So. My name is Josh Baker. I am currently a junior enrolled at Cal State University Northridge. This is my second semester at CSUN, returning to the university and picking up where I left off nine years ago (after taking care of my lower division requirements at Los Angeles Pierce Community College). I am majoring in Creative Writing, an area my mother considers to be “impractical”. However, especially in regards to Pop Culture, I believe that creative writing is an essential and influential component in the production and dissemination of culture. One consideration as to genesis of culture involves influences from government and the higher levels of hierarchical structures which gradually make their way down to the people below -- “culture from above”. This information, showcased mainly through media (movies, music, television, etc.) is considered to be put in place as a way of controlling and oppressing the people, to establish what is to be considered the norms. This made me think of the phrase “bread and circuses” from Roman times. Generally, the concept is that the rulers would be able to placate and pacify the populace with food and entertainment, thus distracting them from any serious decisions and preventing any possible uprisings. On the other hand, there is the concept that culture begins with the people on the lower levels, with the proletariat. This involves the people creating their own forms of culture and spreading it amongst themselves, thus taking the formation of their norms into their own hands. This culture eventually makes its way up into the higher echelons and disseminates to everyone – “culture from below”.
A good example of “culture from below” would be rock and roll music and its birth from rhythm and blues. Blues music originated from lower class, rural African American culture and gradually made its way into the nation’s culture as a whole. Once brought to the airwaves, it made the record companies take notice of what the public was becoming interested in and blues, rock and roll, and other forms of music came mainstream entertainment, having risen from the more common levels of society.
An example of “culture from above” can also be seen in the music industry. As trends emerged from below, the recording companies and executive boards began labeling each sound into categories and genres. These categories carried with them methods of dress, attitudes, and general connotations as to what the listeners were like as put forth by those doing the categorizing. Nowadays, it is often assumed, for instance, that those who listen to the genre “indie” are all hipsters and dress and speak in particular ways. Clothing lines and other products are made specifically for this group, thus perpetuating what the “norms” are, though these decisions come from above rather than organically from below.
To me, it appears to be a chicken and the egg scenario where it is often very difficult to detect where a specific culture arises from and how much “above” and “below” influence one another.
