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Popular Culture in the United States

History 166: Section 01

T-TH: 1:30-2:45, Brighton Hall 210

One might imagine that the concept of authenticity begins in any society when the possibility of fraud arises, and that fraud is at least possible whenever transactions – whether social, political, commercial, or aesthetic – routinely occur, especially when the society becomes so large that one deals with strangers, not neighbors.

                                                                - Miles Orvall, The Real Thing

 

  • Popular - "beloved by the people" "commercial" "standardized" 
  • Culture - "learned behavior," "a body of beliefs, social forms and material traits," "a complex of typical behavior or standardized social characteristics peculiar to a specific group" 
  • History - "the branch of knowledge that deals systematically with the past," "an account of what has or might have happened," "myths," "lies" "the past"
  • "That’s history" = That is not important.
  • "Cultural baggage" = Beliefs that people need to drop in order to see the real world.
  • "The Real World" = A popular show on MTV.

Course Description

The goal of this class will be to analyze the multiple ways that power has worked in the United States from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, through an exploration of dominant expressions of popular culture.

The roots of an identifiable American popular culture go back to the mid-nineteenth century, corresponding with the Jacksonian-era "rise of the common man," and the development of capitalism during the period of what is now called America’s "market revolution." In effect, industrialization and the expansion of market-centered social relations made popular culture possible. Given these roots, the subject of popular culture has produced enormous debates. For some, popular culture represents a true voice of the people. Scoffed at by elitist snobs, it is the stuff of the "genuine folk," a meta-language of images, sounds, and symbols offering opportunity for a wide variety of people to become American and win acceptance, offering a form of self-expressive "liberation" from the oppressive dictates and traditionalism of the past. For others, popular culture’s market origins have left it with elements of false consciousness. Prefabricated to stimulate consumer desires, it is a tool of hucksters and corporations. It is a powerful set of manipulated images and texts, beloved by the masses, but leaving them with a wide array of questionable values and evasive banalities: "U-S-A! U-S-A!," "Protect our Children," "this class is a waste of time, the only reason I’m here is to get a job," "my boss sucks," "my boss is cool, he has a tattoo and an earring," "hit me baby one more time," "I’ve got thug-appeal," and finally, the most dangerous banality of all: "why are reading so much into it; it’s just entertainment!"

In this class we will be entering these debates about popular culture, and more important, perhaps, we will be wrestling with these [I mean our own] issues of empowerment, disempowerment, desire, yearning, evasions, and banality. Our goal will not only be to analyze how popular culture has worked in the past, but how it works on us, and through us, and maybe, finally, to start a questioning process that will allow us to work on it for a change.

Course Requirements

Attendance:

Because discussion will be a central element of this course, and because your absence from class will have an adverse effect on its level of energy, regular attendance is mandatory and will be factored into your grade. If you do miss a class, you will still be responsible for that day’s material, reading assignment, and notes, even if the absence is "excused." If you disappear for an extended length of time (if you miss three or more classes in a row), you should consider yourself "out of the class," and you should not expect to be allowed back in. If you have missed more than four classes, but are still passing with a grade of C, you should not be surprised if you fail the class in your final grade. In other words: if you think you can pass the class without coming to class, you may be right in terms of your graded work; but you will be wrong in terms of your actual grade.

Graded Work:

Grades will be based on the following work and percentages:

Readings [in order of appearance]:

All of these books are required; all are available at the CSUS bookstore.

 

Tentative Schedule of Meetings, Readings, and Topics

  • Music: Stephen Foster, "The Old Folks at Home" [1851]
  • Foster, "Old Uncle Ned" [1848]

 

 

Final Exam – Check Schedule for Date

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