Anthropology of Popular Culture

Anthropology of Popular Culture delves into the various realms of popular culture. These forms of popular culture range from cinema to TV to sport. Through an anthropological investigation of popular culture, the class will explore how identities and worldviews are negotiated,challenged, and managed through consumption. In the process, the class will analyze the many practices of appropriation, consumption, reception, and cultural production. In this class, you will engage with larger debates about popular culture while testing out whether we are victims to mass production or whether we appropriate in many contradictory ways. This class will involve critical analysis of ethnographies on popular culture in order to understand the workings of race, gender, sexuality, and class.