Ana-Maria Amza (British Cultural Studies) Raluca Galchin (American Studies) 22nd October 201

The concept of culture between modernity and postmodernity Carla !a"uinelli

#o$ada%s& - culture (rock culture or drug culture) creates a halo o' allusi(eness) *ro+ectin, the $ords be%ond their literal meanin, into a broader semantic conte-t (ul,arisation o' culture Al$a%s& contradictor% de'initions o' culture mar. the histor% o' anthro*olo,% 2 ri(al *aradi,ms& modernism / *ostmodernism MO01R#234 C5635R1& - arose $ithin e(olutionist theor%7 it is the *roduct o' modernit% - 'ound in scienti'ic .no$led,e - enables one to concei(e all 'orms o' otherness - the container o' e(er%thin, that is not modern& the *ast (tradition) / the (ast *art o' the *resent (*rimiti(e societies) A#38RO!O6OG4& - reclassi'ies in relation to itsel' a,es / ci(ilization distant in time / s*ace - essential to modernit%9s sel'-re*resentation 346OR R1ASO# / !ROGR1SS histor% a linear time de(elo*in, in a *ro,ressi(e 'ashion to$ard a 'uture that is su*erseded 3otalisin, inter*retations o' the $orld / emanci*in, humanit% throu,h histor% that is endo$ed $ith meanin, :Culture or ci(ilization ta.en in its ethno,ra*hic sense is that com*le- $hole $hich includes .no$led,e) belie') art) morals) la$) custom) and an% other ca*abilities and habits ac"uired b% man as a member o' societ%;< Culture idea o' or,anic totalit% idea o' linear) *ro,ressi(e time e(olutionar% o*timism the ambition to control societ% e,alitarian) democratic character *ro(ides us a =com*le- $hole9 $here in those customs attain order / meanin, ma.es the *rimiti(e thin.able 138#OC1#3R2SM 3$o ne,ations&

 3he ne,ation o' histor% (histor% as a sin,le (ector mo(in, in a uni'orm) *ro,ressi(e 'ashion 'rom sim*le to com*le-) 3he ne,ation o' otherness (di''erences arran,ed on a (ertical a-is a**earin, as "uantitati(e (ariations in cultural e(olution hierarchicall% ordained) BOAS > modernist) immediate *redecessor o' *ostmodernism Culture meets histor% disa**ears) it is re*laced b% a *luralit% o' cultures ma.es u* a scenario $here the sin,le *rota,onist is re*laced b% a *luralit% o' sub+ects (com*le- cohabitation) losses its ethnocentric sti,ma becomes the *ro+ection o' the stron, *aradi,ms o' the modern idea o' reason 1thnocentrism > cleansed / re*laced b% cultural relati(ism ?each culture needs the e-istence o' the others 'or its reco,nition / sel'-de'inition 381 MA31R2A6 !8AS1 (centralit% o' custom) Cultural 'eatures customs *attern meanin,s Methodolo,ical *aradi,ms e-*lanation understandin, inter*retation ?.no$led,e) belie's) art) morals) la$ > *art o' culture @2#GS82!S / 01BA31 Customs (='orms o' li'e9-Aitt,enstein) *hiloso*h%) > the re(en,e o' the *articular a,ainst the idea o' a uni(ersal / natural reason 8istor% a**roach& =mentalitB9 > a *assi(e substrate that determines our $hole $a% o' bein, !olitical a**roach the notion o' communit% the notion o' ,ood is the mani'estation in terms o' (alues o' the culture o' a *articular social ,rou* 381 ABS3RAC3 !8AS1 1C 09s > anthro*olo,ists9 attention shi'ted 'rom customs to beha(iour *atterns Shi't o' interest to$ards collecti(e re*resentations A trans'ormation o' the notion into that o' a conce*tual s%stem e-istin, inde*endentl% 'rom an% social *ractio Culture a set o' shared models $hich sha*es the beha(iour / actions o' *eo*le (naturalistic / sociolo,ical method) in'luences on sociolo,% / *s%cholo,% > relationshi* bet$een social s%stems / *ersonalit% (!arsons) 381 S4MBO62C !8AS1 Culture a =$eb o' si,ni'icance9 9consists o' sociall% established structures o' meanin,9 (Geetz)

seen as a te-t $ritten b% nati(es) $hich the anthro*olo,ist must inter*ret (inter*retations o' inter*retations) 'actual) s*eci'ic / uni"ue 381 #ARRA32#G =29 Dames Cli''ord unco(ered the narrati(e arti'ice o' modernism the te-t $hich has ,raduall% re*laced the ob+ect re'lects our o$n ima,e (anthro*olo,ist9s narratin, 2) > relati(ism Anthro*olo,% retreats 'rom the $orld into the te-t EF the te-t is the onl% thin, that counts) / culture is reduced to 'iction =Culture is not an ob+ect to be described) neither is it a uni'ied cor*us o' s%mbols and meanin,s that can be de'initi(el% inter*reted9 =Culture and our (ie$s o' =it9 are *roduced historicall%9 =Cultural is contested) tem*oral) and emer,ent9 Anthro*olo,% - A narrati(e .no$led,e) $hich has 'ound in the conce*t o' culture its method / le,itimization 0ialo,ical anthro*olo,% 3he te-t is no lon,er a *roduct o' the anthro*olo,ist but arises 'rom the encounter bet$een obser(er / obser(ed 381 CR2S2S OG 381 CR2S2S 2 alternati(e *aradi,ms& understandin, (s inter*retation the unsettlin, disco(er% that dele,ates to the the ob+ect o' in"uir% in social res*onsabilit% sciences coincided $ith the o' the obser(er in"uirin, sub+ect dishomo,eneit% the (er% e-istence bet$een obser(er / obser(ed o' the obser(ed S*lit bet$een research / theoretical re'lection (Gellner) culture > considered a =*rotoconce*t9 or somethin, $e can do $ithout 381 382R0 !A38 Culture > a *aradi,m arisin, out o' our local .no$led,e) out o' our ='orms o' li'e9) %et as*irin, to a uni(ersal status; =Cultural 2dentit%9 > used in *lace o' =culture9 the need 'or totalit% and coherence 1rnesto 0e Martino =critical ethnocentrism9& the encounter $ith the other can onl% be e-*erienced 'rom our s*eci'ic ethnocentric *ers*ecti(e but it also o''ers us a chance to distance oursel(es / "uestion our culture