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Rai, R., & Panna, K. (2009). Introduction to culture studies. Global Media.
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INTRODUCTION
TO
CULTURE
STU·DIES
Copyright © 2009. Global Media. All rights reserved.
PROF. RUMINA RAI
M.A.
Co-ordinator & Lecturer
Bachelor of Mess Media (BMM)
Bhavan's College,
Andheri l'NJ
Mumbai.
PROF. KISHWAR PANNA
M.A.
Lecturer, BMM Department,
Usha Pravin Gandhi College of
Management,
Vile Parle,
Mumbai.
Hat
GfIimalaya GpublishingGHouse
MUMBAI 0 DELHI 0 NAGPUR • BANGALORE • HYDERABAD
Rai, R., & Panna, K. (2009). Introduction to culture studies. Global Media.
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©
Authors
No part of this book shall be reproduced, reprinted or translated for any purpose
whatsoever without prior permission of the,. publisher in writing.
ISBN
: 978-93-5024-531-6
Revised Edition: 2010
Published by
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for HIMALAVA PUBLISHING HOUSE,
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Rai, R., & Panna, K. (2009). Introduction to culture studies. Global Media.
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I CONTENTS I
Page No.
1
What Is Culture?
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2 Evolution and need for Culture Studies
1 -7
8 - 15
3 Concepts related to the Study of Culture
16 - 21
4 Cultural Theories
22 - 32
5
Dimensions of Culture
33 - 46
6
Components of Culture-Material Culture
and Non-matet1al Culture
47 - 55
7
Construction of Culture
56 - 62
8
Agents of Cultural Transmission
63 -73
9
Factors of Cultural Change with
Reference to Media
74 - 84
10 Media and Culture
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85 - 93
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"This page is Intentionally Left Blank"
Rai, R., & Panna, K. (2009). Introduction to culture studies. Global Media.
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WHAT
IS
CUr;fURE?
Introduction
In everyday life, we make use of the term 'culture'. We
speak about it very often in context to 'how culture exists',
'how culture is changing' and 'what are the elements that
represent our culture'. Now let us examine, what exactly is
'culture' .
Culture is all that man learns and acquires by virtue ofbcing
a member of society.
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Do animals have a culture? Is their culture similar to that
of humans?
Let's answer some of these basic questions that we most of
th2 time take for granted, by looking at human and animal
culture separately.
In the case of animals, their genes playa very important
role and in the case of humans, learni1lg, traini1lg a1ld
socialization play an important role than genes.
Different species of animals call survive 011 a restricted
diet only. Example: lion cannot survive on grass. Mall call
survive 011 a variety offood items and are not dependent on
a restricted diet.
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2
Introduction to Culture Studies
Animals have to eat in order to survive. But humans in
certain situations can refuse food, for certain hours, days and
months. Example: Jain rishis survive on only water for months.
This shows that man can transcend his biological needs to a
certain extent for spiritual and religious reasons. But in the case
of animals, they are rooted in their organismic needs. Thus,
culture intervenes in the satisfaction of biological needs.
In the case of sexual needs, man can deny it for
religious, psychological and personal reasons. This shows
that man can control his sexual urge. Nature and culture
intervenes in the satisfaction of the sexual urge. Example:
marriage through which this satisfaction is institutionalized. In
addition, humans also have incest taboos. Hence, culture
. intervenes in the satisfaction of the ·sexual urges of man.
However, in the case of animals they have no taboos.
Both, humans and animals adapt to the environment. But
animals have no external assets; they have to depend on their
biological organs. However, in humans- they have 'culture'.
Culture helps in adaptation to the environment. Example:
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Igloos protect Eskimos. This is a cultural condition.
There is much more to the relationship between man and
environment, other than adaptation. Man not only atiaptsand
adjusts to the environment, but also changes the environment
to suit his needs and preferences. Unlike animals, human beings
also have the ability to change behaviour in response to a wide
range of environmental demands. This ability in humans is
known as plasticity. This has allowed humans to survive under
a wide variety of ecological conditions.
Definition of Culture
Culture comes from the Gennan word - 'Kultur' meaning
'growing'. 'Culture' in social anthropology means "knowledge",
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What is Cullllre?
3
it is knowledge about humanity which is learned or acquired but
not natural.
Edward Tylor has given one of the oldest and a classical
definition of culture as, "Culture is that complex whole
which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom
and other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a
member of society." It suggests that culture includes tools,
weapons, fire, agriculture, animal domestication, metallurgy,
wliting, the steam engine, glasses, airplanes, computers, penicillin,
nuclear power, rock-and-roll, video games, designer jeans,
religion, political systems, subsistence patterns, science, sports
and social organizations. For Tylor, culture includes all aspects
of human activity from the fine arts to popular entertainment,
from everyday behaviour to the development of sophisticated
technology. It includes plans, rules, techniques, designs and
policies for living.
Some of the features of culture are as follows:
(1) Every human group has a culture. It differs from society
to society. It also has different origins, that is, it is
marked by uniqueness.
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(2) Culture also provides its group with a notion of identity,
by telling you who you are.
(3) It gives the person a sense of belonginglless which
means the person belongs to a particular group, a
particular society. Example - A person may belong to
a Punjabi community or a Bengali community.
(4) Culture gives us a sense of pride.
(5) It is social as it occurs in a group.
(6) Culture is acquired - it is something man is not born
with, but something man is born into. It is something
man learns by virtue of being a member of society.
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4
illfroduction to Culture Studies
(7) Culture is learnt through the process of socialization.
(8) Culture is a social helitage - it is a social helitage as it
.is transmitted and communicated to other members of a
society. When an individual is born into a society, the
social symbols, artifacts etc. of hislher culture are
passed on to himlher.
(9) It is gratifying as it satisfies the needs of its individuals.
Example: Need for love and security is satisfied by the
institutions of family and marriage.
(10) Culture tends to be patterned. It involves repeating
similar approved behaviour, so that it has a recognizable
form or structure. Example: Religious practices and
customs are different in different communities.
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(11) Culture tends to be integrated. It ha3 consistent
premises, values or goals which give it a unity. Example:
If there is a festival, everyone celebrates, irrespective of
their caste or religion, thus integrating people of different
castes and religions together.
(12) Culture can be institutionalized, it can exist and
represent itself in a set of institutions and thus enable to
create a notion of order. Example: Institutions of family
and marriage help people have a stable and weIldefined life.
(13~
Culture is a 'continuum', which means that cultural
traditions have accumulated without any break in
continuity. The structure of culture is transmitted from
one generation to .the next and every generation adds,
subtracts or changes what it inherits. This aspect of
change and continuity shows that it is a process and not
stagnant. Example: Marriage, customs and traditions.
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5
What i.1 CII/tllrl'?
(14) Culture is super-organic, it is above society. People
and societies come and go but culture continues to
survive. Culture is therefore super-individual and superorganic.
(15) Culture is symbolic. It has a range of symbols, which
represent both the material world (dress, food) and
non-material world (values, beliefs, customs). Symbols
are conceptual devices used to communicate ideas to
people. Example: Different types of flags convey
different meanings to individuals. Culture is symbolic in
nature; it includes the capacity to communicate through
symbols. Example: In the Indian society, 'sindoor' and
'mangalsutra' wom by women symbolize that they are
manied.
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(16) Culture has the ability to innovate, that is, to create.
Example: In music and computers etc.
FEATURES OF CULTURE
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6
Introduction to Culture Studies
Relation of Cultute with Mass Media
There is a very close relationship between culture and mass
media. They both influence each other to a great degree. On the
one hand, culture determines the content matter of mass media.
Example: the different films and telesoaps are based and
greatly influenced by some or the other kind of culture.
Culture also influences people's choice of a particular kind
of media. Example: The different economic and social strata of
people in a society select and prefer to access different
convenient forms of mass media. The lower income groups
prefer audio-visual forms of media compared to the print
media.
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On the other hand, mass media also influences culture. It is
generally believed and often asserted that the Mass Media is a
very powerful means of spreading culture, determining and
controlling thoughts and actions of people to a very great
degree in society. Mass media is an important tool of reinforcing
the existing culture and values of a particular society. Example:
The latest trend amongst people, to have many ceremonies
relating to marriage, popularized by the media, which in turn
reinforces the traditional cultural heritage.
The impact and influence of persuasive mass communication
is tremendous on the minds of the younger generations. No
wonder then, Mass Media has radically altered the attitudes,
thoughts and life-styles of the people all over the world. There
is a close connection between the Mass Media of communication
and the emergence of Mass culture. Mass culture has emerged
as a result of the dynamic revolutionary roles played by the
modern Mass Media of communications. Example: Movies,
radio, television and mass circulation magazines have extended
the mass culture in our country.
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What is Culture?
7
There are various theoretical perspectives with respect to
culture. Some of them are as follows:
(1) 19th Century Evolutionism - By E.B. Tylor and L.H.
Morgan: A universal human culture is shared, in different
degrees, by all societies.
(2) Functionalism - By A.R . Radcliffe Brown and
Bronislaw Malinowski: Social practices support society's
structure or fill the needs of individuals.
(3) Structuralism - By Claude Levi Strauss: All cultures
reflect the universal biological .structure of the human
mind.
(4) Symbolic and Interpretive Anthropology - By Mary
Douglas and Clifford Geertz: Culture is the way in
which members of a society understand who they are
and give their lives meaning.
(5) Post-modernism - By Renato Rosaldo and Vincent
Crapanzano: Because understanding of cultures mostly
reflects the observer's biases, culture can never be
completely or accurately described .
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.-------~l QUESTIONSJI---------.
1. Define Culture and explain the features of Culture.
2 Culture is symbolic. Explain.
3. Culture helps in the adaptation to the environment. Comment.
4. How does culture provide one with a sense of belongingness?
5. Write short notes on:
(a) Do animals have a culture?
(b) Relation of culture with mass media.
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EVOLUTION AND
NEED FOR
CULTURE STUDIES
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During the 1950's and 1960's, interest in cultural theories
of mass communication began to develop and take hold.
Limited effects theory focuses on whether media content can
have an immediate and direct effect on specific thoughts and
actions of -individuals. But it is possible to approach the study of
mass media in another way. Instead of focusing on specific
effects on individuals, we can focus instead pn changes in
cultuj·~, on how shared understandings and sociaI' norms change.
Instead of trying to locate hundreds of small effects and add
them all, we can ask whether the development of mass media
has profound implications for the way we create, share, learn
and apply culture.
These new perspectives argued that media might have the
power to intrude into and alter how we make sense of
ourselves and our social world. These theOlies are .quite diverse
and offer very different answers to questions about the role of
media in social life. But in all these theories, the concept of
cullure is ce ntral Media affects society because they affect
how culture is crea ted. s hared. learned and applied. Cultural
theories ofler a broad range of interesting ideas about how
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(~)
El'Olutioll alld Need for ClIllllre Studies
9
mediC)."can affect culture and also provide many different views
concerning the long-term consequences of the cultural changes
affected by media.
There are microscopic, interpretive theories that focus on
how individuals and social groups use media to create and
foster forms of culture that structure ev~ryday life. These
theories are referred to as cultural studies theories.
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There are macroscopic, structural theories that focus on
how social elites use their economic power to gain control over
and exploit media institutions. These theories argue that elites
effectively use media to propagate hegemonic culture as a
means of maintaining their dominant position in the social order.
They are called political economy theories because they
place priority on individual how economic power provides a
basis for ideological and political power.
Cultural studies are less concerned with the long-term
consequence of media for social order and more concerned
with looking at how media effect our individual
lives. These theories are said to be micro level or microscopic
because they emphasize larger issues about the social order in
favour of questions involving the everyday life of average
people. Critical theories and political theories by contrast are
macroscopic, cultural theories, which are less concerned with
developing detailed explanation of how individuals are influenced
by media and more concerned with how the social order as a
whole is affected. Ideally, these theories ought to be
complementary. Yet until recently, macroscopic and microscopic
cultural theories developed in relative isolation. Theorists were
separated by differences in geography, politics and research
objectives.
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10
Introductioll to Culture Studies
Rise of Cultural Theories in Europe
European social research has been characterized by grand
social theories - highly ambitious, macroscopic and speculative
theOI;es that attempt to understand and predict important trends
in culture and society.
Ironically, in the 1970's and 1980's, at the very time that
Marxism failed as a practical guide for politics and economics in
Eastern Europe, grand social theories based on Marxist thought
were gaining increasing acceptance in Western Europe.
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Marxist Theory
Marx developed his theory in the latter part of the 19 th
century during one of the most volatile periods of social changes
in Europe. He identified industrialization and urbanization as
problems but argued that these changes were not bad. Instead
he blamed ruthless capitalists for creating social problems
because they maximized personal profits by exploiting workers.
Marx was a utopian, calling for the creation of an entirely new
social order in which all social classes would be abolished. The
worker would rise against capitalists and demand an end to
exploitation. They would band together to create an egalitarian,
democratic social order. Marx argued that the hierarchical class
system was at the root of all social problems and must be
ended by a revolution of the worker or proletariats. He
believed that elites dominated society through their direct control
over the means of production (labour, factories, land) - referred
to as base of society.
But elites also maintained themselves through their control
over culture or superstructure of society. (Ideology)
Marx concluded that the only hope for social change was a
revolution in which the masses seized control of the base - the
means of production. Control over the superstructure (ideology)
would naturally follow. He saw little possibility that refonns in
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Evolution and Need for Culture Studies
11
the superstructure could lead to social evolution. (Elites would
never willingly surrender power. Power must be taken from
them.)
Neo-Marxism
Most British cultural studies theories can be labelled NeoMarxist. The importance that Neo-Marxists attach to the
superstructure has created a fundamental division within Marxism.
They assure that change can begin with peaceful, ideological
reform rather than violent revolution in which the working class
seizes control of the means of production. Some call for radical
transformation of the superstructure, while others call for modest
reforms.
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Textual Analysis and Literary Criticism
Modem European cultural studies theories have a second,
very different source - a tradition of humanist criticism of religious
and literary texts that is referred to as hermeneutics. One
common objective was to identify those texts that had greatest
cultural value and to interpret them so that their value would be
understood and appreciated by others. Texts were seen as a
civilizing force in the society. Hermeneutics was used to enhance
this force. The Humanist focused on working to identify and
pressure, what came to be known as the "literary canon" - a
body of great literature. The literary canon was part of what
was referred to as high culture, a set of cultural artifacts music, art, literature and poetry - that Humanists judged to
have the highest value. By identifying and explaining these
important texts, the Humanists attempted to make them more
accessible to more people, preserve and gradually raise the
level of culture - to enable even more people to become
humane and civilized.
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12
Jlltroductioll to Culture Studies
The Frankfurt School
One early prominent school of neo-Marxist theory developed
during the 1930's at the University of Frankfurt and became
known as the Frankfurt school. Two most famous individuals
associated with the school were Max Horkheimer and T.
Adorno. This school combined Marxist critical theory with
hermeneutics. They viewed high culture as something that had
its own integlity, had inherent value, and could not be used by
elites to enhance their personal power. Horkheimer and Adorno
were skeptical that high culture could be communicated through
mass media. Adorno claimed that mass media reproductions of
high culture were inferior. The Frankfurt school has been
cIiticized for being too elitist and paternalistic.
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Development of Nco-Marxist Theory in Britain
During the 1960's and 1970's two important schools of
neomarxist theory emerged in Great Britain: British Cultural
studies and Political Economic theory. The British cultural
studies theory has attempted to trace historic elite domination
over culture to criticize the social consequences o~ this
domination, and to demonstrate how it continued to be exercised
over specific minority groups or subcultures. These studies
criticize and contrast elite notions of culture, including high
culture, with popular everyday forms practiced by minorities.
The superiority of all fonns of elite culture induding high culture
is challenged and compared with useful, valuable forms of
popular culture.
Graham Murdock traced the rise of British cultural studies
during the 1950's and 196C),s. Another dominant early theorist
was Raymond Williams. He questioned the importance of
high culture and seriously considered the ro~e of folk culture.
Toward the end of 1960's and 1970's, Williams turned his
attention to the Illass media. He developed a pessimistic
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£I'O/utioll tllld Need for ClIlrllre .'III/din
13
perspective of mass media's role in modern society. His ideas
inspired a generation of young British media, first at the center
for contemporary cultural studies at the University of Binningham
and then at England and Europe. Williams was oroadly more
cO'nrerned with issue of cultural change and development as
well as elite domination of culture. He argued that mass media
posed a threat to cultural development He rejected the literary
canon as a standard (with notions of high culture). He was
equally reluctant to embrace folk culture. He felt, that if there
were to be genuine progress, it would have to come through
significant reform of social institutions.
The first imp011ant school of cultural studies theorists w'as
formed at the University of Birmingham during the 1960's by
Stuart Hall. Hall argued that mass media can be best understood
as a pluralistic public forum (the idea that media may prove a
place where the power of dominant elites can be challenged.)
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A key strength and limitation of British culture theorists is
their direct involvement in various radical social movements.
They not only studied the social movements, they enlist in them
and even lead them. They have been active in a broad range of
British social movements including feminism, youth movements,
and racial and ethnic minority movement.
But active involvement can make objective analysis of
movements difficult. However, these theorists reject the possibilities
of objectivity anyway and doubt its utility for social research.
In the U.S., the British cultural studies are influencing
research by scholars in many fields.
NEED FOR CULTURE STUDIES
Cultural Studies
• Focuses on the use of media to create forms of culture
that structures everyday life.
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14
Imroduction to Culture Studies
• It was inaugurated by the University of Birmingham
Center for contemporary cultural studies, which develop
a variety of critical methods for the analysis, interpretation
and criticism of cultural artifacts.
Need for Culture Studies
(1) It provides tools that enable one to read and interpret
one's culture critically.
(2) It subverts the distinction between the high and low
culture.
(3) It allows critical scrutiny of culture without the prior
prejudices, towards one or another sort of cultural text.
(4) It situates culture within a theory of social production
and reproduction, specifying ways that cultural forms
serv.e, to further social domination or to enable people
to resist and struggle against domination.
(5) It asserts value of popular culture, empowers minority
and values their culture, stressing on cultural pluralism
and egalitarianism.
(6) It specifies what if any ideology is operative in a given
cultural artifact.
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(7) Lends itself to a multiculturist programme.
(8) Makes people sensitive to how relations of power and
domination are encoded in cultural texts.
(9). Shows, how much media culture manipulates and
indoctrinates us, thus empowering individuals to resist
the domination meaning.
Components of a Critical Cultural Studies
Cultural studies rontains three-fold project of analyzing:
(a) Production and political economy of culture.
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15
Evo/llrion Gnd NeedJor CIi/lUre Srudies
(b) Cultural text analysis.
(c) Audience reception of texts and their efforts.
(a) Production and political economy: Political economy
of culture means to analyze cultural texts within their
system of production and distribution.
(b) Textual analysis: Products of media culture require
multi-dimensional, textual readings to analyze their various
forms of discourses, ideological positions, narrative
strategies, construction and effects.
It can be done through:
(i) Content analysis: That is analysis of contents of
communication, which involves classifying contents
in such a way so as to bring out their basic
structure.
(ii) Semiology: analyses how linguistic and non-linguistic
cultural 'signs' form system of meanings.
(c) Audience reception and use of media culture: All
texts are subject to multiple readmgs, depending on the
perspectives and subject positions of the reader.
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Audiences are of three types:
•
•
•
Information seeking
Reaction seeking
Conversional seeking
,....-------1:
QUESTIONS
lr.---------,
1. Explain the Marxist ideas on culture?
2. Discuss in detail the ideas of Neo Marxism on culture.
3. Elaborate on the need for culture studies.
4. Discuss the components of critical cultural studies.
5. Trace the evolution of culture studies.
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CONCEPTS
RELATED TO
THE STUDY OF
CULTURE
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1. CULTURAL RELATIVITY AND ETHNOCENTRISM
An interest in cultural diversity has been evident throughout
history. Everywhere people have recognized the existence of
different values, nonns, beliefs and practices in different societies.
It has been found that whenever different societies come into
contact with each other, people compare and c~)I1trast their
respective cultural traditions. Based on these differenc~s in
cultural patterns, societies differentiate themselves from the
others. There have been many writings on the diversity of
cultures, based on ethnocentric attitudes. Ethnocentrism is the
practice of judging another society by the values and standards
of one's own society. This term was coined by William
Sumner. It can be defined as ''that view of things in which one's
own group is the centre of everything and all other members are
scaled and rated with reference to it." In other words,
ethnocentrism is the tendency to evaluate other cultures by
standards of one's own.
This type of behaviour has existed throughout history. It
develops because of the psychological, egoistic character in
every individual. It is also the act of dominaticn or power by
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(16)
COllcepts Related to the Study of Cullllre
17
which a person feels that he or she is superior. It is also found in
people who have a low self esteem of themselves and want to
improve it by engaging in ethnocentrism. Example: the root
cause of communal riots is this feeling of ethnocentrism in
individuals.
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The study of cultural diversity became popular in the 19th
century. In order to deal with the problem of ethnocentrism, the
concept of cultural relativism was developed. The function
and meaning of a trait cannot be judged as good or bad but
only as functional or dysfunctional for the culture within which it
operates and it is relative to its own cultural setting. If we wish
to understand a culture or sub-culture other than our own, we
must examine it in terms of its own values, norms, standards
and patterns of living. We must make every effort possible to
see that the culture we are interested in, we see as the members
see it.
The cultural relativists say that culture is a universal category
that cannot be judged as superior or ini'erior. Culture can be
seen in terms of how people adjust in th~ir environment.
Cultural relativism tells us that evaluations of culture that are not
based on a uniformed understanding of that culture are both
prejudistic and misleading. Example: Fraternal Polyandry is a
form of marriage in Himachal Pradesh, in which all brothers
within a family marry one woman. The reason behind this form
of marriage is that since there is little land and in order to avoid
division of it, the men (brothers) get married and bring in only
one woman. However, now they do have monogamous marriages
to a certain extent. Thus, the traditions of these societies must
be seen as objectively as possible.
Even though cultural relativism helps to deal with the
problem of ethnocentrism. it does involve some serious ethical
problems. This is hecause sometimes there are certain cultural
practicc~ on which some kind of value judgement has to be
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Introduction to Culture Studies
made. Example: practices like infanticide, torturing of political
prisoners etc., need to be condemned but the concept of
cultural relativism would not allow for this.
2. CULTURAL ETHOS
This refers to the socially acceptable norms within a society.
It is a system of norms and values and this gives every culture a
characteristic feeling. Example: in Hinduism, the belief is KarmaDharma-Moksha.
3. CULTURE PATTERN
Culture includes everything. It is a very complex term. When
we study culture, we find that it is made up of many components.
The structure of culture can be seen in its various parts. These are
culture trait, culture complex and culture pattern.
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• Culture trait: This refers to the smallest significant unit or
part of culture that can be identified. A cultural trait
cannot be divided further. The trait can be both material
(cricket ball, bat) and non-material (rules pertaining to
cricket). Example: In a Hindu marriage, taking the
'pheras' around the fire is a culture trait.
• Culture complex: This is a combination of various
culture traits put together. Example: the full game of
cricket would be a culture complex. Ex:ample: the culture
traits in a Hindu marriage like 'taking pheras',
'saptagrahan', etc., put together make the culture complex
of Hindu marriage.
• Culture pattern: Culture complexes combine to form
culture patterns. Example: all games like cricket, football,
tennis etc., form the sports pattern. Example: marriage,
family, religion, etc., all constitute different types of
institutions of human society, and hence a culture pattem.
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COllcepts Related to the Study of Culture
19
Another way of looking at this concept of culture pattern
has been given by eminent anthropologist Ruth Benedict, who
has made immense contributions on this subject. According to
her, there are two aspects of culture patterns:(a) It is a form, for example: when we see the Red Fort
or the Taj Mahal, we say that it is based on Mughal
architecture or that the temples of South India have
been based on Dravidian architectural design. This is
the form aspect.
(b) It is a set of patterned behaviour and sanctioned
responses. Culture pattern also includes consensus of
behaviour. Example: in a ~indu marriage, the marriage
has a ritual character. The ceremony is performed by a
Brahman and there are seven 'pheras' or rounds around
the fire. It is a consensus because the marriage is seen
as being legitimate by religion as well as by courts of
law.
4. ACCULTURATION
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According to sociologist Kroeber "Acculturation comprises
those changes produced in a culture by the influence of another
culture which results in the increased similarity of the two."
The process of acculturation tends to be gradual rather than
abrupt. According to some sociologists, it is the strongest
mechanism of culture change.
Acculturation has certain characteristic features:
(i), According to sociologist Linton, acculturation is always
the impact of a dominant prestige laden society, which
influences the backward people. The culture of the
backward people could also influence the dominant
group.
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Introductioll to Culture Studies
(ii) Acculturation studies the changes, which are purposely
directed or controlled by the superior society through
political domination or market domination.
(Iii) Acculturation may result in the disappearance of the
minority group/culture in its cultural and social fusion.
Acculturation is a social process. It helps us understmd
social change.
Example: Britishers coming to India to rule the Indian
territory. With their politico administrative policies, brought
about changes in the Indian society in the socio-economic
spheres. Indians adopted their language 'English', style of
wearing clothes, lifestyle, food habits etc. After 50 years of
independence, it is difficult to say what the original 'Indianess'
was.
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5. ENCULTURATION
The process of enculturation in social anthropology is what
we call socialization in sociology. Socialization is a process by
which man adjusts in society. It is through the process of
learning that man become members of society. Sociologist
Herskovits in his cultural anthropology defines enculturation as
"the aspects of the learning experience that mark off man from
other creatures and by means of which he achieves competence
in his culture."
Soon after birth, the child learns the cultural traits and
complexes of his society. It is through the process of socialization
that the large body of traditions - economic, social, technologicaL
religious, aesthetic and linguistic is learnt by the child. In short,
enculturation is a process ofieaming.
Herskovits brings out two types of enculturation: conscious
and unconscious conditioning.
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Concepts Related to the Study of ClIltllre
The process of enculturation is a process of adaptation.
This process does not terminate at the finish of infancy. As an
individual continues through childhood to the adult status, he is
continuously exposed to the process of learning which can be
set to an end only with his death. This process is very important
in inducing change and all this is very often unconsciously learnt.
Culture is transmitted from generation to generation. The family
norms are handed over from one generation to the next. Thus,
in the process of cultural transmission, enculturation is a basic
process. Example: In the present era of information technology,
enculturation has assumed a new identity. The process has
become intense and complex. Learning of new computer
languages and regularly updating them is .enculturation in the LT.
world .
.--------11
QUESTIONS
}I---------.
1. Explain the inter-relationship between ethnocentrism and cultural
relativity.
2. Distinguish between Acculturation and Enculturation.
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3. Elaborate on Culture pattern.
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CULTURAL
THEORIES
[A] DIFFUSIONISM
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By the 20th century, most anthropologists felt uncomfortable
with the evolutionary approach. They felt that it was based on
the speculation and lacked evidence. So gradually it was
replaced by diffusionism - an approach that views the
transformation of culture change and evolution of society.
Diffusionism is another school of thought that has used the
comparative method to explain why different societies are at
different levels in terms of their development. Diffusionism
. developed in the early part of the 20th century. It maintaips that
societal change takes place when societies borrow cultural traits
from one another. It is from one society to another that cultural
knowledge relating to technology, religion, economy or art get
diffused.
Diffusionism focuses on the process whereby material traits,
values, ideas, institutions, cultural patterns spread from one
centre of civilization to the others. It is a process of change
whereby two cultures meet at a given point in time and
interact with one another, and as a result of which elements
and traits are borrowed and they get diffused.
(22)
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Cultural Theories
23
In the history of diffusion, there have been two broad
approaches:
(1) One group of anthropologists called Extreme
Diffusionists - included Smith and Perry. ,They
were the British group. They believed that civilization
has originated only once in human history. It originated
in Ancient Egypt. From here, all the aspects of
civilization, ranging from technology to religion, spread
to other parts of the world.
(2) The other group is called the Historical Diffusionists
- included Graebner, Schmidt and Koppers - the
German-Austrian group. They maintain that civilization
originated in a literate area in Middle East - (Iraq, Persia,
and Syria) and then spread to the rest of the world.
Limitations
• One limitation was that that the diffusionists assumed that
some people were not innovative enough to develop their
own cultural traits.
• Another limitation 'was the assumption that cultural traits
in the same geographi'cal vicinity would inevitably spread
from one society to the other.
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Strengths
• Diffusionism is a means of understanding the societal
development.
DifTusionism Theory in Media
States how innovations are introduced and adopted by
various communities.
Developed by E. Rogers (1962) - felt that role of
communication was to transfer objects of technology to masses,
as planned by authorities and policy makers.
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24
Transmission takes place in 5 stages.
Stages:
(1) Awareness: Awareness of innovations through mass
media
(2) Adoption: Adopted by small group of innovators.
(3) Acceptance: Opinion leaders learn from, early adopted
and try the innovations themselves.
(4) Spread: From opinion leaders to opinion leader's
followers.
(5) Change: After most of the people have adopted
innovations, group of late adopters make the Change.
[B] CULTURAL EVOLUTION
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The 1st systematic ~ttempt to apply evolutionary principles
to cultural development was made by Lewis Henry Morgan.
He studied the evolution of family, technology, economic, political
and religious zonditions throughout the world.
He wrote a-popular book during the end of the 19'" century
- "Ancient Society", and in this book he set up the principles
and laws of cultural evolution. He maintains that cultural change
is subject to certain universal laws which apply to all societies,
regardless of time and space. So cultural change is a manifestation
of an underlined universal law and in the process of cultural
change, the most important role is played by technology.
He maintains that every society in every age has to pass
through 7 distinctive stages of evolutionary development.
(a) Lower savagery: Form the earliest forms of humanity
Subsistence level- fruits and nuts
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Cullllral Theories
25
(b) Middle savagery: Began with the discovery of fishing
technology and use of fire.
(c) Upper savagery: Began with invention of the bow and
arrow.
(d) Lower Barbarism: Began with the art of pottery
making.
(e) Middle Barbarism: Began with the domestication of
plants and animals, irrigation and cultivation.
(j)
Upper Barbarism: Began with smelting of iron and
use of iron tools.
(g) Civilization: Began with the invention of alphabets
and writing.
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Another anthropologist who advocated the evolutionary
approach was Edward B. Tylor. He published a major work in
1871 titled 'Primitive Culture'. Tylor gave the idea of unilineal
evolution which is the view that all societies evolve in a single
direction towards complexity, progress and civilization. He said
that as all humans are bestowed with innate rational faculties,
they continuously improve their societies. And it is through this
process of evolutIon that societies move towards 'progress'
and 'civilization'.
He used accounts from Western observers and compared
certain cultural elements from different societies like technology,
family, political organization, art, religion and philosophy. Then
he organized the evidence into categ0ries ranging from 'savagery'
to 'barbarism' and 'civilization' categories. These categories
reflected the unilineal evolutionary ideas of the 19th century. This
view was etQnocentric as it was based on the belief that
Western society is the centre of the civilized world and that
non- Western societies are inherently inferior.
Tylor felt that society passed through universal stages of
development.
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26
IlI1roduction to Culture Studies
He identified 3 stages of development:
(a) Savagery: Characterized by simple food gathering and
hunting.
(b) Barbarism: Human communications settle down and
began pottery making, domesticate plants and animals,
discovered the use of iron, learnt to make tools and
implements, and beginning of agriculture through irrigation.
(c) Civilization: It emerged with the invention of alphabet
and writing.
I
I
I
Civilisation
Barbarism
Savagery
STAGES OF CULTURAL EVOLUTION
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Critique
The views of these thinkers were seen as being ethnocentric,
contradictary and speculative. Their evidence was said to be
second hand, based on the accounts of biased Europeans. The
evolutionary scheme was also thought to be too simplistic to
account for the development of different societies.
During the 20th century, Franz Boas set out to criticize the
evolutionary theory of cultural development. He launched a
critique of this theory and said that this theory was based on
conjecturelhypothesis and lacks empiIical evidence. Every society
has evolved according to its own historical configuration of
development.
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Cultural Theories
27
Despite these criticisms, evolutionary theory provided the
fIrst systematic method for explaining the similarity and diversity
of human societies.
[C] FUNCTIONALISM
Functionalism is the view that society consists of institutions
which serve important purposes for people. Rather than focusing
on origins and evolution of society, the functionalists explored
the relationships among different institutions and how these
institutions functioned to serve society or individuals.
There are 2 divisions in functionalism:
1.
Psychological
functionalism - Bronislaw
Malinowski's functionalism focused on how society
functions to serve the individual's needs or interests.
2.
Structural functionalism - A.R. Radcliffe Brown
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is associated with this type of functionalism. He stressed
on the structure of society, the way it was reflected in
the differing institutions which function to perpetuate the
survival of society. For him, a society'S economic,
political, religious and social institutions serve to integrate
the society as a whole.
Both, British anthropologist B. Malinowski, and the other
Cambridge educated A. Radcliffe Brown worked
independently, in 1922, and brought out this initial field
monograph, defining afunctional approach to the study of
culture.
Malinowski's "Argonauts of the Western Pacific" and R.
Brown's "The Andaman Islanders"- are both recognized as
classics. Each of these scholars, highly individualistic, rarely in
personal contact, produced in due course a quite different
system of theory. They employed markedly different concepts.
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Introduction to Culture Studies
28
Malinowski, a brilliantly social person, and a professor at
the London School of Economics and Political Science,
addressed himself boldly to intellectual circles at large, writing
books on topic after topic.
He said that every culture, is a working whole; an
"integrated unity, in which every element has a functional
contribution to make". The "function" of an "institution" i.e., an
organized system of activity, is the part it plays within the interrelated whole in fulfilling human purposes or "needs". In
developing this need concept he tried out several schemes, but
usually he distinguished 3 types or levels of needs, which had to
be met by all cultures, hence were universal:-
• Primary or biological needs: Procreation, nutrition,
defense and protection.
• Derived or instmmentai needs: Economical organization,
law and education.
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• Integrative or synthetic needs: Knowledge, magic and
religion, art and play.
Malinowski emphasized that cultures form working codes.
He worked out a theory of human needs in relation to institution.
He maintained that there are certain basic psycho-biological
needs and every society has to evolve institutions to fulfill them.
Behind every institution there is the basic psychological and
biological need.
Example:
(1) The institution of marriage exists in every society to
fulfill the psycho-biological needs of sexuality.
(2) Similarly, family exists in every society to fulfill the need
of upbringing and training children.
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Culll/ral Theories
29
Malinowski tried to apply the functionalism theory to the
study of primitive people. In a sense, the functional theory when
applied to people and culture, maintains that an anthropologist
should never rely on infol1natiol1 provided by others. He must
collect it himself ill the lield. Only then can he be certain about
their customs and beliefs. The institutions, cultural traits of
primitive people should not be seen in isolation. They form an
integral p:.u1 of larger systems - institution and society.
He applied this approach to institution of primitive people
like magic, superstitions and beliefs.
He tried to explain the functions of magic in primitive
soci~ty. On the face of it, we would dismiss magic as an
irrational superstition. But according to Malinowski, we must
find out the psychological and social functions that magic
performs. Social functions of magic - is that the primitive
people engages in magic collectively and this participation
reinforces social and group solidarity and cohesiveness of
groups.
Psychologically - magic relieves pent up anxiety, uncertainty
and tension.
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Example - Primitive people resol1 to magical activities in
situations of uncertainty like during hunting. fishing expeditions.
Radcliffe Brown
According to Brown - the main object of study in
anthropology is the social structure and not culture. The social
system comprises the sum total of all social relationships of
individuals in a given society, who occupy social role ....
Brown knew that the basic need of every society is coadaptation - which means mutual adjustment of the interest of
individual members.
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introduction to Culture Studies
A society exists and involves institutions to fulfill this basic
need. He tried to explain this by reference to totemism in
primitive society. Totemism may be seemingly irrational, it may
seem to be founded on superstition but it fulfills basic needs of
society. Through, totemism, man tries to establish a system of
solidarity between the animal world and humans. Totemism is a
means through which humans domesticate nature.
While Malinowski built system of thought around the concept
of culture, Brown made the concept of society central. According
to Brown - the "functions" of an element of culture is "the part
it plays in the social life as a whole, and therefore the contribution
it makes to the maintenance of the structural continuity."
In this sense, he sometimes spoke of culture as an
adaptation system in which each element has its special
functions contributing to survival.
Limitations
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Functionalism fails to explain why societies are different or
similar, that means that some societies have different institutions
to meet the same need/function. This was because they were
not concerned with the historical development of different
institutions but instead focused on how these institutions serve
society and individuals.
The functionalists were also not able to explain social and
cultural change very well as they viewed societies as being static
and unchanging.
[D] SOCIAL INTERACTION (Symbolic Interactionism)
Symbolic interaction was one of the first social theories to
address, we use culture to learn. This theory developed during
the 1920's and 1930's and it had a variety of labels until
Herbert Blumer gave its current name in 1969.
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Cultural Theories
31
G.H. Mead (1934), a University of Chicago philosopher
and social activist, provided a way of understanding social life.
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Each of us learn many different social roles through
interaction with others. Our actions are being "conditioned" by
others while we are affecting their actions. The goal is not to
manipulate or dominate each other but rather to create and
sustain a productive, social unit - a group that provides its
members with certain rewards in return for their willingness to
take on specific roles. We learn social roles through ilJt~raction
and through experiences in daily life situations. Over time, we
internalize the rules inherent in the situations and structure our
actions accordingly. Only in rare cases, do we consciously
reflect on and analyze our actions. Once internalized, these
roles provide us with a powerful means of controlling our
actions. In time, our identity becomes bound up with them we feel good about ourselves because we play certain roles
that are respected by others.
Mead offered another important insight into the socialization
process. Unlike animals that are conditioned to respond to
stimuli in predetermined ways, human socialization permits more
or less conscious interpretation of stimuli and planned responses.
And this happens because of symbols. Symbols are arbitrary,
often quite abstract representations of unseen phenomenon. The
use of symbols transforms the socialization process. Mead
argues that we use symbols to create our experience of
consciousness (mind), our understanding of ourselves (self), and
our knowledge of the larger social order (society). In other
words, symbols mediate and structure our ability to perceive
and interpret what goes on around us.
Our actions in response to symbols are mediated (or
controlled) largely by those same symbols. Therefore, a person's
understanding of and relation to his or her physical or objective
reality is moderated by the symbolic environment - the mind,
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32
Introduction to Culture Studies
self and society that we have internalized. The messages we
give to symbols define us and the realities that we experience.
As we are socialized, culturally agreed upon messages assume
control over our interactions with our environment.
.
...---------1:
QUESTIONS : . - . - - - - - - ,
1. Write a detailed note on Cultural Evolutionism.
2. Explain the theory of Diffusionism in relation to the mass media.
3. Explain Malinowski's views on functionalism.
4. Write a note on Structural functionalism.
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5. Elaborate on the theory of Social Interactionism.
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DIMENSIONS
OF CULTURE
1. LANGUAGE
Introduction: Communication is the act of transmitting a
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message that influences the behaviour of another organism.
Both humans and animals communicate. Animals make use of
sounds and movements to communicate or share information.
For example, crows caw as a signal of danger and crickets
chirp when tliey are ready to mate. Communication among
animals is critical to their survival. This communication among
animals can be referred to as non-human communication.
And it is quite limited compared to human communication.
Human communication is comparatively complex. One form
of communication is language.
-Language is a system of symbols with standard meanings. It
is through language that the members of a society can communicate
with each other. Language is an integral part of culture. Culture
and language, both exist before the birth of an individual and they
are publicly shared by all members of a society. Language
provides the context for symbolic understanding within different
societies and language as a part of culture, transcends individuals.
(33)
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34
Introduction to Culture Studies
Language is capable of recreating complex thought patterns and
experiences. Humans, would have difficulty in transmitting culture .'
if language was not there.
Characteristics of Language
Human language is a very unique system of communication.
It is distinct from other animal communication in 3 ways-
1. Conventionality - This describes the association that
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is present between a meaningful sequence of sounds and an
object, action or idea. Words stand for things simply because
the speakers of that particular language agree that they do.
Example: the animal dog (English) is the same but the terms to
refer to it change like chien (French) or perro (Spanish).
Conventionality is the capacity to separate the vocal symbol
from its referent. In human language, words are only arbitrarily
or conventionally connected to the things for which they stand.
Words seldom have any necessary connection with the concrete
objects or abstract symbols that they represent.
2. Productivity - Human language is productive. Humans
constantly make new combination of words. This productive
capacity makes it an extremely flexible instrument for
communication and is capable of conveying all kinds of new
information. Productivity is the idea that humans can combine
words and sounds into new meaningful utterances, that they
have never heard before.
3. Displacement - This is the ability of language to
convey information about something which may not be present
in the immediate environment. It is the capacity of all human
languages to describe things that are not happening in the
present. This helps humans to describe things that have happened
in the past, that could happen in the future or things that exist
only in the mind and could be hypothetical. This feature of
language helps humans to think abstractly.
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Dimellsiolls of Culture
35
Structure of Language
Every language has a structure. It consists of 4 subsystems:
• Phonology - the sound system of a language
• Morphology - a system for creating words from sounds
• Syntax - a series of rules for combining words into
meaningful sentences
• Semantics - a system that relates words to meaning.
Acquiring Language: Language is a part of culture, and
an individual learns a language only by interaction with other
human beings who speak that language. Although human infants
are born with the ability to speak a language, they are not born
preprogrammed, in order to speak any particular language like
English, French etc. Evidence suggests that humans come into
the world equipped not only to learn language but to learn any
human language..
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Language and Culture: Language not only reflect') culture,
but it is also a way in which individuals in a culture are
introduced to the physical and social environments. The language
spoken by a person has a great impact on the way he/she
perceives and conceptualizes the world.
In the first half of the 20th century, Edward Sapir and his
student Benjamin Lee Whorf carried out a study on a wide
variety of languages and culture. Their ideas are known as
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis. This hypothesis assumes that there
is a close relationship between language and culture and that
language defines experiences for us.
Non-verbal communication: Aside from using language,
humans use other methods of communication as well. Nonverbal communication is divided into many fields like aI1ifacts,
haptics, chronernics, proxemics, and kenesics.
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[Iltroduction to Culture Studies
• Artifacts refer to understanding messages sent by
clothing, jewellery, tattoos, piercings etc. For example,
in India, mangalsutra (a piece of jewellery) is tile
symbol of a married woman.
• Haptics is the study and analysis of touch. For example,
handshaking, pats on the back or head, kisses, hugs
etc.
•
Chronemics is the study"of different ways in which
cultures understand time and use it to communicate.
For example, in India, showing up late at parties or
weddings communicates popularity or trying to get
attention of other people.
• Proxemics is the study of social space.
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•
Kenesics is the study of body positions, movement,
facial expressions and gaze.
In conclusion, we can say that language makes it possible
for humans, to exchange abstract and complex thoughts, which
playa crucial role in the maintenance of social relationships
within societies. It is impossible to socialize children into the
workings of their culture, without language. Language helps in
the transmission of traditions, rituals, values, myths and beliefs,
which instill a sense of group identity and maintain ~ocial order
in society. Without human language, human culture cannot exist.
2. GENDER
We need to make an important distinction, between sex
and gender. In general, sociologists use the term sex to refer to
the anatomical and physiological differences that define male
and female bodies. Gender, by contrast, concerns the
psychological, social and cultural differences between males
and females. Gender is linked to socially constructed notions of
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Dimensions of Culture
37
masculinity and femininity; it is not necessarily a direct product
of an individual's biological sex. The distinction between sex
and gender is a fundamental one, since many differences
between males and females are not biological in origin.
How far are differences in the behaviour of women
and men the result of sex rather than gender? In other
words, how much are they the result of biological
differ.ences?
Some authors hold that aspects of human biology - ranging
from hormones to chromosomes to brain size to genetics are
responsible for innate differences in behaviour between men
and women. These differences, they claim, can be seen in some
form across all cultures, implying that natural factors are
responsible for the inequalities between genders which
characterize most societies. Such researchers are likely to draw
attention to the fact,for example, that in almost all cultures,
men rather than women take part in hunting and warfare.
Surely, they argue, this indicates that men possess biologically
based tendencies towards aggression that women lack.
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Many researchers are unconvinced by this argument. The
level of aggressiveness of males, they say, varies widely between
different cultures, and women are expected to be more passive
or gentle in some cultures than in others.
Gender Socialization
Another route to take in understanding the origins of gender
differences is the study of gender socialization, the learning of
gender roles with the help of social agencies such as the family
and the media. Such an approach makes a distinction between
biological sex and social gender - an individual is born with the
first and develops the second. Through contact with various
agencies of socialization, both primary and secondary, children
gradually internalize the social norms and expectations which
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38
Introduction to Culture Studies
are seen to correspond with their sex. Gwder differences are
not biologically determined, they are culturally produced.
According to this view, gender inequalities result because men
and women are socialized into different roles.
Theories of gender socialization have been favoured by
functionalists who see boys and girls as learning 'sex roles' and
the male and female identities - masculinity and femininity which accompany them. They are guided in this process by
positive and negative sanctions, socially applied forces which
reward or restrain behaviour.
Example: Compared to girls, boys are allowed a greater
degree of moral and social freedom like boys being allowed to
take up a job in another ci ty is acceptable.
The role women play is considered subordinate. She is
socialized to be docile, submissive, polite and prepared for
marriage, right from childhood. The man acquires the front seat
and she becomes the follower. Arundhati Roy, in her book 'The
God of Small Things,' also mentions women waiting for her
drunkard husband.
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Although times have changed, the evils of marriage, dOWIY
and sati, still continue.
There are certain roles that are gender-specific. Women
should cook, clean, stitch, take care of the house, home maker
and a child-rearer, whereas the man is looked as a 'breadwinner'
and thus enjoys a higher status in society and family.
India is divided on the reservation policy for women. Till
today we have not been able to reach a consensus on this issue
in the Parliament. Gender roles vary in accordance with the
technological, economic, social and cultural traditions of particular
types of societies.
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Dimensions of Culture
39
The Functionalists maintain that gender differentiation
has contributed to the overall social stability. The Conflict
theorists contain that the relationship between females and
males has been one of unequal power with men in a dominant
position over women. The Interactionists perspective generally
agrees with the conflict theory that men hold a dominant
position over women.
In examining the profound changes affecting men in late
modern societies; many observers believe that economic and
social transformations are provoking a crisis of masculinity.
Traditional notions of masculinity are being eroded by a
combination of influences, from the changing labour market to
high rates of divorce. If at one time the average man enjoyed
security in the workforce, the family and in society as a whole,
his position is being undermined by a multiplicity of forces,
leaving him unsure of himself and his role in society.
Some of the factors affecting the traditional notion of
masculinity are:(a) Unemployment
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Willott and Griffin emphasize, the role of 'provider' had
been challenged by unemployment. There was a weakening of
certain elements of traditional masculinity.
(b) Crime
In the past, the young men had a clear set of goals to aim
for in life: getting a legitimate job and becoming the breadwinner
for a wife and family. But such a male breadwinner role,.
Campbell argues, is now under strain, particularly for young
men. Many men thus have resorted to crime as a means of
livelihood.
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Introduction to Culture Studies
(c) StatUs!Attitude of Women
Moreover, women have become more independent than
they used to be, and don't need a man to achieve status in the
wider society. They are educated and hold respectable positions
at the work place and society. They have achieved economic
and social freedom. They no longer want to be suppressed by
men and the egalitarian attitude has gained prominence.
(d) Media Portrayals
Changing portrayals of masculinity in popular culture, the
press, advertisements and fashion have been considered by
J. Rutherford (1988). Rutherford has noted two idealized
images of men which reflect opposite reactions to the challenges
of feminism and the changing role of women .
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• The first is 'retributive man', who corresponds to
public understandings of traditional masculinity.
• Alternatively, there is the so-called new man - a figure
who began appearing with increasing frequency in media
and advertising campaigns in the 1980s. The new man
demonstrates sensitivity in his attitudes to women, children
and his own emotional needs. He makes fatherhood
fashionable, appearing as a strong and gentle nurturer.
The popularity of the new sexualized, sensitive man can
be seen as an attempt to reconstruct ideas of masculinity
in the wake of the challenge of feminism.
(3) RELIGION
Humans have populated their world with unseen beings and
powers. They have spun out mythic accounts of ancient and
wondrous happenings; they have also created elaborate rituals
which must be performed correctly so that human life can
prosper. Every society has something that is identified as
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Dimensions of Culture
41
religion. Religion is a cultural universal, but every society varies
in terms of their religion. The practices and beliefs vary
significantly from society to society. Example: some religions
worship many deities, some have no deities and some worship
an all-knowing and all-powerful supreme being.
Religion serves the purpose of adaptation and it also meets
the deep needs of the lives of individuals. Religion is related to a
world which is beyond immediate experience.
Religions involve a set of symbols, invoking feelings
of reverence or awe, and are linked to rituals or
ceremonials engaged in by a community of believers.
More than a century ago, Edward B. Tylor defined
religion as a "belief in spiritual beings". It is believed that
some of the earlier forms of religion were:
1. Animism: This is a belief in spirits or ghosts, thought to
populate the same world as humans beings: Such spirits
may be either seen as benign or malevolent, and may
influence human behaviour in numerous respects.
Example: In some cultures, spirits are believed to cause
illness and may also possess individuals in such a way so
as to control their behaviour.
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2. Animatism: This is a belief in diffuse, impersonal spiritual
power.
3. Totemism: The word 'totem' originated among North
American Indian tribes, but has been widely used to refer
to species of animals or plants believed to have supernatural
powers. Usually each kinship group or clan within a
society has its own particular totem, with which various
ritual activities are associated. Totemic beliefs might seem
alien to those living in industrialized societies, yet in
certain minor contexts, symbols similar to those of totemism
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42
Introduction to Culture Studies
are familiar - as when a sports team has an animal or
plant for its emblem. Mascots are totems.
Religion is a social process which helps to bring order in
society and to provide its members with meaning, unity, peace
of mind and gives them a degree of control over events they
believe are possible.
Functions of Religion:
1. It provides meaning and order in the lives of people.
2. It can reduce social anxiety and give people a sense of
control over their destinies.
3. It can promote change or reinforce the status quo in a
given society.
4. It can affect the way a culture l~elates to its environment.
5. It explains important existential questions like why humans
die, how the world came to be, why human efforts
succeed or fail etc.
6. Religions validate and give meaning to certain human
acts.
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7. Religion reinforces the ability of humans to cope with the
fragility of human life, death, illness, famine, t100d etc.
Religion defines the way the world is in such a manner that
it also establishes an appropriate stance which has to be taken
towards it.
Myths: They are accounts about how the world came to
be the way it is. It consists of people's assumed knowledge
about the universe, the natural. the supernatural and humanity's
place in these worlds.
Ritual,,: The lituals associated \\lith religion are very diverse.
Ritual acts may include praying, chanting, singing, eating cCltain
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Dimensions of Culture
43
kinds of food or refraining from doing so, fasting on certain
days, and so on. Since ritual acts are oriented towards religious
symbols, they are usually seen as quite distinct from the habits
and procedures of ordinary life. e.g. Ganesh pooja, Laxmi
pooja and Narnaz in Rarnzan. Religious rituals contain a unique,
personal and psychological experience for every group who
participates. Religious rituals are often carried on by individuals
in isolation, but all religions also involve ceremonials practiced
collectively by believers. Regular ceremonials normally occur in
special places - churches, temples or the shrines (where the
'miracle' of the Gods drinking milk happened in India).They
reinforce collective sentiment and social integration.
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Religious Specialists: In traditional societies, religion
usually plays a central part in social life. Religious symbols and
rituals are often integrated with the material and artistic culture
of the society - music, painting or carving, dance, story-telling
and literature. In small cultures, there is no professional priesthood,
but there are always certain individuals who specialize in
knowledge of religious practices. Although there are various
sorts of such specialists, one common type is the shaman (a
word originating among North American Indians). A shaman is
an individual believed to be able to direct spirits or non-natural
forces through ritual means. Shamans are sometimes essentially
magicians rather tI"dl religious leaders, however, and are often
consulted by individuals dissatisfied with what is offered in the
religious rituals of the community. Anthropologists use terms
'native healer', 'medicine man' and 'medicine woman'. Priests
and Kazis are full time religious specialists trained through
fonnal educational processes to maintain religious traditions and
rituals. They are the custodians of sacred knowledge.
Religion and Change: Religion is generally a force that
preserves social order. But sometimes under certain
circumstances religion becomes a vehicle of resistance to
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44
Introduction to Culture Studies
domination and then becomes catalysts for social change. As
far as change in religion is concerned, it is the material aspect of
religion which undergoes a certain amount of change, as
compared to non-material aspect. For Example: during diwali
make use of electric diya instead of the traditional oil diya.
Thus, the material aspect has been modified with the nonmaterial part remaining constant.
4. KINSHIP
"Blood is thicker than water" - goes an old saying. Society
is closely knit by kinship relations. Kinship is important in social
anthropology.
• A person eams his livelihood through kinship.
• The career of an individual is planned and executed by
kinsmen.
• Matrimonial arrangements are made through kinship.
• Mourning period, birth and death are observed through
kinship.
• Kinship is related to economy, celebration of festivals,
worship and folkways.
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• The social organization of a society revolves around
kinship.
• . Kinship provides continuity between generations.
Inheritance (transfer of property) and succession (transfer
of social position) takes place within kinship groups.
• Kinship provides for an individual, a group of people he
can depend upon.
Kinship is the basis of group formation. Relationships
between individuals are governed through the norms of kinship.
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45
Dimensions of Culture
Kinship ties help in allying groups to each other and help to
incorporate strangers into a group. In many cultures across the
world, kinship is central in determining people's rights and
responsibilities. Being born to particular parents, defines
membership of an individual in a group. It places the individual
in a network of obligation and co-operation.
Kinship is a culturally defined relationship established on
the basis of blood ties or through marriage. It includes
relationships through blood (consanguineal) as well as
relationships through marriage (affinal). In every society,
regulation of behaviour and also the formation of groups depend
to some extent on the socially recognized ties of kinship. Even
though kinship ties rely on some kind of biological relationships,
at the same time kinship is also a cultural phenomena. The ways
in which societies classify their kin are culturally based. For
Example: 'Father' can refer to a child's biological father or it
could also refer to a man who takes the responsibility for the
upbringing of the child or it is a man socially recognized as the
father.
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D
0
Where
I
I
I
D
0
0
D
represents a male
0
represents a female
indicates marriage
indicates siblings
FAMILY AND KINSHIP
There are two basic types of descent rules or kinship
ideology which operate in society. Some cultural systems have a
unilineal system of descent where group membership depends
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46
Introduction to Culture Studies
upon links through either paternal or maternal line. Certain other
cultural systems have a bilateral descent syste-:n, where both
maternal and paternal lines are used as a basis for reckoning
descent.
Thus, kinship is the most important social bond. Once
kinship systems are established, they continue to have an
important influence on behaviour.
,..--------Il QUESTIONS JI---------.
1. Explain the characteristics and structure of language.
2. Language and culture share a unique relationship. Comment.
3. Discuss Non-verbal communication.
4. Write a note on Gender socialization.
5. Discuss the inter-relationship between gender and culture.
6. Explain Crisis of Masculinity.
7. Define religion and give its functions.
8. Analyze change with respect to religion.
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9. Discuss the role of kinship within culture.
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COMPONENTS OF
CULTIJRE-MATERIAL
CULTURE AND NON·
MATERIAL CULTURE
William Ogburn has given two forms of culture:
(A) Material Culture
(B) Non-Material Culture
CULlURE
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/
IMA~I
CULlURE
NON
MATERlAL
CULlURE
COMPONENTS OF CULTURE
(A) MATERIAL CULTURE
All things that man has created, which are observable and
tangible are material al1ifacts. Example: tools, table, chair ctc.
(47)
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48
Introduction to Culture Studies
Certain elements of materifll culture in society can be
observed through:
(1) ART
It refers to those forms of creative expression which are
guided by aesthetic principles and which involve imagination,
skill and style. Every aultur~ and society has their own
characteristic forms of art. for Example: tea drinking is a form
of art in Japan; calligraphy isa form of art in China ·a nd the
Islamic Middle East.
Art is a universal aspect of human experience and there is
no such known culture where art is not present. Art is a means
by which people express their values, perceptions of reality and
the identity of their culture. -
(2) ARCIDTECTURE AND HOUSING
We can learn a lot about the culture of a period by looking
at the material artifacts of that age. Indian art and architecture
are distinguished by their religious content, exquisite style and
philosophical outlook. The artistic remains show their close
connection with religion.
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• Architecture of the Pre-Historic Period - In North
India, the Stone Age was followed by the Copper Age,
which was followed by the Iron Age. 6ut in South
India, Stone Age was followed by the Iron Age.
• Harappan Architecture - The discoveries of the cities
like Mohenjo Daro and Harappa show that the Indus
Valley civilization was highly advanced. The Harappan
people made statues and different kinds of jewels. Indus
valley houses and the town planning show that they had
made much progress in architecture. The public baths
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Components of Culture-Material Culture and Non-material Culture
49
and public buildings show that their architecture was
characterized by its simplicity and utilitarianism.
• Architecture during Vedic Culture - Aryans
developed a new culture in North India around 2000
B.c. The great epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana
make reference to many places, royal courts, buildings
and cities and a high degree of excellence in arts and
architectural sense.
• Buddhist Period - Not much progress in art and
architecture. Materials like the earth bamboo and wood
were used for the purpose of construction. A few
buildings were made of stone.
• Mauryan Period - Mauryan Empire made much
progress to art and architecture. Mau:yan kings
patronized many artists, architects and engineers.
Chandragupta had built a large and beautiful wooden
palace. King Ashoka built many Stupas in honour of
Lord Buddha.
•• Gupta Period - The Gupta era is regarded as the
golden age in the history of ancient India. Art and
architecture entered its classical phase and a lot of
progress happened in .archltecture.
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• Mughal-Maratha Period - The Indo-Islamic art of
the earlier period was combined and there were not
many changes. To a certain extent, Persian influence
was pre-dominant upto the end of the reign of Akbar
after which Indian style dominated.
(3) TOOLS OF COMMUNICATION
There are different tools of communication used by different
communities. Some of them are:
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50
Introduction to Culture Studies
(i)
Oral Culture - Communication here is generally faceto-face and verbal.
(ii) Writing - More than 5,000 years ago, the development
of alphabets took place independently in several places
around the world. The medium used for carrying out
this form of communication was clay tablets by the
Sumerians, but Egyptians, Greeks and Romans eventually
made use of papyrus. Romans later began to use
parchment. By A.D. 100, the Chinese developed a
paper which was made from rags. Today, writing is no
longer dependent on such rudimentary techniques and a
variety of paper and writing materials are used.
(iii) Printing Press- This led to the spread of written
material and to mass communication being possible.
(iv) Modern Communication Technologies- These
include newspapers, magazines, motion pictures, radio,
television and more recently the internet.
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(4) FOOD
Food is also considered as a form of art in many societies
and cultures. In many cultures, it is seen as a tradition and
traditional recipes are handed down from one generation to the
next, from mother to daughter. The type of food eaten is also a
part of culture. For Example: In China and India, pigs are
eaten and are seen as a source of protein but religious traditions
of Islam and Judaism forbid eating of pork.
(B) NON-MATERIAL CULTURE
This refers to various symbolic creations of man. It consists
of the intangible products of human society. Example: values,
norms, attitudes. They are called Mentifacts. Both, matelial and
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Components of Culture-Material Culture alld NOli-material Culture
51
non-material cultures are organically linked. Material culture
emerges out of non-material culture. Material culture changes
more frequently, whereas non-material culture is slow to change.
This gap between their paces of change is known as Culture
Lag. Example: Material aspect of Indian culture has changed a
lot, in terms of technology and lifestyle; whereas non-material
aspects like religion and social values change slowly.
Certain elements of non-material culture in society
call be observed through:
(A) Cognitive
(a) Knowledge: All information about the material world
that can be objectively substantiated. It is the storage
and recall of learned information.
(b) Beliefs: Ideas and speCUlation about the physical,
social and supernatural reality, not as easily supported
by facts. They are cultural conventions that are concerned
with true or false assumptions, specific descriptions of
the nature of the universe and the place of human
beings in it.
(B) Normative
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(a)
Values.- They are a part of the cultural system and are
inculcated into the psychological system through
socialization and are instrumental in shaping and
determining behaviour in groups and other social systems.
Example: Driving at high speed leads to accidents is a
belief; driving should not exceed a certain limit is a
value.
(b) Norms: These are usually derived from values. They
are standards of behaviour expected of individuals by
their social groups and therefore norms supplement
values.
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Introduction to Culture Studies
52
Values tend to be broad and non-specific and norms
are specific and definite.
Norms can be:
• Prescriptive Norms- are those which prescribe or
allow some kinds of behaviour to take place. Example:
in college, you should study.
• Proscriptive Norms- are those which prohibit certain
kinds of behaviour. Example: murder and crime are
those acts which are forbidden by society.
• Cultural Norms- states how culture should be ideally
followed, that is, how it actually should be. Example:
one should always be honest.
• Statistical Norm- is the measure of the actual conduct
in the society. It is the 'the actual behaviour of a person in
a given situation.' Example: one shouldn't break a traffic
light - this is a norm, but when one is in hurry and one
breaks it, then it is a statistical norm.
Norms include
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(1) Folkways: they are workable pa.tterns accepted as
appropriate but not insisted upon. Example: if you eat
food with your hand, you won't be punished. They are
passed down from generation to generation either
throui,h .deliberate teaching or mere imitation.
(2) Mores: they are morally and strongly sanctioned
folkways regarded as important for the survival of the
group. Example: wearing clothes is a mores. Negative
mores are called taboos, which mean that something
should not be done. Example: Incest- a sexual
relationship between father and daughter.
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Components of Culture-Material Culture and Non-material Culture
53
(3) Customs: a custom is a long established usage or
practice, gradually accepted as an appropriate mode of
behaviour. Customs are sanctioned by group pressure.
In traditional societies the hold of customs is very
strong.
(4) Laws: Laws are codified norms or rules enacted by
those who exercise political power and are enforced
through state machinery. There is an element of force or
compulsion in law. They are needed in a modem,
complex society to maintain social order. It is more
formal as compared to the folkways, mores and norms
in the society.
Different cultures manifest their non-material culture through:
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(1) Folklores: Folklores are an important part of many cultures,
especially the primitive communities. In primitive communities,
cultural transmission takes place through folklores. Folklores
contain the philosophy of the people of that society or culture.
Most of the folklores have a reference made to the mutual
relation of the people to their gods. Folklores help in socialization
as they point out how different types of offences are punished
by the supernatural powers. They also contain descriptions
about birds, beasts, trees and human beings etc.
(2) Myths: Myths owe their origin to beliefs and ideals
associated with leaders, patriots, national heroes, institutions
and individuals. They are handed down from one generation to
the next. They set examples and guide people in their life.
Despite the fact that they are imaginative and unrealistic, they
are still very important. For Example: In India, myths have
originated in connection with Lord Krishna, Bhishma, Tulsidas
etc. Myths have functions in a society like making the socialcultural reality stable, predictable. and capable of being endured.
They also maintain the rel(ltionship or link between the past,
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Introduction to Culture Studies
54
present and future. They also induce a feeling of security and
ascertain the beliefs of people.
(3) Legends: They are a form of social myth which are based
on some part on historical facts and deal mainly with heroes and
events, which are related to the successes and failures in a
group of society. Mostly the heroes are religious and the events
related to them, are of a divine supra-social nature. For
Example: In India, there are many legends attached to the life
of Lord Krishna.
There are different types of legends:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Religious legends- Shri Krishna, Sai Baba, etc,
Political legends- Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln.
Economic legend- Karl Marx.
Social legend- Mother Terc!sa.
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Legends evolve due to many reasons and they are very
important because they represent the ideals and values in a
society and they provide an opportunity for the individual to
acquaint himselflherself with the culture of that society. Legends
are also important because they are attached with the emotions,
feelings and assumptions of a particular society and culture.
(4) Aesthetics: In every society, people express themselves
through different ways of creative expression. These are guided
by aesthetic principles involving imagination, beauty, skill and
style. Example: Many cultures have a history of appreciating
music, poetry, forms of dance and paintings.
Every culture includes both material as well as non-material
culture. Even though material culture changes more frequently
and drastically, as compared to non-material culture, without
either of them, no culture is complete.
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Components of Culture·Material Culture and NOIl·material Culture
.----------11
55
:f---------,
QUESTIONS
L Define culture. Explain the components of culture.
2. Explain how housing and architecture are components of
material culture.
3. Explain the Cognitive and Normative elements of non-material
culture.
4. Discuss how non-material culture manifest itself.
5. Write short notes on:
Legends
Tools of Communication
•
•
Art
Norms
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•
•
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CONSTRUCTION
OF CULTURE .
(A) ASPECTS OF CULTURAL CONSTRUCTION
Human beings have certain types of social relationships
which comprise a part of their culture. These different social
relationships include the economic relationships which are there
in the economic system, the political system and its different
relations, the social relations which are a part of the social
system and also relationships in the system of religion. These
different systems provide the base or infrastructure of society.
They help in building up or constructing the culture.
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ECONOMY
/
§
?---}
SYS1EM
~
1
CULTIJRE
1
~
?---}
I Fro~:C I
SYS1EM
/
RElJGION
CONSTRUCTION OF CULTURE
(56)
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COllstruction of Culture
57
The different dimensions that construct any culture
are as follows:
1. Political System
The political organization is made up of the patterned ways
in which the power is legitimately used in a society for regulating
behaviour. All cultures have some or the other type of political
organization. Political institutions in a complex society provide
organizational means for defense against invasion. They may at
times, also provide the ruling class with a means of perpetuating
their power and maintaining the relationships of producers and
consumers, rules and the ruled.
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The nature of political systems is very dynamic. In bands
and tribes, we find people having a different type of system of
ruling; they may not have a properly developed 'political
system'. Tribal societies for instance, have leaders, but they do
not have a centralized government. For example, the tribal
leader found in Melanesia and New Guinea is called as the 'big
man', he is a self-made leader and he gains power through
personal achievements rather than through holding office and in
a democratic system like in India, we have the President who is
the nominal head of the country and the Prime Minister who is
the elected representative.
The most complex form of political organization is the state.
'STATE' is a hierarchical and centralized form of political
organization. Here, there is a Central Government which has
legal monopoly over the use of force. States are more populous,
heterogeneous and powerful than any other type of political
organization. An example of state would be any of the developed
nations in the world like India. India follows a democratic form
of government system which is based on adult franchise. In
comparison, the tribal leaders and chiefs could be chosen on
the basis of blood, kinship or social ranking.
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58
Introductioll to Culture Studies
2. Economic Aspect
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All human societies have economic systems. Within the
economic system, goods and services are produced, distributed
and consumed. Economic aspect deals partly with things- the
tools used to produce goods, and the goods themselves. Every
society makes different choices as they have different economic
systems. These choices are made within the framework provided
by their culture, values and institutions. For example: Western
culture is dominated by capitalism. Here, a lot of value is placed
on wealth and material prosperity. The market place is the
primary institution through which this is regulated. Those people
who can achieve high levels of wealth and consumption like
actors and entrepreneurs are held as role models in this society.
Monetary profit many a times is a huge motivating factor.
On the other hand, Hadza, which is a hunting-gathering
community in Tanzania, live in an area where there is abundance
of animal and vegetable food. The men in this community spend
much of their time gambling, and do not use much of their
leisure time to increase their wealth. Whereas in western
society, prestige is tied up with increased consumption and
display of goods and service, and focus is on those who can
achieve a lot and keep continuing to do so. Work is not only a
source of money, but also a source of self-respect, challenge,
growth and personal fulfillment.
The Indian economy is based on both the industrial as well
as agricultural sectors. Work is not only a source of money but
also a means of gaining status and prestige in society.
3. Religious Aspect
Religion is a human universal. Most anthropologists believe
that it goes· back to the beginnings of the human species.
Religion has many functions in society; it provides meaning and
order in people's lives, reduces social anxiety and gives people
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Construction of Culture
59
a sense of control over their destinies. Religion works in a
society to preserve social order and it can also be a catalyst for
social change. Religion may either be polytheistic (having many
Gods) or monotheistic (having only one God). In India, Hinduism
is a major religion which is polytheistic in nature. The Hindus
understand that in some way, these Gods are all aspects of one
divine essence. Whereas, in Roman Catholicism, which is
monotheistic, there is God the Father, God the son and God the
Holy Spirit, yet all these are seen to be part of a single unitary
system.
4. Social System
Every culture has its own unique characteristic social system.
It incorporates beliefs, values, traditions, customs and entire
lifestyles of people. For example, within the Indian framework,
the urban community is characterized by professional attitudes,
a focus on material comforts and luxuries and a more liberal
lifestyle; whereas in the rural communities, a person's life
centers around traditions and customs.
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(B) POPULAR/MAJOR CONSTRUCTIONS OF
'INDIAN CULTURE'
Indian Culture has a distinct flavour due to its unique
historical evolution. Throughout the ages, it has been greatly
influenced by a variety of factors. These include the different
kingdoms and rulers like Ashoka's empire, the Mauryan dynasty,
the Mughal era and British colonialism; the emergence of the
different religious perspectives like lainism and Buddhism have
also had their own contributions to make to society. With these
continuous influences, India has still managed to retain its
distinct cultural identity and continues to do so and yet has
assimilated certain modifications in its fold. There has been a
fine balance between stability, continuity and change. It is static
and dynamic at the same time.
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60
Introduction to Culture Studies
Indian culture can be viewed by looking at the
following dimensions:
1. Religion
Religion has been the core of India's tradition. It is not only
a tradition of worship, but also controls the entire community
life. Even, the tribes in India have their own regulating religion.
Indian tribal religion has changed due to Hinduism. For Geertz,
religion and its rituals are basically cultural. Whenever rituals are
performed, they are done in the context of the surrounding
culture. For example: when a Kashrniri Pandit worships Shiva,
he offers raw meat and when a Gond offers worship to Shiva,
he offers a coconut and leaves of billi tree. Rituals are always
culture-specific. Indian culture has many religions that exist
together. Hinduism is a major religion, along with it, there is
Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism and even the
Parsi religion. Indian culture is influenced by all of these and all
these religions in tum influence Indian culture.
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2. Political Systems
India follows a democratic form of government. It is a
developing nation. It is a democratic and secular society. The
present fornmt of administration of society has emerged through
the ages, from being governed by the different rulers and kings
to the present democratic setup. The Indian Constitution lays
the basis of the political system. The Constitution of India has
tried to incorporate the interests of all the different sections and
communities. The political system is based on a government of
the people, by the people and for the people. It is operated
through universal adult franchise. However, there is a gap
between the idealistic political system and reality.
3. Economic System
The Indian economy has gone through tremendous changes.
At the start, it was an agricultural economy as well as an
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Construction of Culture
61
economy based on the handicraft industry. During the British
era, this economy started collapsing and later India took to
industrialization in a big way for the sake of quick development.
Today, it has opened up its market for foreign investment to a
large extent. India is now a part of the rising global economy.
4. Social System
The Indian social system is very dynamic in nature. Change
and continuity operate simultaneously. Changes are there in
quite a lot of areas of social life like material aspects of society,
ways of behaviour, attitudes towards work, choices of
occupations, technology etc. Some of the areas of social life
that was previously open to change, like the norms governing
marriage, family and kin have also loosened up. Certain elements
like religion still have the element of continuity and change is
hardly noticed. The Indian social system is in a state of flux
presently, where there is a demand for both stability and
change, as far as traditions and customs are concerned.
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(C) MAINSTREAMING CULTURE THROUGH
POLITICAL ACTION
In India, culture and politics share a close relation. In the
political scenario, culture has an important role to play. Political
propaganda is based on culture. Political parties are based on
religion, which is a dimension of culture. Choice of candidates
aild elections are based and influenced greatly by individual
cultural preferences. In a country like India, politics is influenced
by the culture of its people. Cultural and religious symbols are
very often used in political processes. In addition to religion,
other elements of culture like ethnicity, language, gender,
community and minority issues, also affect political processes.
Hence, through this nexus between culture and politics, we can
see how mainstrearning of culture takes place.
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62
Introduction to Culture Studies
r-------~: QUESTIONS
11---------,
1. Discuss the various aspects in the construction of culture.
2. Analyze the relationship between politics and culture in India.
3. With the help of examples, explain how 'mainstreaming' of culture
takes place.
4. Write a note on religious and economic aspects of Indian culture with
relevant examples.
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5. Discuss the role of the social system within the Indian cultural
framework.
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AGENTS OF
CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
1. MEDIA - AS AN AGENT OF CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
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Communication is a process of creating shared meaning. All
communication is composed of the same elements, but technology
changes the nature of those elements. Communication between a
mass medium and its audience is mass communication, a primary
contributor to the construction and maintenance of culture.
As the learned behaviour of a given social group, culture is
the world made meaningful. It resides all around us; it is usually
constructed and is maintained through communication. Culture
limits us, as well as liberates us; it differentiates us as well as
unites us. It defines our realities and shapes the ways we think,
feel and act.
Although culture and communication are inter-related, the
influence of mass communication has long been in dispute.
Still debated are:
(a) Micro- versus macro-level effects
(b) Administrative versus critical research
(c) Transmissional versus ritual perspective
(63)
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64
Introduction to Culture Studies
(a) Micro versus Macro-level Effects
Micro level effects are the effects at personal individual
level.
Does television cause violence? Do beer advertisements
cause increased alcohol consumption? Does pornography cause
rape? Although there is much scientific evidence that media
cause many behaviours, there is also much evidence that they
do not.
' Media have relatively few direct effects at the personal or
micro level.
The impact of media at the cultural level is macro level
effect. Violence on television contributes to the cultural climate
in which real-world violence becomes more acceptable.
Example: Are there parts of towns where you would
rather not walk alone? Do you vote for the 'tough on crime'
carididate versus 'education' candidate?
The micro level view is that televised violence has little
impact because most people are not directly affected. The
macro level view is that televised violence has a great impact
because it influences the cultural climate.
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Both these levels should be considered.
(b) Administrative versus Critical Research
Administrative research asks questions about the immediate,
observable influence of mass communication.
Example: Does a commercial campaign sell more cereal
or does an expanded living section increase newspaper
circulation.
Administrative research concerns itself with direct causes
and effects; critical research looks at larger, possibly more
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Agents of Cultural Transmission
65
significant cultural questions Example: Asking larger questions
about what kind of nation we are building, what kind of people
are we becoming.
(c) Transmissional versus Ritual Perspective:
The transmissional perspective looks at media as senders
of information for the purpose of control, i.e., media either have
effects on our behaviour or they do not.
The ritual perspective views media not as a means of
transmitting "messages in space" but as central to "the
maintenance of society in time".
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Mass communication is "not an act of imparting information
but the representation of shared beliefs". In other words, the
ritual perspective is necessary to understand the cultural
importance of mass communication.
Consider an advertisement for Foster beer. What message
is being transmitted? Buy Foster of course. So people buy or
do not buy Foster. The message either controls or does not
control people's beer buying behaviour. That is the transmissional
perspective. But what is happening culturally in that ad? What
reality about alcohol and socializing is shared? Can young
people really have fun in social settings without alcohol? What
constitutes a good looking man or woman? The ritual perspective
illuminates these messages- the culturally important content of
the ad.
2. WOMEN - AS AGENTS OF CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
Women are very important agents of cultural transmission.
When socialization as a process is taking place, it is the role
of the mother which has utmost importance. The mother teaches
the child how to cope with the basic necessities of life, helps in
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66
Introduction to Culture Studies
passing on language, teaches religion and passes on the cultural
heritage. Women in many societies are generally regarded as
pillars of virtue. They are also seen responsible for the moral
order of the community. They have an important role to play for
the well being of their families by following their ancestors' rules
of purity and pollution. Women are also the observers of the
society's standards of chastity.
A lot of studies have examined the significance of the roles
of women as mothers, sisters, wives and daughters.
The working woman, with respect to all kinds of jobs that
she ventures into, like teaching, nursing, social work and
administrative jobs, makes contributions to the society at large,
by carrying on the cultural transmission.
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The woman also as an agent of culture is contributing to her
own family with her wages and also to the society at large, in
cases when she is working for social causes, or when she is
working for women's organizations likefor example: SEWASelf Employed Women's Association.
With respect to social aspects in the community, the
woman plays a very important role in the relationship between
culture and society. She not only has an individual identity but
also a social one. She knows how to deal with elders, as a part
of culture and she truly is associated with almost all festivals,
celebrations and 'worship practices'. Thus, helping to preserve
the culture and also transmit it.
There are women in thefield of literature, writing books,
for the enlightenment of women like Mrinal Pande's "Girls",
Ismat Chugtai's "Chauthi ka Joda" and Maha Shweta Devi's
"Draupadi".
Women are also contributing in terms of art to society.
Reference can be made to the very famous 'Mona Lisa'
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Agellls of Cultural Transmissiol1
67
painting by Leonardo Vinci and the various paintings on MadhUli
Dixit by M.E Hussain.
Women are depicted as goddesses in the sculptures,
representing our culture, like the ones at Ajanta Ellora at
Aurangabad, thus contributing to our culture.
In the entertainment arena too, like in various flbns, women
are playing a very important role, as today they are getting
noticed and are receiving attention and are very much in the
limelight. Women oriented subjects are getting awards. Today
we can see a shift from mythology to current realities as the
subject matter in films, like we see a shift from movies like
"Santoshi Maa" to "Mrityudand". Other films with \'L~ry strong
subjects are Damini, Astitva, Daman and Chandni bar, with
female protagonists against unjust practices doing the rounds.
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In the political arena too, we find women venturing the
field, we have women representation in public places like for
example in the industry and politics. There are women activists
fighting for their rights like taking up the reservation policy for
women. There is a 'feminist ideology' gaining momentum,
fighting for the upliftment of 'the weaker or subordinate sex' in
society.
There are also 'role models' playing a very important role
in society, influencing the minds of many individuals and creating
an awareness amongst them. Example: Late Indira Gandhi
because of her political contributions, Writer Shobha De is
considered as an 'ideal' for young girls, Kiran Bedi and Meera
Borwankar in the Police Department are inspiring women,
Social activist Medha Patkar working for environmental causes
and Sonia Gandhi who was rated recently as the Number 3 in
the list of influer.tial women in the world.
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68
Introduction to Culture Studies
3. EDUCATION - AS AN AGENT OF CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
The early and primitive societies in the world did not have
schools. The children of these societies learned whatever they
needed to know by watching and taking part in whatever was
going on around them. Education was handled by the family or
clan. It was only when cultures started becoming complex, that
this created, a need for having specialized knowledge and skills
which could not be obtained simply through the#previous
method of watch-help. It was due to this, that very gradually the
formal system of education took place in many societies.
Education has many functions like
(a) Education prepares people to take up occupational
roles.
(b) Education is very important as it preserves the culture
and passes it on from one generation to the next.
(c) It teaches verbal skills and develops a person's ability
to think rationally and independently.
(d) It improves personal adjustment.
(e) It builds character.
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Education and Culture
Education and Culture share a very important relationship.
It is education which in recent modem and urban societies
serves as a very important agent of cultural transmission. It
passes on the cultural heritage from one generation to the next.
In modern and urban societies, family and religion lose their
hold and it is education which takes over, to a large extent, the
transmission of culture to the next generation. It is also true that
with education, cultural change also takes place, as education
can broaden the outlook of people, it can make them more
open to newer ideas of change, especially as far as technology,
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Agents of Cultural Transmissio/l
69
fashion, and architecture, etc. are concerned. Education also
acts as a vehicle for social mobility in many cultures. In the
'open class' system of social stratification, only some people
attain upper levels of economic and prestige standing and
education is one vehicle for attaining it.
In schools and colleges, extra-curricular and cultural
activities are a part of education. This helps in making students
more aware of their culture and hence helps in the transfer of
culture. For example: the students participate in schools, and
colleges, in cultural activities like traditional days and celebration
of vmious festivals.
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Education helps to broaden the outlook of students
leading to the assimilation of culture, as learning about other
cultures helps in more awareness and responsibility as citizens
of a particular nation. In fact today we are looking at a global
economy, crossing all national boundaries. Example: Internet
based learning facilitates the students in cultural assimilation and
more information.
In this modern age, education and qualification have
become important stepping stones into job opportunities and
careers and upliftment of the countries economic profile and
employment demands. Example: The BMM course consists of
papers like Introduction to Culture Studies- helping the students
to gain an overview about culture and how it contributes to their
understanding of society.
4. FAMILY AND KIN -AS AGENTS OF CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
George Murdock (1945) conducted a comprehensive crosscultural study and he found that almost all societies recognize the
family. Family is a social group of two or more people who are
related by blood, marriage or adoption and who live or reside
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70
Introductioll to Culture Studies
together for an extended period. They share common economic
resources and care for their young. Family is a social unit which is
there within a much wider group of relatives, or kin. Family is a
universal aspect of social organization. Family performs certain
basic functions which serve human needs.
The primary function of family is to nurture children and their
enculturation. Besides this, a family functions to regulate sexual
activity of a society. Family serves to protect and support its
members. For many cultures, family is very impOltant as it is one
of the basic agents of enculturation. It is through the family that the
cultural values and beliefs are passed on to the younger generation.
Ideas and views, relating to religion, society, economic and political
Ii fe, etc. are influenced by the family. In the family, the child leams
more about the traditions, customs and festivals to be celebrated.
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The first contact that a child has with his/her society is through
the family. It is the family that actually helps a child to be a part of
the culture into which he/she is born. All societies in the world
depend upon the family for the socialization of the children into
adults, who can function successfully in that particular society.
The family is the child's first primary group and it is in the family
that the child' personality development begins. When the child is
old enough to interact outside the family, the basic functions of
personality have already been firmly laid. One of the ways of
enculturation is by providing the child with 'models' to copy. For
example: a boy learns to be a man, a husband and a father because
he has lived in a family and seen these roles being performed around
him by his father, who here acts as a model for him.
5. RELIGION - AS AN AGENT OF CULTURAL
TRANSMISSION
Religion has explanatory functions. For all ethnic groups
it answers systematically the over-all "why" questions, these
relating variously to-
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Agents of Cultural Transmission
71
• Existence - the nature of the world and man.
• Power - the dynamic forces in the universe.
• Providence - the maintenance and welfare functions.
• Mortality - the life and death of individuals.
Secondly it has validating junctions. It supports with
powetful sanctions all the basic institutions, values, goals, which
a society considers important to personal conduct and to social
order and continuity, as in such matters as sex, family, leadership,
property and defense.
Religion does not stand at one side of culture as a specialized
compartment. It tends to interpenetrate all important and valued
behaviour. Religion comes into especially sharp focus at points
which are crucial in group and individual experience, especially
where these involve anxiety, danger, and lack of knowledgeable
control and a sense of the "supernatural".
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Kluckhohn (1942) emphasizes an important facet of
religion. Its basic function, he states, is that of providing a sense
of security in a world which, "seen in naturalistic telms, appears
to be full of the unpredictable". By giving "consistency and
reality" to experience, the religious system carries man over
areas of life "beyond control of ordinary techniques and the
rational understanding which works well in ordinary affairs."
Malinowski, in attempting to place religion in a system of
needs, speaks of it as one of the "integrative" or "synthesizing"
imperatives. In other words, it has integrating functions.
Example: He looks at religion and says that it gives a
functional interpretation of funeral and mourning practices. He
says that religion - "counteracts the centrifugal forces of fear,
dismay, demoralization, and provides the most powerful means
of reintegration of the group's shaken solidarity and of the reestablishment of the morale."
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72
Introduction to CU/Illre Studies
Radcliffe Brown, in functional discussions of Religion
(1952), also stresses the contributions which belief and ritual
make to social integration. He also states that cultural and
personal disorganization tends to be greatest where religious
beliefs break down or become inconsistent.
Firth (1951) emphasizes not only the functions of religion
but also its symbolic character. He summarizes an important
analysis ill the following points:
• It is a strong positive element in the maintenance and
transmission of the social organization.
• It provides authOlity for belief and action.
• It provides message for social action in allowing pattern
and order to be reinterpreted in terms of ultimate ends.
• It allows for expression of concepts of imagination and
aesthetic creation.
• It is a major force of personal adjustment.
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This, he says, is much more than just an emotional
experience of awe or sense of the supernatural. Rather, religion
embodies a "conception and projection of the most fundamental
human needs and problems."
Firth suggests that religion is "a form of human art".
Notably it provides a frame for dealing with fundamental
problems of social organization: rendering relationships coherent,
reducing uncertainty and anxiety, justifying moral obligations.
Without symbolic solutions beyond those provided by empirical
knowledge, he concludes, it would be impossible for human
society to exist.
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Agents of Cultural Transmission
.--------1:
QUESTIONS
73
:1---------,
1. Discuss the role of media at the macro and micro level, in
transmitting culture.
2. Explain the transmissional versus ritual perspective.
3. Examine the role played by women as agents of cultural
transmission.
4. Analyze ,the relationship between education and culture.
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5. Family is a universal social organization. Comment.
6. With the help of examples, bring out the essence of religion in
relation to culture.
7. Discuss in brief the agents of cultural transmission.
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FACTORS OF
CULTURAL CHANGE
WITH REFERENCE
TO MEDIA
1. TECHNOLOGY
History: Some ideas developed in the latter half of the 19th
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century, as new media technologies were invented and
popularized. Although some theorists were optimistic about
new technology, most were extremely pessimistic. They blamed
new industrial technology for disrupting peaceful , rural
communication and forcing people to live in urban areas merely
to serve as a convenient work force in larger factories, mines or
bureaucracies. Theorists were fearful of cities because of their
crime, cultural diversity, and unstable political systems.
For many social thinkers, mass media symbolized everything
that was wrong with 19th century urban life. Media were singled
out for criticism and charged with pandering to lower class
tastes, fOlmenting political unrest or violating important cultural
norms. Most theorists were educated members of dominant
. elites and felt that the old social order based on a landed
aristocracy was cmmbling and so was its culture and politics.
The dominant perspective that emerged dUling this peliod.
is refelTed to as mass society theory .It began as a collection
of contradictory notions, some quite radical others quite
(74)
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Factors of Cultural Change with Reference to Media
75
reactionary. These notions were developed by monarchists who
wanted to maintain the old political older and by reactionaries
who wanted to impose radical changes. In general, mass
society ideas held strong appeal for any social elites whose
power was threatened by change.
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The essential argument of mass society theory is that media
undermine the traditional social order. To cope with this
disruption, steps must be taken to either restore the old order
or institute a new one.
At the end of 19th century and beginning of 20th century a
fierce debate erupted over these issues. This conflict often
pitted a landed aristocracy whose power was based on tradition
against urban elites whose power was based on the industrial
revolution. In time, the leaders of the industrial revolution gained
enormous control over social change. They strongly favoured all
forms of technological development, including mass media. In
their view, technology was il1herently good since it facilitated
control over the physical environment, expanded human
productivity and generated new forms of material wealth. New
technology would bring an end to social problems and lead to
the development of an ideal social world. But in the short term,
industrialization brought with it enormous problems exploitation
of workers, pollution and social unrest.
Technology
From bullock carts to
Past
Traditional
Slow
Local
Agricultural and
Disconnected
Cyber marts
fast
modern
informational
global
connected
Communication is of 2 types:
• Interpers{Jlwl communication - message flow, mass
media communication, radio, television, newspapers, films
etc.
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Introduction to Culture Studies
76
• Interactive communication - participants have control
over exchange.
Example - debates, discussion, Television - Question
hour on news, editorials - people are invited to write in
newspapers.
These technologies are converging today, to deliver data,
voicemail and video. New communication technologies are
leading to changes in society - changes due to NEP (New
Economic Policy 1990), International Politics and Public Opinion.
These social forces and their use in explaining social change is
called Social Determinism.
Social policies, values and religion may help change the
nature of technologies. This social construction of technology is
of great importance in bringing about cultural change. New
techniques, new inventions, new models of production, new
standards of living have changed the attitudes, beliefs, traditions
of people in the information age.
Example: Computers enable 'working from home',
automobiles facilitate reading newspapers for the owner in his!
her vehicle.
McDonaldization of Society
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What is success? = wealth determines social and
cultural status
Quantity rather than quality.
According to George Ritzer, McDonaldization is a
"process by which the principles of the fast food restaur.mts are
coming to dominate more and more sectors of the American
society as well as the rest of the world."
Ritzer uses the 4 guiding principles of Mc. Donald's efficiency, calculability, uniformity and uniformity through
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Factors of Cultural Change with Reference to Media
77
automation to show that out society is becoming even more
rationalized with time.
Ritzer argues that society is moving towards highly stabilized
and regulated model for getting things done.
Many aspects of our daily lives,for example, now involve
interactions with automated systems and computers instead of
human beings. E-mail and voice mail are replacing letters and
phone calls; e-commerce is threatening to over take trips to the
shops, bank machines are outnumbering bank tellers and prepackaged foods provide a quicker option than cooking.
Ritzer feels that the effects of urbanization and mechanization
are harmful for the human spirit and Mc. Donald's is making
social life more heterogeneous, more rigid and less personal.
Technology through industrialization brings about a lot of social
change in the form of social evils, juvenile delinquency, prostitution
etc.
The family which was a self sufficient unit catering to all the
needs of the individual, now utilizes a lot of outside agencies for
education, religion and entertainment.
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Example: In education we have various institutes, religion
is diversified and for entertainment we have clubs.
Technology has led to unemployment and poverty. It has
also led to inequalities in persuasion of knowledge. Value
system has also changed as the caste barriers have worsened or
sometimes have been eradicated.
More of achievement orientation, intellectual understanding,
hard work and scientific critical attitude is stressed upon and
has led to progress.
Internationally there is 'technology transfer' that is good but
on the other hand our self- reliance has given way to being
'elitist' or the so called 'technocratic elite'.
o
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78
1ll1roductioll to Culture Studies
2. URBANISM
Cities have an important cultural role since pre-industrial
societies. Urban migration has increased drastically in the
contemporary world. According to The World Bank Report,
between 1970 and 1997, the percentage of population living in
cities in the high-income nations has increased by about 5
percent. In the low-income nations, it had increased by 47
percent.
The expansion of cities came about as a result of population
increase, plus the migration of outsiders from fanns, villages and
small towns. This migration was often with people moving from
peasant backgrounds into cities. Peasants and villagers migrated
to the towns because of lack of opportunities in the rural areas,
coupled with the apparent advantages and attractions of cities,
where the streets were 'paved with gold'. The development of
modern cities has had an enormous impact, not only on habits
and modes of behaviour, but on patterns of thought and feeling.
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Wirth's thesis of urbanism as a way of life is concerned
less with the internal differentiation of cities than with what
urbanism is as a form of social existence.
In cities, Wirth points out, large number of people live in
close proximity to one another, without knowing most of the
others personally. Most contacts between city-dwellers are
fleeting and partial, and are means to other ends, rather than
being satisfying relationships in themselves. Interactions with
salespeople in shops, cashiers in banks, ticket collectors on
trains are assign encounters, entered into not for their own sake
but as means to other aims. Since those who live in urban areas
tend to be highly mobile, there are relatively weak bonds
between them. People are involved in many different activities
and situations each day. the 'pace of life' is faster than in rural
areas. Competition prevails over co-operation.
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Factors of Cultural Change with Reference to Media
79
Wirth's ideas retain some validity, but in the light of
subsequent contributions it is clear that they are overgeneralized.
Modem cities frequently involve impersonal, anonymous social
relationships, but they are also sources of diversity and sometimes
intimacy.
Urban life can have a lot of difficulties. Many of the urban
poor people are unemployed. They face problems like hunger,
unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation facilities and
substandard shelter. Disease and early death are also quite
common.
Of primary concern are the larger transformations which
are taking place in family forms- the formation and dissolution
of families and households, and the evolving expectations within
individuals' personal relationships. The rise in divorce and lone
parenting, the emergence of 'reconstituted families' and gay
families, and the popularity of cohabitation are all subjects of
concern. Yet these transformations cannot be understood apart
from the larger changes occurring in our late modem age.
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Childcare and housework are shared between men and
women. Families are becoming more egalitarian in the distribution
of roles and responsibilities.
The increase in divorce rates has been one of the most
significant trends to affect family patterns in many industrial
societies. Except for a very small proportion of wealthy people,
marriage today no longer has much connection with the desire
to perpetuate property and status from generation to generation.
As women become more economically independent, marriage
is less of a necessary economic partnership than it used to be.
Greater overall prosperity means that it is easier to establish a
separate household, if there is marital disaffection, than used to
be the case. The fact that little stigma now attaches to divorce is
in some parts the result of these developments, but also adds
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80
Introduction to Culture Studies
momentum to them. A further important factor is the growing
tendency to evaluate marriage in terms of the levels of personal
dissatisfaction it offers. Rising rates of divorce do not seem to
indicate a deep dissatisfaction with marriage as such, but an
increased determination to make it a rewarding and satisfying
relationship.
Lone-parent households have become increasingly
common. Most people do not wish to be lone parents, but
there is a growing minority to choose to become so- who set to
have a child or children without the support of a spouse or
partner. 'Single mothers by choice' is an apt description of
some lone parents, normally those who possess sufficient
resources to manage satisfactorily as a single parent-household.
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The term 'reconstituted family' refers to a family in
which at least one of the adults has children from previous
marriage or relationship. Certain difficulties tend to arise. In the
first place, there is usually a biological parent living elsewhere
whose influence over the child or children is likely to remain
powerful. Second, co-operative relations between divorced
individuals are often strained when one or both remarries.
Example: take the case of a woman with two children who
marries a man who also has two, and alllive together.
Third, reconstituted families merge children from different
backgrounds, who may have varying expectations of appropriate
behaviour within the family.
Many homosexual men and women now live in stable
relationships as couples. But because most countries still do not
sanction marriage between homosexuals, relationships between
gay men and between lesbians are gf9unded in personal
commitment and mutual trust rather than law.
Cohabitation- when a couple live together in a sexual
relationship without being married- has become increasingly
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Factors of Cultural Change with Reference to Media
81
widespread in most societies. If previously marriage was the
defining basis of a union between two people, it can no longer
be regarded as such. Today, it may be more appropriate to
speak of coupling and uncoupling. A growing number of
couples in committed long-term relationships choose not to
marry, but reside together and raise children together.
3. GLOBALIZATION
Globalization refers to the processes in intensifying worldwide
social relations and inter-dependence.
Example: Supermarket- the quantity, size of products have
increased and international barriers are lessening. Popular
products from various countries and languages are available.
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Globalization should not be thought of simply as the
development of worldwide networks - social and economic
systems that are remote from our indi vidual concerns. It is a local
phenomenon too, one that affects all of us in our daily lives.
Patterns of global migration produce culturally diverse
societies and new cultural tastes. Globalization is changing the
way the world looks, and the way we look at the world. By
adopting a global outlook, we become more aware of our
connections to people in other societies. We also become more
conscious of the many problems the world faces at the start of
the 21 st century. The global perspective opens our eyes to the
fact that our increasing ties with the rest of the world means that
our actions have consequences for others and the worlds'
problems have consequences for us. Globalization refers to
the fact that we all live in 'one world', so that illdividuals,
groups alld nations become more illterdependent.
Globalization is portrayed as an economic phenomenon,
right from transnational corporations, upto electronic integration
of global markets and capital flow.
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82
Introduction to Culture Studies
Globalization is the coming together of political, social,
cultural and economic factors. Development of information and
communication technologies intensify the speed and scope of
interaction between people of the world. Example: World cup
match watched all over the world.
The explosion in global communities has been facilitated by
some important advances in technology and the worlds'
telecomm,!nications infrastructure. These forms of technology
facilitate the 'compression' of time and space: 2 individuals
located on opposite sides of the planet- in Tokyo and London
for example not only can hold a conversation but can also send
moments to each other with the help of satellite technology. The
global economy is increasingly dominated by activity that is
'weightless' and intangible. This weightless economy is one in
which products have their base in information, as in the case
with computer software, media and entertainment products and
internet-based services. This new economic context has been
described as 'post illdustrial society', 'ill/ormatioll age'
alld more commollly as 'kllowledge ecollomy'.
This shift to a global outlook has 2 significant dimensions:
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• As members of a global community, people increasingly
perceive that social responsibility does not stop at national
borders, but extends beyond them.
• People are increasingly looking to sources other than the
nation-state in formulating their own sense Df identity.
The impact of Globalization on our lives:
• Globalization is not something that is simply 'out there',
operating on a distant plane and not intersecting with
individual affairs. Globalization is an 'in here' phenomenon
that is affecting our intimate and personal lives in many
diverse ways.
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Factors of Cultural Change with Reference to Media
83
• Globalization is fundamentally changing the nature of our
everyday experiences. As the societies in which we live
undergo profound transformations, the established
institutions that used to underpin them have become out
of place. This is forcing a redefinition of intimate and
personal aspects of our lives, such as the family, gender
roles, sexuality, personal identity, our interactions with
others and our relationships at work. The way we think
of ourselves and.of our connections with other people is
being profoundly altered through globalization.
• Under conditions of globalization, however, we are faced
with a move towards a new individualism in which people
have actively to constitute themselves and construct their
own identities. Example: Today the son of a tailor could
choose any number of paths in constructing his future.
• Globalization is forcing people to live in a more, reflexive
way. This means that we are constantly responding and
adjusting to the changing environment around us; as
individuals, we evolve with and within the larger context
in which we live.
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• Popular culture images, ideas, goods and styles are now
disseminated around the world more rapidly than ever
before.
• Cultural Imperialism, values, styles and outlook of the
Western world are spreading over individual cultures.
• Corporate globalization seems to be the latest corporate
'mantra'.
• Corporate communication will have to choose the right
media vehicles to the international community.
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Introduction to Culture Studies
84
Cultural Change
CULTURAL CHANGE
Technology, Urbanism and Globalization are three important
processes which have immensely contributed throughout the
world. All three have been important factors of cultural change.
They can sometimes be inter-connected like changes and
innovations in technology like industrialization that led to urban
growth and development, and as a whole leading to globalization.
Example: The contribution of technology like the introduction
of the internet, especially in the urban centres, has led to the
world as being seen as a 'melting pot' of cultures.
r---------11
QUESTIONS
11---------.
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1. Discuss the Mass Society Theory.
2 Elaborate how McDonaldization of society occurs.
3. Discuss the evolution of technology in detail.
4. Elucidate Wirth's thesis "Urbanism as a way of Life".
5. Explain the concept of Globalization.
6. With the help of relevant examples, discuss the role played by
globalization in our lives.
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MEDIA AND
CULTURE
Media and Culture share a very close relationship. They
both influence the other and get affected by the other in tum.
Changes in culture can take place by the influence of media
through changes in people's attitudes.
(A) POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE RELATIONSHIP OF
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MEDIA AND CULTURE
Media and culture share a relationship which is both
positive and negative. Certain elements of influence are positive,
for example: media leading to a more positive change in
education in society. It can also be negative, for example:
many of the traditional customs in culture are fast disappearing
due to influence of media.
Certain negative impacts of the media on culture are the
media's impact on violence, sexual promiscuity, racial
stereotypes, economic exploitation and mindless consumption
of commodities. The new media content is also said to have a
lot of negative impact. For example, the content matter of new
(85)
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86
Inlroduclioll 10 Cu/lure Sludies
media, like internet pornography, which has had a lot of
negative impact, especially on the younger generations. Aside,
from that, there is a lot of violence in the video games, having a
negative bearing on the minds of the children.
As far as high culture and popular culture are concerned,
Theodore Adomo had said that the mass-produced cultural
goods of a low quality had replaced the high culture and the
traditional folk culture. It also argued that if people start getting
easily enteltained by pop music, they would hardly be interested
in attending a classical opera. Another view is that the media
can overwhelm the 'true' culture of people in order to perpetuate
class hegemony.
On the other hand, media and culture also have a positive
relationship. Media has helped in providing education
opportunities. It has also helped in making people across the
world aware about the different and unique cultures, which exist
in different places of the world. Aside from this, the media can
also help in reinforcing the existing culture and. spreading it to
other people as well. Media can also help in the removal of
certain elements of a culture which may not be desirable, for
instance media can help make people aware about the evil
practices of dowry, child marriage, female infanticide etc.
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POSITIVE IMPACf
NEGATIVE IMPACf
RELATION BETWEEN MEDIA AND CULTURE
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Media alld Culture
87
Media As Culture Industries: The Commodification
of Culture
One of the most intriguing and challenging perspectives to
emerge from critical cultural studies is the commodificatioll of
culture, the study of what happens when culture is mass
produced and distributed in direct competition with locally
based cultures. According to this view-point, media are industries
specializing in the production and distribution of cultural
commodities. As with other modem industries, they have grown
at the expense of small; local producers, and the consequences
of this displacement have been and continue to be disruptive to
people's lives.
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In earlier social orders such as medieval kingdoms, everyday
life culture was created and controlled by geographically and
socially isolated communities. Though kings and lords would
dominate an overall social order and have their own culture, it
was often totally separate from and had relatively little influence
over the folk cultures structuring the everyday experience of
average people. Only in modem social orders have elites begun
to develop subversive forms of mass culture capable of intruding
into and disrupting everyday life culture. These new forms can
function as very subtle bllt effective ideologies, leading people
to misinterpret their experiences and then act against their own
self-interest.
Elites are able to disrupt everyday cultures by using a rather
insidious and ingenious strategy. They take bits and pieces of
folk culture, weave them together to create attractive mass
culture content, and then market it as a substitute for everyday
forms of folk culture. Thus, not only are elites able to subvert
legitimate local cultures but also they eam profits doing so.
People actually subsidize the subversion of their evt-ryday
culture.
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88
Introduction to Culture Studies
What are the consequences of lifting bits of everyday life
culture oilt of their context, repackaging, and then marketing
them back to the people?
1. When elements of everyday culture are selected
for repackaging, only a very limited range are chosen and
important elements are overlooked or consciously ignored.
For example: Elements of culture important for structuring the
experience of small minority groups are likely to be ignored
while culture practiced by large segments of the population will
be emphasized.
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2. The repackaging process involves dramatization
of those elements of culture that have been selected.
Certain forms of action are highlighted, their importance is
exaggerated, and others are ignored. Such dramatization makes
the final commodity attractive to as large an audience as
possible. Potentially boring, controversial, or offensive elements
are removed. Features are added that are known to appeal to
large audience segments. Thus attention-getting and emotionarousing actions,for example: sex and violence, are routinely
featured in media. This is a major reason that car chases, gun
fights, and verbal conflict dominate prime-time television and
Hollywood movies, but casual conversations between friends
are rare.
3. The marketing of cultural commodities is done in
a way that maximizes the likelihood that they will intrude
into and ultimately disrupt everyday life. The success of the
media industries depends on marketing as much content as
possible to as many people as possible with no consideration of
how this content will actually be used or what its long-term
consequences will be. Example: An analogy can be made to
the issue of pollution of the physical environment caused by
food packaging. The packaging adds nothing to the nutritional
value of the food but is merely a marketing device - it moves
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Media and Culture
89
the product off the shelf. Pollution results when we carelessly
dispose of this packaging or when there is so much of it that
there is no place to put it. Unlike trash, media commodities are
less tangible and their packaging is completely integrated into
the cultural content. There are no recycling bins for cultural
packaging. When we consume the product, we consume the
packaging. It intrudes and disrupts the cultural framework
where it operates.
4. The elites who operate the cultural industries
generally are ignorant of the consequences of thei~ work.
This ignorance is based partly on their alienation flOm the
people who consume their products. Ignorance is maintained
partly through strategic avoidance or denial of evidence about
consequences in much the same way that the tobacco industry
has concealed and lied about research documenting the negative
effects of smoking.
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5. Disruption of everyday life takes many formssome are obviously linked to consumption of especially
deleterious content, but other forms of disruption are
very subtle and occur over long time periods. Disruption
ranges from propagation of misconceptions about the social
world- like those cultivat~~m analysis has exarnined- to disruption
of social institutions. Consequences can be both microscopic
and macroscopic and take many different forms. For example,
Joshua Meyrowitz (1985) argued that media have deprived
us of a sense of place. Neil Postman (1985) believes that
media focus too much on entertainment, with serious long-term
consequences.
(B) DISTORTIONS OF CULTURE
To distort means to put something out of shap~ or to
misrepresent facts. Media is supposed to accurately represent
facts of culture. At times, we find that media does not do this.
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90
Introduction to Culture Studies
Cultures are shown differently from what they are. For instance,
the African community is at times shown in a very negative
manner, or a stereotypical manner, especially in the Western
media. This further reinforces their negative image in society.
Asians and Asian culture is depicted to be backward and
different. Indian culture is also presented as being rigid, backward
and at certain points of time as being strange. What media does
is highlight only certain elements of a particular culture and show
them from a negative point of view or these elements of a
culture are not shown in their true context. Sometimes, the
reasons behind the unique cultural practices are left unexplained
and hence they get misunderstood very often. Though media is
responsible for creating a new global culture and also promoting
cultural tolerance throughout the world, yet it does distort
culture at many times.
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Advertising: The Ultimate Cultural Commodity
Not surprisingly, critical cultural studies researchers have
directed their most devastating criticism towards advertising.
Advertising is viewed as the ultimate cultural commodity.
Advertising packages promotional messages so that they will be
attended to and acted on by people who often have little
interest in and no real need for most of the advertised products
or services. Consumption of specific products is routinely
portrayed as the best way to construct a worthwhile personal
identity, have fun, make friends and influence people or solve
problems.
Advertising is intended to encourage consumption that
serves the interest of product manufacturers but may not be in
the interest of individual consumers. Advertising is clearly
designed to intrude into and disrupt routine buying habits and
purchase decisions. It attempts to stimulate and reinforce
consumption even if it might be detrimental to the long-term
health of individuals. For some products, such as alcohol and
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Media and Culture
91
cigarettes, successful advertising campaigns induce people to
engage in self-destruction actions. In many cases, we are simply
encouraged to consume things that serve little real purpose for
us or serve only the purpose that advertising itself creates. One
obvious example is when we buy specific brands of clothing just
because their advertising has promoted them as status symbols.
Clothing does provide basic protection for our bodies, but the
same protection could be provided by used clothing from a
thrift store.
(C) POPULAR CULTURE
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Social scientists debate the distinction between culture for
the elites and culture for the masses. Some sociologists argue
that social class determines cultural differences, while others
argue that the media dissolve class-based distinctions between
high and popular culture and create "media cultures" instead.
Another point of debate among sociologists is the extent to
which mass culture is detrimental to the public that consumes it
and to society as a whole.
Since the 1930's, most discussions of recorded culture
have distinguished between culture for the elites, often termed
"high" culture, and culture for the mass public called "popular"
or "mass" culture. By and large, sociologists have contended
that the characteristics of different social classes determine their
cultural preferences. Things such as weaIth, education, and
upbringing are associated with preference for high culture cultural products designed for, patronized by, and often controlled
by a small number of society'S elite. Those who possess little or
no education and wealth typically consume popular culture,
culture created by the economic elite.
American sociologists have asserted that high culture and
popular culture express different values and represent different
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92
Introduction to Culture Studies
aesthetic standards. There is a distinct separation between high
and popular culture, that the two are consumed by different
classes, and that the prestige of each class is attached to its
culture.
Some conservative critics claim that mass culture is profane
and dehumanizing and that it encroaches upon high cultural
production. Such critics call for the re-establishment and
protection of high culture for elite consumption.
Some radical critics agree with the conservative assessment
of mass culture as destructive and dehumanizing but they focus
on mass culture's negative impact on those who consume it and
upon society as a whole rather than on the high culture upon
which it encroaches.
Radical critics who share this orientation often call for
"cultural mobility", raising the masses' tastes through education,
opportunity and economic redistribution. Cultural mobility, it is
argued, would free the public from the demagoguery of the
economic elite and provide them the opportunity to appreciate
high culture fare.
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In the middle of the debate stand moderate or liberal critics
who take the position that popular culture is harmful neither to
the people who consume it nor to the society as a whole. They
declare that all taste cultures are of equal worth if they meet the
needs of the pUblic. These liberal sociologists therefore call for
the reinvigoration of various taste cultures or subcultures.
In the late 1980's, many sociologists and communication
scholars began challenging validity of the class-based distinction
between high culture and popular culture. Viewing this
classification as increasingly. rrbitrary, some critics claim that
modern media, particularly television, create "media cultures"
accessible to multiple taste publics. Many sociologists and
communication scholars now argue th~t media culture, rather
Rai, Rumina, and Kishwar Panna. Introduction to Culture Studies, Global Media, 2009. ProQuest Ebook Central,
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93
Media and Culture
than high culture, set the standards for culture and shapes
popular taste.
.....-------f: QUESTIONS :1---------.
1. Discuss the relationship between media and culture.
2. Write a note on the Commodification of culture.
3. Explain distortions of culture with relevant examples.
4. Analyze the role of advertising in culture.
.
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5. Elucidate the concept of popular culture with relation to media.
Rai, Rumina, and Kishwar Panna. Introduction to Culture Studies, Global Media, 2009. ProQuest Ebook Central,
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Created from sanpedro-ebooks on 2023-01-25 01:20:16.
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~IOGRA~
1.
Keesing Roger and Strathern Andrew: Cultural
Anthropology- A Contemporary Perspective~
Harcourt Brace, 1998.
2.
Stanley Baran: Introduction to Mass
Communication - Media Literacy and Culture,
Mayfield Publishing Company, 1999.
3.
Ed. During, Simon: The Cultural Studies Reader.
4.
Scupin Raymond: Cultural Anthrc,pology - A
Global Perspective, Prentice - Hall, 2000.
5.
Nanda and Warms: Cultural Anthropology,
Wadsworth, 2002.
6.
Straubhaar Joseph. LaRose Robert: Media NowUnderstanding Media, CultlP'~ and Technology,
Thomson Wadsworth, 2004.
i.
S.L. Joshi and P.e. L;n: Social AnelropOIGgy,
R~wat Publications, 2001.
Rai, Rumina, and Kishwar Panna. Introduction to Culture Studies, Global Media, 2009. ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/sanpedro-ebooks/detail.action?docID=3011277.
Created from sanpedro-ebooks on 2023-01-25 01:20:16.