His first definition was that "popular culture is simply culture that is widely favored or well liked by many people" (Storey 5). The most logical way to know if something is "popular"is to check how well something sells in the marketing industry. "We could examine sales of CDs and DVDs. We could also examine attendance records at concerts, sporting events, and festivals. We could also scrutinize market research figures on audience preferences for different television programmes" (Storey 6). So to sum it up, the consumer is the one who decides what is popular by their demand.
"A second way of defining popular culture is to suggest that it is the culture that is left over after we have decided what is high culture. Popular culture, in this definition, is a residual category, there to accommodate texts and practices that fail to meet the required standards to qualify as high culture" (Storey 6). High culture is seen as sophisticated and in good taste, whereas popular culture is seen as a "mass-produced commercial culture" (Storey 6). On the right, I have illustrated a picture that personifies the two categories. Given the description of the differences between the two, this is how I envision popular culture and high culture to look like.
Personally, I agree with these two definitions. The people are the ones who dictate whenever something is considered popular. Popular culture is fueled by the people. We could look at marketing sales to see hard facts of what sells, but most people already know what's considered popular just by talking to other people and through the media. I also believe the category popular culture was formed because it does not qualify as high culture, but unlike John Storey's harsh viewpoint, I don't think the existence of popular culture is a waste when compared to high culture (at least that's the feeling I got as I read his work.) High culture may be sophisticated and pleasing, but it can also be boring. Especially to the mainstream audience of today.
Popular culture is very important in this day and age, especially since we're constantly surrounded by it thanks to the media, ipods, ipads, cell phones, and computers. The internet is also an essential tool in spreading popular culture and keeping it alive. I also feel that popular culture has become associated within the American culture since we're always surrounded by it somehow. This is why it is important to study this subject. I hope to have a better understanding of the term "popular culture", since the subject is still pretty vague to me.
Now there's the question of why I chose to take this class over the summer. Aside from the fact that it fulfills the English lit. requirement, the Survey of Popular Culture class seemed like the only English lit. class that seemed interesting to me. I took a literature class last summer that was about mystery books, and it was boring. This class in contrast is AMAZING, and fit my expectations perfectly.
Works Cited
Storey, John. Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction. 5th. Longman, 2008.
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