We explain what popular culture is, its elements and how it is classified. Also, what are its characteristics, history and more.
What is popular culture?
Popular culture is understood as the accumulation of diverse cultural manifestations such as music, literature, art, fashion, dance, cinema, cyberculture, radio, television, etc., which are consumed by the widest public.
Little or no formal or academic preparation is needed to access and enjoy popular culture.
This term was coined in the 19th century.and referred to the forms of culture traditionally attributed to the underprivileged social classes, as opposed to the culture of the elites, considered as “official” culture. That is why there was also talk of “high culture” and “low culture”.
Nowadays the notion of popular culture It is rather linked to folklore and local traditionsas opposed to a “global” or internationalized culture, typical of digital networks and the 2.0 world, or of mass television broadcasts.
In this sense It is preferred to speak of “mass culture”as opposed to the “literary culture” of books or the “academic culture” of the Fine Arts. It is also known as “literary culture”Mainstream”.
See also: Medieval culture
Elements of popular culture
popular culture It is anything but homogeneous.
Its elements vary according to the place of enunciation and above all the (increasingly hybrid) forms of connection that you want to explore.
For example, in a country with an official Catholic culture, it is possible to find a popular culture that vindicates pagan traditions and exercises resistance.
Another type of popular culture In a Catholic setting it may be exploring traditional forms of Catholicism. and giving the aesthetics of said religion its own tone, its own and local form of cultural exercise.
A perfect example of this is the Caribbean Catholic saintsunder which the gods of the Yoruba religion are hidden in a process of syncretism whose beginnings occurred in the colonial era.
Types of popular culture
Broadly speaking we can talk about:
- Folklore or traditional popular culture. It is the collection of traditions and celebrations that accompanies a people or a nation throughout its history. It usually contains reminiscences of its ancestors and its founding rites that are preserved through practice to this day.
- Massive popular culture. That which is typical of the major media and mass communication channels. They propose their own language and create a sense of community around information consumption or leisure culture, as occurs, for example, with cable or online television. streaming. It is often accused of being an imperialist and homogenizing form of cultural consumption.
- Popular culture 2.0 or Cyberculture. This is the culture of frequent Internet users, whose forums, social networks and other exchange platforms generate social, cultural and even political practices. They also connect with fundamental ideas of nationality and tradition and propose new ways to express them.
- Urban culture. That which is typical of street expression in cities, involving practices and scenarios typical of the city and its inhabitants.
Who are the authors of popular culture?
Popular culture, unlike classical culture, does not operate under the same precept of authorship.
There are usually no authors of the dances, popular expressions, gastronomy or even the massive graphic messages (memes) that characterize Internet cyberculture.
If there were, popular culture is not interested in them. The only important thing is that the cultural product circulatesbe consumed and survive.
History of popular culture
The true “boom” of popular culture, which allowed it to be valued differently It took place in the 20th century, after World War II.. At that time, the beginning of certain globalization processes and the improvement in life expectancy were observed.
In this context, leisure culture emerges.which was taken as a dynamic form of exchange between peoples, rather than something static that must be preserved.
To this we must add the technological development that brought with it the end of the century and the emergence of new forms of virtual exchange through social and digital networks.
Thus, what was understood as popular culture undertook a complex transformation process, closer to global culture. It was opposed by “alternative” or “independent” cultural circuits, which move away from the aesthetics of the masses and offer a more individual exploration.
Why is popular culture important?
Popular culture is an element vital in the sociological study of populations or communities. In it the desires, dreams, fantasies and codes of the population are expressed, usually in their freest and “purest” form (if it can be spoken in these terms).
This freedom is due to the fact that it is not subject to institutions or to the control of a specific “official” tradition. That is why popular culture can change freely and adapt to the feeling of the timesas a kind of mirror of the minds of its practitioners.
Genres of popular culture
Popular culture can be expressed in practically any formbut dance, mural painting, copla, song, theater, crafts, gastronomy, toys, clothing, music, basketry, weaving, among others, are recognized.
Cultural identity
One of the most complicated points in the study of popular cultures is its relationship with the identity of the peopleThe latter recognize themselves and their ancestral tradition through the ritual practice of their customs and their festivals, even in the cases of the most industrially advanced societies.
That is why popular culture is valued as a reservoir of cultural identity and it seeks to protect or preserve it.
However, this is a useless process: popular culture exists from change and adaptation to the timesand just as the feelings of people change over time, so will their culture.
Hybridization
Hybridization is a mixing process also called syncretism. It means that two or more traditions found a new one, after a historical evolution that is not usually free of domination, class struggles and violence.
That is to say, even between a dominant culture and a dominated one Hybridization occurs, resulting in a new popular culture, heir to both traditions.
It is what occurred in the Hispanic Caribbeanfor example, due to the interbreeding of white European, Aboriginal American and black African cultures.
The culture of elites
Elite culture or “high culture” is usually the culture of the wealthy social classes or higher.
Usually linked to a specific traditionlittle accessible to the masses, and requires either a certain academic or specialized preparation, or a certain social status.
This division, however, is one of the most rapidly promises to disappear in the face of hybridization dynamics and a mix of postmodernity.
Examples of popular culture
Typical examples of so-called popular culture involve artistic manifestations such as street art (street artgraffiti), urban music (hip-hop, street dance).
Also included music linked to certain urban groups (jazz, rap, reggae, pop, etc.). The same is true of “genre” or “mass” literature (science fiction, horror, suspense), or “mass” cinema.