Key Concepts for the Study of Culture

This book explores key concepts that students should become acquainted with at the beginning of their studies. Its main aim is to explain central terms and categories for the analysis of culture in a way that enables students to use them in their own research. The focus lies on concepts that can not only generate innovative research perspectives on a wide range of (sub)cultures but also provide insight into cultural practices and principles governing our daily forms of life. The key concepts include identity, performativity, intersectionality, globalization, cultural memory, the emotions and values, all of which we approach from a variety of perspectives, ranging from cultural anthropology and cultural psychology to philosophy, sociology and postcolonial theory. In addition, we introduce a few broader, vibrant fields such as material culture and visual culture studies. The discussion of examples taken from British and North American cultural history from the sixteenth century to the present should highlight the usefulness of the key concepts that will help students to find their feet and pursue their own inquiries in a highly promising field of study.

TABLE OF CONTENTS


1. Meanings and Functions of Culture and Cultural Key Concepts 1
Major Characteristics of Cultures 2 · Selected Key Concepts for an Understandingof Cultures 9 · Definitions of and Approaches to Culture 12 · Implicationsof the Meaning-Oriented, Semiotic Understanding of Culture 15 · Dealing Withthe 'Other' 25 · Basic Differences between Cultures 29 · Major Functions ofCulture 33 · Aims and Structure of this Book 34 · Bibliography 39
VERA NÜNNING

2. Cultural Ways of Worldmaking 43
Premises for Understanding Ways of Worldmaking 44 · Getting Things Wrongin the Sixteenth Century: 'Bloody Mary' - and 'Fake News' 46 · Visual Waysof Worldmaking 50 · Narrative as a Means of Worldmaking 59 · Ways of (Narrative)Worldmaking in Cultural History Books 62 · Getting Things WrongToday: Common Misconceptions and Processes of Worldmaking 72 · Conclusion80 · Bibliography 81
VERA NÜNNING

3. Emotions 85
'Irrational' Emotions? Definitions 86 · Culture and Emotions 88 · RedefiningEmotions in the Eighteenth Century: The Culture of Sensibility as a CaseStudy of Cultural Change 90 · Discourses Involved in Changing the Role ofthe Emotions in the Eighteenth Century 95 · The Role of Material Culturewith Regard to the New Appreciation of Emotions 102 · Social Practices andInstitutions Expressing and Influencing the New Understanding of the Emotions105 · Criticism of the Culture of Sensibility 108 · Lasting Impact andFurther Changes 112 · Bibliography 115
VERA NÜNNING, CORINNA ASSMANN

4. Civilization 119
Introduction: Civilization, Cultural Studies and Norbert Elias 119 · 'Civilization':History, Politics, Aesthetics 121 · Civilization and the 'Saddle Period'122 · Case Studies: Christopher Columbus, Cotton Mather, Philip Freneau127 · Culture as a Civilizing Process: Norbert Elias and Cultural Studies 136 ·Bibliography 143
PHILIPP LÖFFLER

5. Performance (Studies) and Performativity 147
Introduction - Definitions 147 · The Study of Performance Before PerformanceStudies: Some Foundations in Philosophy 151 · The Birth of the Discipline inAnthropology, Ethnography and Sociology 153 · Performative Theories ofLanguage: Austin and Derrida 157 · Performance, Performativity, and Identity:Judith Butler and Pierre Bourdieu 160 · Performance Studies Today: AnInterdisciplinary Discipline 162 · Bibliography 165
MARGIT PETERFY

6. Identity: Cultural Ways of Making Selves 169
Defining Selves and Identities 171 · Culture, Narrative and Identity 178 · CreatingSelves in the Twenty-First Century 182 · Collective Identities 187 · Us vs.Them: The 'War on Terror' Narrative as a Mode of Stabilizing Collective Identityin Times of Crisis 191 · Building Bridges: Functions of Narrative 198 ·Bibliography 200
VERA NÜNNING

7. Intersectionality in/and Cultural Studies 205
Introduction 205 · Academic Precursors: The Rise of Race, Class and GenderStudies 207 · The Grounds of Identity: Inwardness Around 1800 213 ·Contemporary Responses 218 · Problems of Definition 221 · Conclusion: TheUses of Intersectionality 225 · Bibliography 226
PHILIPP LÖFFLER

8. Visual Studies and Culture 231
Introduction: What Is the 'Visual Turn' and Why Should It Concern Us? 231 ·How Images Work: Neurophysiological, Cognitive and Psychological Foundations236 · A (New) World of Man-Made Images 239 · The 'Pictorial Turn'and Symbolic and Interpretative Constellations 244 · The Politics of Visibility:The Power of Images 248 · Bibliography 254
MARGIT PETERFY

9. Global