SOC 202 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Mass Media, Cultural Studies, Tangled
11 Sep 2013
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Document Summary
Popular culture is always changing, and thus, difficult to describe. A vague definition of popular culture would be things that are enjoyed by many people every day; the practices of everyday life (e. g. getting a coffee) The definition of culture is one that is hard to pin down and appears in many contradictory contexts. It is a way of life, and refers to the practices of a group. Mass media tends to fall outside the definition of culture, but are credited as the thing that threatens to destroy culture. Cultural studies define culture as the social production and reproduction of sense, meaning and consciousness. The sphere of meaning unifies the spheres of production (economics) and social relations (politics). Popular is defined as something liked by many people. It carries connotations of value that is contrasted with the value of what it is not, and depends on who is talking and in what context.
