1. Chapter 4: Folk and Popular Culture

2. HABITS CUSTOMS CULTURE
A repetitive act that an individual performs
A repetitive act performed by a group to the extent that it becomes a characteristic of the group
A group’s entire collection of customs.
Material Culture
Survival activities from one’s daily life
Food, clothing, shelter
Culture involving leisure activities
Arts and recreation
Most of us are part of a distinct culture with certain customs- a repetitive act, or habit, practiced by a large group
- These customs, when combined with a group’s entire collection, are called culture

3. Mali

5. India

6. China

7. Japan

8. Iceland

9. Russia

10. Kuwait

11. South Africa

12. The Philippines

13. The United States

14. Folk Culture vs. Popular Culture
Practiced by small, homogenous groups living in isolated areas
Found in large, heterogeneous societies that share certain habits despite differences in other personal characteristics.
A group develops distinctive customs from experiencing local social and physical conditions in a given place.
Is more widespread than folk culture
Spreads through relocation diffusion (migration)
Spreads through hierarchical or contagious diffusion
Isolation from other cultures contains the spread of certain folk cultures.
Advances in technology and increased leisure time allow customs to spread rapidly.
Prevalent in areas still heavily reliant on agriculture as an economic base
Prevalent in the United States, Western Europe, and Japan
Often have anonymous hearths, or centers of innovation (& multiple hearths, originating independently in isolated locations
Hearth of innovation is identifiable– for example, we can trace the origins of jazz music in the U.S.

15. B/c of globalization, pop culture is becoming more dominant, threatening the survival of folk culture.
Folk culture provides a unique identity to each group who occupies a specific region of Earth.
Disappearance of folk culture lead to less diversity in the world, or a “uniform” cultural landscape

16. Origins of Folk & Popular Music
Usually (not always) composed anonymously and transmitted orally
May change from one generation to the next
Almost always derived from “everyday life” events experienced by the people of a certain cultural group
Farming
Life cycle events (marriage, birth, death)
Religious or mysterious events

17. “Big Rock Candy Mountain”
“Big Rock Candy Mountain” first recorded by Harry McClintock in 1928

18. “Po’ Lazarus”
- James Carter and the Prisoners

19. “O Death”
- Ralph Stanley

20. Origins of Folk & Popular Music
Written by specific individuals for purpose of selling it.
High degree of technical skill and sometimes can only be performed in a studio.
Originated around 1900
Tin Pan Alley in NYC (printed music)
Diffusion began during WWII when music was broadcast worldwide by Armed Forces Radio Network wherever soldiers went. As a result, English became the international language for popular music.

21. Origins of Folk & Popular Music
POPULAR (cont’d):
Hip Hop- Originated in the South Bronx in the late 1970s
Low income African Americans & Puerto Ricans
Spread into other parts of NYC including Queens, Brooklyn, and Harlem
Diffused to major cities in South, Midwest, and West
Interplay between local diversity & globalization
Themes play on local references, but the music is distributed worldwide and purchased by mass amount of people
Technology today allows to rapid diffusion (iTunes)

22. The Diffusion of Folk & Popular Culture

23. Pop culture follows hierarchical diffusion from hearths.
Examples… Hollywood for movies; Madison Ave, NY for advertising.
Pop culture diffuses rapidly through the use of modern communication and transportation.
Folk culture is transmitted through relocation diffusion
It spreads from one location to another slowly and on a smaller scale.

24. The Amish: Relocation Diffusion of Folk Culture
How has Amish culture spread through relocation diffusion?
-Shunning electrical and mechanical power, travel by horse & buggy
-Amish only number 80,000, or .03 of the population
1600s- Jakob Ammann, a Swiss Mennonite, gathered group together who became known as the Amish
- Originated in Bern, Switzerland; Alsace, France; Southwest Germany
- First wave settled in U.S. in early 1700s, came to PA b/c of cheap land advertised by William Penn
- Second wave settled in early 1800s (those from France) and came to Illinois, Ohio, and Iowa and some parts of Canada bc of cheap land
- As frontiersmen adopted to traditions as Americans, the Amish held on to theirs and formed tight-knit communities
- Recently, they have been moving interregionally– i.e. Lancaster, PA to southwestern Kentucky b/c of cheaper land & lack of crazy tourists from the metropolitan areas of PA

25. Amish culture

26. Soccer: Hierarchical Diffusion of
Popular Culture

29. Began as a folk culture tradition
“Kick the Dane’s head”
Cow bladders
Medieval village games
1800s- Rec clubs formed in Britain
Football Association formed in 1863, professional teams created
Exported around the world to other countries and colonies of the British Empire
Most popular in Europe & Latin America
U.S. adopted rugby rules, eventually adapted to American football

30. Other Sports in Popular Culture
Each country has its own favorite sports.
Cricket in Britain
Football in U.S.
Hockey in Canada, Russia
Martial Arts in China
Willingness throughout the world to pay for the privilege of viewing, whether on TV or in person, events played by professional athletes.
The most viewed event in history is the World Cup soccer final every 4 years.
In the US, most viewed is the Super Bowl.