

and the traditions of

family

Popular culture • Alternative non-children

lifestyles become

acceptable.

– people wait to have children

due to economic and

educational opportunities

– not just LGBT but also

• DINKS and YUPPIES

What type of religion is practiced

in these cultures (chart)? Folk culture

• ethnic religions that are

common to one group

of people living in one

place.

– Animism

Popular culture • Universalizing

– want converts

• Christianity, Islam

• secular

– Religions tend to be

taken out of popular

culture because it

singles out groups

and that is not

beneficial for

companies as it

decreases profit.

What kind of cultural standards

or values are employed (chart)? Folk culture

• Authenticity

• use of local materials,

• traditions

• family and ethnic

history (history and

lineage usually goes

back a long way)

• “folklore”: stories

passed down

generationally

Popular culture • Money determines how

products are produced

• usual corporate standard

• usually has no sense of

history for determining

its materials or

standards

Threats to folk

culture

– Loss of traditional values

• Assimilation policies: to force people of indigenous

cultures to adopt dominant cultures

– Native Americans(North America)/Aborigines (Australia)

– Acculturation = adopting just enough of dominant culture to get by

Threats to folk

culture

– Loss of traditional values

• Assimilation policies: to force people of indigenous cultures

to adopt dominant cultures

– Acculturation = adopting just enough of dominant culture to get by

• cultural homogenization

– Globalization → spread of popular culture is accelerated by time-space compression (Harvey) → the dominance of western styles and ideas.

– business suits and women’s rights

Threats to folk

culture

– Loss of traditional values

• Assimilation policies: to force people of indigenous cultures

to adopt dominant cultures

– Acculturation = adopting just enough of dominant culture to get by

• cultural homogenization

– Globalization → spread of popular culture, the dominance of western styles and ideas

• cultural appropriation

– use of elements of one culture by another for unrelated purposes

cultural appropriation

Threats to folk

culture

– Loss of traditional values

• Assimilation policies: to force people of indigenous cultures

to adopt dominant cultures

– Acculturation = adopting just enough of dominant culture to get by

• cultural homogenization

– Globalization → spread of popular culture, the dominance of western styles and ideas

• cultural appropriation

– use of elements of one culture by another for unrelated purposes

– commodification = making something sellable

commodification

Threats to folk

culture

– Loss of traditional values

• Assimilation policies: to force people of indigenous cultures

to adopt dominant cultures

– Acculturation = adopting just enough of dominant culture to get by

• cultural homogenization

– Globalization → spread of popular culture, the dominance of western styles and ideas.

• cultural appropriation

– use of elements of one culture by another for unrelated purposes

– commodification = making something sellable

– Could lead to cultural stereotyping

» Irish pubs are authentic, because, of course (insert

sarcasm), the Irish like to drink!!!!

– Disneyfication: stripping a place of its authenticity for a sanitized

form combining themes, merchandise, performance

» Las Vegas = The Venetian w/canals, Eiffel Tower, Pyramids

Responses to Cultural Homogenization Neo-localism

• reinvigorating a “local

culture” in response to

uncertainty

– Create sense of identity,

community, source of income

– Lindsborg, KS

Reterritorialization

• taking popular culture and

making it unique to your locality

– Chicago deep dish pizza

How do these cultures impact

the environment (chart)? Folk culture

• Lower impact

– Exception (example)

» desertification from

overgrazing

Popular culture

How do these cultures impact

the environment (chart)?

Folk culture • Lower impact

– Exception (example)

» desertification from

overgrazing

• very few industries

– no extensive usage of

natural resources

– creates little pollution.

• the people tend to adapt

to rather than modify their

environment.

Popular culture • Large impact

• extensive use of resources

– eg. golf courses

• Large markets/industries

leads to high pollution

• Corps. tend to create a

uniform landscape

– appeals world-wide

– recognizable to customers

by their logos and

architecture.

How do these cultures impact

the environment (chart)?

Folk culture • Lower impact

– Exception (example)

» desertification from

overgrazing

• very few industries

– no extensive usage of

natural resources

– creates little pollution.

• the people tend to adapt

to rather than modify their

environment.

Popular culture • Large impact

• extensive use of resources

– eg. golf courses

• Large markets/industries

leads to high pollution

• Corps. tend to create a

uniform landscape

– appeals world-wide

– recognizable to customers

by their logos and

architecture.

Distinctiveness vs. Placelessness (E. Relph)