Week 1 – Intro

“Culture” by George Yúdice

• The concept of “culture” has been in use since the late 18th century. Its meaning has changed over time and varies across disciplines.

• There are three main ways to think about “culture”. These include:

  • intellectual, spiritual, and aesthetic development

  • the way of life of a people, group, or humanity

  • works and practices of intellectual and artistic activity

• There’s a key difference between universalist and pluralist ideas about culture. Universalist views see culture as tied to development and progress. Pluralist or relativist views understand diverse cultures as resisting change and not being rankable.

• The idea of culture as a form of control is central to cultural studies. This view focuses on how institutions use culture to discipline populations.

• Cultural citizenship recognizes cultural difference as a basis for claims. This perspective acknowledges that different groups have legitimate ways of understanding the world.

• The concept of “culture of poverty” was used to label certain non-European and minority populations in the mid-20th century. This term was based on the idea that these groups had traits that prevented social and economic progress.

• Anthropology has played a role in understanding culture. Early anthropologists saw cultures as progressing from primitive to advanced. Later, relativist anthropologists rejected the idea of superior or inferior cultures.

• Modern transportation and communication technologies mean cultures are no longer confined by national boundaries. This has led to ideas of cultural hybridity.

• In the late 20th century, the use of “culture” expanded to describe almost any identity group. While this was driven by a desire for inclusion, some critics argue it weakens the critical value of “culture”.

• Culture is increasingly seen as a resource for social and economic development. This view is present in initiatives by various organizations, including UNESCO and the World Bank.

• The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and big data impacts how we understand culture. These technologies change how we create, experience, and interact with culture. They also raise concerns about control and bias.

“Midnight Special”

• The song tells the story of prisoners longing for freedom. They see the Midnight Special, a train passing by the prison, as a symbol of hope and a reminder of the outside world.

• The lyrics highlight the harsh realities of prison life. The song describes the prisoners' daily routines, their encounters with the guards, and the constant threat of punishment.

• "Midnight Special" emerged from the Black American experience in the Southern prison system. Specifically, it's associated with the Mississippi State Penitentiary, known as Parchman Farm, which was notorious for its brutal conditions.

• The cultural context of the song is significant because it reflects a historical period of racial injustice and oppression in the United States. The song can be interpreted as a cry for freedom and justice for those unjustly imprisoned. This aligns with the concept of "culture" as a way of life of a people or group and how they express their experiences, as mentioned in the reading.

• The song also touches upon themes of faith and redemption. The prisoners call on the "light" of the Midnight Special to shine on them, possibly symbolizing divine intervention or a glimmer of hope in their despair.

In-Class Notes

“Midnight Special”

Lead Belly was one of the most notable singers of the song “Midnight Special”, who was an incarcerated Black man on a prison farm in Louisiana

• Made famous by White ethnomusicologists John and Alan Lomax in the 1930s

  • Sold the recordings and profited off of them, similar to many ethnomusicologists of the time with incarceration songs

• Lead Belly’s version was the first recording of the song

  • Led to him being credited as it being “his” song

  • Highlights problem in cultural history about credit and creation

• Trustee system

• “Miss Rosie” – represents wives of incarcerated Black men doing the work to support their families and maintain resilience in the face of systemic oppression or get their men out of prison

• Uplift ideology

  • Black Americans decided they had to better themselves as a form of rebellion to Jim Crow era social ideology

“Culture”

Karl Marx

• All history is the history of class struggle

• Ruling class shapes culture and thoughts by shaping what people of lower classes can encounter

Franz Boaz

More Defining Culture

• Culture = mark-making

• Cultures of control v. cultures of escape (fugitivity) → counter-hegemonic

• “The prison cannot be victorious because walls, bars, and guards cannot conquer or hold down an idea.” - Huey P. Newton, 1970

• Culture and cultural artifacts: Culture is not always conscious. Historical people didn’t always say to themselves, “because of this identity I have, I am producing this culture.” or “In the future I want to be remembered for doing this in this way.” Scholars often look for deeper connections; people don’t always think that way when making things, leaving their mark: art, goods, ideas, styles.

  • Example: Odetta → knew the song, she didn’t necessarily know the academic history of the convict lease or prison farm. Gauging intent is difficult.

  • But, we can analyze. For instance, what did it mean that Odetta sang the song versus Leadbelly?