Chapter 4: Folk and Popular Culture Unit 3
Culture The combination of three things: 1. Values 2. Material artifacts 3. Political institutions This chapter focuses on: Daily necessities: food, clothing, shelter Leisure activities: arts, recreation Habit: Custom:
Where Are Folk and Popular Leisure Activities Two basic categories: folk and popular culture Folk culture Traditionally practiced by small, isolated, homogeneous groups in rural areas Popular culture Characterized by large, heterogeneous groups of people who share common habits despite differences in other personal characteristics Geographers are interested in two aspects of culture: Where cultures are located in space How cultures interact with the environment
Where Are Folk and Popular Leisure Activities Origin of folk and popular cultures Folk culture = hearth area; originators are usually unknown Popular culture = hearth area comes from more developed countries (MDCs) People in MDCs have disposable income and leisure time that allow for these innovations
Where Are Folk and Popular Leisure Activities Diffusion of folk and popular culture Folk culture diffuses slowly, primarily through migration, and at a small scale Relocation diffusion Example: Diffusion of Amish culture (p. 138) Popular culture diffuses rapidly and over a large scale Hierarchical diffusion Example: Sports, music
Where Are Folk and Popular Leisure Activities Distribution of folk and popular culture Popular culture: distributed widely with little regard for physical factors Obstacle: lack of income to purchase the material Folk culture: distributed typically in one area, folk cultures typically isolated
Where Are Folk and Popular Leisure Activities Origin and distribution of folk and popular music Folk music characteristics Tells a story or recounts important life events or activities Is personal in nature Popular music characteristics Written by individuals for the purpose of selling to a large audience Highly technical Origin and distribution of folk and popular sports Soccer: Surviving folk sports
Where Are Folk and Popular Material Culture Conflicting Folk and Popular Cultural Values Elements of Material Culture: Influence of the physical environment Folk culture = close connection to the environment Most folk cultures are rural and agricultural Clothing is often tied to environmental conditions Clothing in popular culture typically reflects what?
Where Are Folk and Popular Material Culture Folk food preferences and the environment Food preferences are adapted to the environment Example: In Asia, rice is grown in milder, wetter environments whereas wheat is grown in colder, drier environments Example: eating animals that signify strength and avoiding those that signify cowardice Food taboos may be especially strong People avoid certain foods because of negative associations with that food Examples? Terroir = the sum effects of the local environment on a particular food item Soil, climate, etc.
Where Are Folk and Popular Material Culture Popular Food Preferences Influenced more by cultural values than by environmental features. Popular culture varies more in time than place Food customs: consumption of large quantities of snack foods and alcohol
Where Are Folk and Popular Material Culture Folk housing and the environment Housing = a reflection of cultural heritage, current fashion, function, and the physical environment Two most common building materials = wood and brick Minor differences in the environment can produce very different house styles Popular housing: Reflects fashion trends since the 1940s in the United States
Why is Access to Folk and Popular Culture Unequal? Diffusion of TV and Internet Watching television The most popular leisure activity in MDCs Diffusion from the United States to the rest of the world = 50 years The Internet Diffusion from the United States to the rest of the world = 10 years Diffusion of Social Media Facebook: Est. in 2004 2009: 55 million users in the U.S. 2014: 152 million users in the U.S. Percentage of users in the U.S. has declined, other countries percentages have increased Twitter: mainly dominated by Americans, but numbers are growing in LDCs Why do some countries use other forms of social media?
Why is Access to Folk and Popular Culture Unequal? Challenges in Accessing Electronic Media Banned Technology Blocked Content Violated User Rights
Why Do Folk and Popular Culture Face Sustainability Challenges? Sustainability challenges for folk culture Assimilation Acculturation Syncretism Challenging cultural values in folk culture Equality of women to men
Why Do Folk and Popular Culture Face Sustainability Challenges? Sustainability challenges for popular culture Landscape pollution Depletion of natural resources