Popular Culture Reflects Dominant Ideologies: Race and Ethnicity
The existence of mass media allows the creation of meaning concerning race and ethnicity. This plays a significant role especially in the aspect of shaping the approach to comprehending race and ethnicity. Both relations are pointed out by Cheang (2013) that people can be identified through race and ethnicity. Partly, there is historic fact in the people’s identity, their social institution as well as in dealing the day-to-day life. The theoretical view of Fitzgerald (2014), race and ethnicity are two words that are usually used interchangeably. Race is a manner to which classifies individuals and group of people based on physical characteristics – skin color.
Moreover, ethnicity delineates the place of origin, cultural background or ancestry, language and the belief system of the people. This reveals the facts that even if there are concrete physical and geographical roots connected to specified racial and ethnic identities, the need to gain understanding on the matter is important. These are ideologies or might be explained as to view the world around us. Precisely, race and ethnicity are not being used as merely for explanation rather as markers of broader concepts and linkages.
Marking the identity of people within a specified society ensures the involvement of people to a certain group or as a different one. Basically, the marks do not merely designate the skin color or cultural background; however, such marks function in a bigger classification. In this regard, there could be linkages to other racial and ethnic identities. It is a clear view that there could be groups that have superior power and privileges as compared to others.
In order to fully obtain better understanding on popular culture reflecting the ideologies on race and ethnicity, the historical origins must also be discussed. In reference to the Western or American ideologies concerning race and ethnicity derive from specific time based in history. According to the theoretical concept of Ashby (2010) states that, such origins marked by colonialism, immigration and other tides that changed both populations and demographics. Due to the changes as well as the integration of many races and ethnicities, dominant groups appeared to power and exerted influence over others. In such, they occupy and take control of the landscape, language, culture and rituals. Ashby (2010) further explains that the white people (groups) achieved dominance; at the same time, those subordinate groups – whose skin color is different – were downgraded to the social, political and economical margins.
Race and Ethnicity Sociological Theories
This paper discusses also on some related sociological theories that explains on the matter concerning popular culture which reflects the ideologies on race and ethnicity. First, social exchange theory of George Homans (West and Turner, 2007), a sociologist who developed this theory explains that, this serves as the representation for making societal interpretation as a series of interactions involving people based on estimates rewards and punishments. The theory further explains from the concept of Thibaut and Kelly (2008) that, people’s interaction can be verified through rewards and punishments in which people anticipated to receive from others.
An in-depth understanding about the theory plays a central part to the social exchange theory, Thibaut and Kelly (2008) further discuss that this pertains to the idea of an interaction which draws out approval from another individual that will show repetition than an interaction that draws out disapproval. It is like the notion that most satisfaction among humans derives from others and with relevance to exchanging operations within the cultural norms.
Another theory to consider in relation to race and ethnicity is social learning theory formulated by Albert Bandura, a psychologist. Anderson and Taylor (2009) explain that this particular theory was introduced to explain that socialization together with its effect to self development. The emphasis on this theory covers on the societal context of socialization. It is not on the individual mind and postulates in which one’s identity is not the product of insensibility rather it is the effect of representing oneself. This idea serves as a response to the expectations of others. For the fact that race is different from ethnicity, although not exclusively, a socially constructed group.
The reality of domination from those who are in power is, working at the interest of the powerful people against the interest of those powerless. As explained in the above discussion, the dominant class could not see themselves as the advantage takers or oppressors. At most, probably in a manner that ideology conceals the reality of subordination as powerless or known as the less fortunate for power and rights. The explanation of Karl Marx (West and Turner 2007) from the assumptions of classical Marxism states that, these powerful or dominant people are called as superstructural reflection or expressions of the power connections or relationships of the economic base of society.
Marx’s (West and Turner 2007) assumptions reveal the idea that, in the existence of social invention, men enter into definite and significant connections which called as independent will of the people. The connections / relationships to invention relates to a determinate stage of development of material force of invention. Overall, the point which Marx tries to emphasize here is that the connection of invention constitutes the economic structure of society. The society pertains to the real groundwork that legal and political superstructural rises. This has relation to matching up with the explicit forms of social consciousness.
Contemporary Popular Culture and Postmodernism
In terms of implications, in a postmodern world, style becomes more imperative. The emergence of postmodernism within the current popular culture is not widespread. In line with postmodernism -- time and space -- the developments of technology and communications reveal important effects on the rapidity with which data or information, images and people can now be transported all throughout the world (West and Turner, 2007). In effect, the aspect to which people has the time and space, have widely changed as to compare with the generation before.
However, it is also mentioned that the opportunities of people to experience change, may be distributed lopsidedly. To relate this theory to the dominant effect on race, this group of individuals has been treated as different in the society merely because of certain characteristics. Given that their cultural characteristics are labeled as inferior by those people whose power is dominantly exercise. In fact, this powerless individuals or group of individuals is singled out for differential and unfair treatment. This shows that powerless groups are classified not based on their biological characteristics but on the way how they are being treated.
A Perspective
It is the society that assigns individuals to racial classification such as white, black, Asian, etc. This happens not because of a fact rather it is based on the opinion and social familiarity. Depending on one’s skin color, origin, the kind of people encountered, ethnic background and so on, an individual has his or her own experience and idea as what exactly race and ethnicity define. The reality of popular culture entirely reflects dominant ideologies concerning race and ethnicity.
This concludes that people’s identity, languages, beliefs, cultural values, etc. are the qualities with which people around the world possess. Even more, to mean for popular culture can be interpreted or defined in a number of ways depending on how one understands based on a personal experience. Popular culture, by significance, predominates in the society. It is because mass media exists which allows a variety of ideas permeates one’s day-to-day life within a given society.
Therefore, to figure out popular culture in general sense, it is commonly encountered in many fields such as in sports, politics, entertainment, technology and also in those fashion / clothes or among other areas of one’s life. The concepts that are provided from the above discussion cited many theories and other relevant information which significantly demonstrate the ideologies of popular culture. In the same way, it emphasizes on the importance of race and / or ethnicity and how they interrelated each other. Most notably, the role of a given society always depends on how people interact.
References
Anderson, M.L. and Taylor, H.F., 2009. Sociology: The Essentials. Belmont. CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Ashby, L.R., 2010. The Rising of Popular Culture: A Historiographical Sketch. OAH Magazine of History, 24: 11-14.
Cheang, S., 2013. To The Ends of the Earth: Fashion and Ethnicity. In the Vogue Fashion Shoot in Barlett, D. et al (eds) Fashion Media: Past and Present. London: Pers.
Fitzgerald, K., 2014. Recognizing Race and Ethnicity: Power, Privilege, and Inequality.Westview Press.
Thibaut, J. and Kelley, H., 2008. Social Exchange Theory. In Griffin, E. A First Look at Communication Theory. McGraw Hill.
Story, J., 2006. Cultural theory and popular culture. Pearson Education.
West, R and Turner, L., 2007. Introducing Communication Theory. McGraw Hill.
