Question 2: Definitions of Subcultures
Undoubtedly, no particular cultural studies texts have been widely read than the Subculture books written by Dick Hebdige in 1979. Hebdige (121) defines and analyzes subcultures based on specificity and conjuncture. His definition indicates that subcultures arise from symbolic and communal engagements with a larger form of industrial culture. They are expressed as the emergence of styles and not class or age. Modzelewski and Abramson (145) outline different definitions or ideologies of subcultures that arose from Chicago School Tradition, the Birmingham Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies and the Post-subcultural era. This essay attempts to understand how the definition and analysis of subculture provided Abramson and Modzelewski covers the theoretical loopholes found in Hedbige’s analogy.
Abramson and Modzelewski (146) give three primary characteristics of a working meaning for subcultures. The first one entails fundamentally founded status paradigms that depend on a recognized and shared ethical stance. The subcultures provide honorary distribution, esteem, and status. They are also based on the perceived ideals of a moral globe. The second key trait involves the status systems, boundaries, and cultural underpinnings of a subculture. There is a consolidated and embedded perception of belonging in a group. The last characteristic is the volatile membership of a subculture when the participation does not depend on material necessity or birth.
The working meaning collectively opens paths that allow the general elements of the subcultures to appeal to various stratification levels unlike the one given by Hedbige. Abramson and Modzelewski (147) thus build on the ideology of Hedbige and provide adequate evidence in support of their claims using inquiry techniques that investigate subculture participation. Abramson and Modzelewski’s study immerses itself in ethnographic research regarding sporting subcultures. The authors also incorporate the power of commercial culture in producing different hegemonic styles that bring about the subcultures (Abramson and Modzelewski, 147). The aspect of commercial culture is missing in Hedbige’s research.
Works Cited
Abramson, Corey and Modzelewski, Darren. Caged Morality: Moral Worlds, Subculture,
and Stratification Among Middle-Class Cage-Fighters. Qual Sociol (2011) 34:143–175.
Hebdige, Dick. "Subculture: The meaning of style." Critical Quarterly 37.2 (1995): 120-124.
