Transcript Chapter 2
Mona Domosh Roderick p. Neumann Patricia L. Price Terry G. jordan-Bychkov C. 2012 W.H. Freeman & CO. Many worlds: Geographies of cultural difference Types of Culture • Material culture • Physical and tangible objects (clothing, art, tools, buildings) • Nonmaterial culture – “the intangibles” • Beliefs, values, tales, songs, lore, superstitions Types of Culture • Folk culture • Small, cohesive, nearly self-sufficient culture; often isolated • Popular culture Dynamic culture based in a large, heterogeneous society; features include individualism, innovation, and change Folk Culture Stable and close knit Usually a rural community Tradition controls Resistance to change Buildings erected without architect or blueprint using locally available building materials anonymous origins, diffuses slowly through migration. Develops over time. Clustered distributions: isolation/lack of interaction breed uniqueness and ties to physical environment. Folk Culture True folk culture is dead in Anglo America Why? Industrialization, Urbanization, Mass communication It is almost impossible for a substantial community to remain in isolation today Folk vs. Popular Culture Economy Barter vs. Cash Relationships Personal Family What shapes the culture? Community or Mass Media? Who maintains order? Family/Church vs. Authoritative Institutions Types of Culture • Indigenous (Ethnic) Culture • Culture group that constitutes the original inhabitants of a territory, distinct from the dominant national culture, often derived from colonial occupation •Subculture •Group of people with norms, values, and material practices that differentiate them from the dominant culture Fig 2.1 Material folk culture regions •Germanic Pennsylvania folk culture •Yankee folk culture •African-American folk culture •Mormon folk culture Germanic Pennsylvania folk culture Yankee folk culture • Barns usually attached to the house Scraped-earth folk graveyard, East Texas (Fig 2.4) Beef wheel, Harney Basin, Central Oregon (Fig 2.5) Quebec French Region • Stone tower windmills • Pentanque Is popular culture “placeless”? (Edward Relph) • Death of uniqueness??? •Chain stores and restaurants Popular food and drink •Global brands (Coca-Cola, KFC) Placelessness or Regional Pop Culture? Is uniqueness gone in North American culture? Valid theory, but most geographers disagree. The Clustering of America (Michael Weiss) Argues that society is becoming more fragmented Michael Weiss’s Lifestyle Clusters (Fig. 2.8) U.S. Fast Food Sales (Figure 2.9) Indigenous Culture Regions Concentrations are usually found in areas that: have few roads lack modern communication systems Indigenous Culture Regions Physical features Mountainous areas Large arid regions Large expanses of forest or wetlands Indigenous American Indian Population Distribution in the United States (Fig. 2.11) U.S. Southwest Indigenous Culture Region (Fig 2.12) Vernacular Culture Region A culture region perceived to exist by its inhabitants, based in the collective spatial perception of the population at large, and bearing a generally accepted name or nickname (such as “Dixie”) Vernacular “Midwest” (Fig. 2.17) Diffusion in popular culture •Advertising as a vehicle for diffusion •Communications barriers (permeable barrier for punk rock) •Diffusion of the rodeo Diffusion in Pop Culture Infrastructure for change is there Hierarchical diffusion is more common Socioeconomic classes No time-distance decay? Mass media No isolation or core Walmart and the exception to the rule Advertising “…popular culture is equipped with the most potent devices and techniques of diffusion ever devised.” Domosh p. 44 Place of product images “Made in the U.S.A.” Does it impact the consumer? Communication Barriers Will radio play new styles of music? Government censorship Control/restrict mass media => control/restrict pop culture diffusion Diffusion of the Rodeo Grew from the ranching folk culture Rodear – “to round up” Contests Traveling shows became agent of diffusion •Spread from the cultural hearth – a focused geographic area where important innovations are born and from which they spread Fig 2.19 Determining Diffusion Blowguns: Diffusion or Independent Invention? • Borneo, Native Americans • Need to examine all aspects of the item • Style, decoration, use, methods of construction • Convergence hypothesis • Homogenization of pop culture? • Are cultures converging, becoming more alike? • Placelessness? All powerful? Culture can shape globalization Resistance Transformation Hybridization May revitalize local differences Reactions against convergence • Local consumption cultures • Cadbury’s in China • Consumer nationalism • Local consumers resist imported products, favor local alternatives • May imitate foreign goods PLACE IMAGES • Role of the collective imagination • Hawaii => • Middle East => Place Images List different place images that you have based on the perception and beliefs about different parts of the world. Indigenous Cultures Using globalization to their advantage Global networks Push to preserve culture International Cancun Declaration of Indigenous Peoples (ICDIP) Subject to Debate Mobile Identities: Questions of Culture and Citizenship Differing relationships with nature. INDIGENOUS ECOLOGY • Indigenous peoples often practice sustainable agriculture • Indigenous peoples often occupy territories identified as critical to global biodiversity conservation • What is their role? Indigenous Ecology Misconceptions Common misconceptions? Any thoughts?????? What is your perception of the relationship between indigenous cultures and the environment? Global Congruence of Cultural and Biological Diversity (Fig. 2.22) LOCAL KNOWLEDGE • Indigenous technical knowledge (ITK): Highly localized knowledge about environmental conditions and sustainable land-use practices • Highly adapted to local conditions • May be superior to western knowledge of the environment Global Economy S U B S I ST E N C E ECO N O M I E S • Economies in which people seek to consume only what they produce and to produce only for local consumption rather than for exchange or export. • Globalization alters traditional Ind. Economies Miskito communities and the green turtle Folk ecology • Folk cultures’ close ties to the land and local environment tend to enhance the environmental perception of folk groups Migrants seek similar lands to the ones they left Folk Ecology (Fig. 2.23) Popular culture less tied to physical environment Less perceived vulnerability to environmental forces Mass consumption tied to environmental impacts Environmental impact of recreational activities Popular Culture’s Impact on the Landscape (Fig. 2.24) Folk architecture •traditional manner and style •without the assistance of professional architects or blueprints •use locally available raw materials. FOLK ARCHITECTURE Anglo American Hearths Mixture of peoples who came as ethnic groups and settled as Americans or Canadians Brought their folk cultures and customs with them Material and nonmaterial cultures often had to change, immediately, in the ‘New World’ Multiple cultures were developed Anglo American Hearths Culture hearths brought by relocation diffusion (from Europe) these areas became the hearths Expanded into the continent through expansion diffusion These hearths become source regions for architecture, toys, cookery, music Folk traditions in Anglo-America Easiest ways to identify folk culture remnants are through: Architecture Fencing Cuisine Song Folk building traditions Traditional buildings are being replaced or remodeled to reflect what is popular Old farm structures are fading with new needs and ideas Vernacular house styles Those built in traditional form but without formal plans or drawings Different culture hearths have provided different styles based on Climate based needs Availability of materials Architectural hearths Northern Middle Atlantic Southern Interior and Western The Northern Hearths The Lower St. Lawrence Valley Few areas with structural reminders of French occupation Norman Cottages Quebec Cottages Montreal House Quebec Long Barn Most of these styles only exist in French Canada, Louisiana, Northern Maine, and small sections of Missouri The Northern Hearths Southern New England Heavily framed, sturdy posts, stout horizontal beams, steep roofs, large central chimneys Garrison house Saltbox house New England Large House Gable front and Upright-and-wing The Middle Atlantic Hearths Most influential hearth for North American housing styles Log cabin evolved here The Middle Atlantic Hearths The Delaware Valley (a.k.a. the Pennsylvania Hearth) Eastern Finns, NOT, the Brits that introduced the log cabin to the U.S. Four-over-Four “I-House” Bank Barn, combined animal shelter and grain storage The Middle Atlantic Hearths Chesapeake Bay Dominantly English and Scotch-Irish Raised foundations Outside-end chimneys One-deep floor plans Usually had detached kitchens The Southern Hearths Altered by climate and new ethnic mix Mix of northern French, Caribbean French, Spanish, and African cultures Found along Atlantic coast and in the Gulf and Mississippi Delta Different styles for different needs The Southern Hearths The Southern Tidewater South Carolina and Georgia Problems with heat, humidity, and flooding Charleston Single House The Southern Hearths The Mississippi Delta 2nd French culture hearth Mix of many varied cultures Grenier house Raised off ground for cooling, protection from flooding, ground rot, termites Shotgun house Simple, inexpensive, efficient Interior and Western Hearths Where is the timber?? Have to use sod initially Balloon frame houses Use cheap wire nails and light, milled lumber Quickly constructed, couldn’t use large posts or beams like areas with large amounts of timber Fig 2.25 Fig 2.26 Folk Fencing Patterns (Yes, Fencing Patterns…) VERY important to examine the basic fence style of an area to determine the folk cultural traditions of an area Use of materials and style indicated what the initial settlers had to use and whether or not they intended to be permanent Fancy Folk Fences Stone fences are an indication of not only permanence, but also a need to move stone from fields Potentially a lack of lumber as well Buck fence French Found in French Canada down to South Appalachia Fancy Folk Fences Wattle fence Interlaced poles Used by the earliest settlers in Mass and Virginia Not found outside those areas Angle-railed fence (snake or worm) Dominant fence during 1800s Usually in temporary settlements Post and Rail fence Consumed less land and timber Spread west from New England and Delaware Valley area Death of the Folk Fence Not used for practical purpose anymore What killed the Folk Fence? Development of steel industry and barbed wire Now traditional fences are almost exclusively used for aesthetic purposes Nonmaterial Folk Culture Material folk culture is ultimately replaced, destroyed, or simply lost Favorite foods, songs, remedies, and stories endure Cuisine Must pay attention to the spatial association of the culture and the environment Why? Get into groups and discuss how the association of cultures and their environments led to the development of folk food and drink. Be sure to brainstorm some examples. Folk Cuisine One of the most evident and enduring aspects distinguishing folk cultures Evident today in “fests” or fairs of a local region i.e. Oktoberfest Folk Cuisine Characteristic of specific areas, but can be made part of the national food diet New England – chowders Great Lakes – wild rice Louisiana – crawfish, gumbos Geophagy The custom of eating dirt, usually fine clay Widespread throughout the globe, even in the U.S. Provides nutrients and ability to eat otherwise inedible foods Folk Music “a museum of musical antiques from many lands” Old world songs were transplanted, then Americanized and hybrids from multiple cultures were created Folk Medicines and Cures Like cuisine, folk medicines and remedies are dependent on the geographic environment the culture lives in Anglo-America developed from herbs brought from Europe and the teachings of the Native Americans Folk Medicines and Cures Symbolism was very important Diseases of the head treated by the tops of plants Problems with your legs? Use roots. Brain fever? Use nut meats that resemble the brain. Folk remedies have been best preserved in the Upland South, Southern Appalachia, and the rural West The Upland South has preserved more of its folk culture than any other region of Anglo-America Oral Folk Traditions Folklore is the oral tradition of a group. How people talk and interact, the proverbs, prayers, common expressions, superstitions, beliefs, etc. Preserves old customs and tales Oral Folk Traditions Death of folklore Traditions merge Proverbs are shared and altered among groups Long folk tales are replaced Increased literacy reduces need of folk tales Oral Folk Traditions Folkways – the learned behavior shared by a society that prescribes accepted and common modes of conduct The most common and useable aspects are adopted by the society as a whole Oral Folk Traditions New heroes for a New World Washington and cherry tree Davy Crockett Johnny Appleseed Paul Bunyan Folk Culture Regions By the end of WWI several technologies began to homogenize America Automobile Radio Motion Pictures National press GRRRRR. Sears Mail order => end of household crafts and tools •Pop culture landscape is constantly changing! •Landscapes of consumption • Strip malls on arterial streets Landscapes of Popular Culture Leisure landscapes Landscapes that are planned and designed primarily for entertainment purposes • Ski resorts, golf courses, theme parks Landscapes of Popular Culture Amenity landscapes • Leisure landscapes with attractive natural features • Minnesota North Woods • 40% of all dwellings nonpermanent!!! Landscapes of Popular Culture Elitist Landscapes • French Riviera • Gentleman farms (Kentucky Bluegrass Basin) Wealth creates a cultural landscape Strict building codes, land prices often rise Geographic segregation The American Popular Landscape Go big or go home! Walmart Costco Pentagon Sears Tower Function over beauty Ugly structures can have purpose if return is immediate American pop culture landscape is Big Temporary (ever changing) Serves a specific purpose The American Popular Landscape (Figs. 2.35, 2.36)