Culture: Definitions
   According to Raymond Williams (one of the founder of 
   Cultural Studies)  three uses of the term culture:
    as artistic activity
     ex. engaging in music, literature, theatre, film, painting
    as way of life (anthropology and some schools of sociology)
     constructing meaning of symbols of particular way of life/signifying 
     practices. Ex. to study culture is to study the meaning of a style of 
     dress, a norm, a language, etc. In this sense, however, the definition 
     must be distinguished from the concept of society. Society refers to 
     the pattern of social interactions and relationships between 
     individuals and groups, and creates culture(s).  
    as a process of development (History)
     ex. involves historical process
        Illustration
        Rock and Roll may be analized:
        -   by the skill of the performers (artistic activity)
        -   by its association with youth culture (way of life)
        -   As a musical form which is originated from older music 
            form and influences later music forms (historical 
            process)
        “Cultural Studies approach facilitates the identification of 
        core issues or problems that no one discipline or approach 
        can solve on its own”. Therefore, the nature of cultural 
        studies is interdisciplinary.
   How do people become part of a culture?
    acculturation/enculturation  Anthropology
    conditioning  Psychology, ex. psychoanalysis
    socialization  Sociology
     All concepts above pay attention on various 
    social arrangements in how humans learn about 
    meaning.
    The core issue of cultural studies is the 
    interpretation of meaning, and it involves 
    issues of evidence and relativism.
      How does Cultural Studies interpret what things 
   mean?
   Anthropologists see culture as shared understandings 
   and groupings in society
   Sociologists, ex. Berger and Luckmann (1966)  
   Human knowledge of the world is socially constructed, or 
   through social location (age, gender, race, class) and 
   interaction with other people. If so, we only see the world 
   from certain angles  relativism. 
   Conclusion: There’s no true knowledge.
   Therefore, interpretation of meaning is a core issue of 
   Cultural Studies, and it relates to how we understand the 
   past and present.
    Historical Relativism  
       In terms of past and present, there is tradition, which is 
    not objective, but culturally constructed (means that 
    some things are included and some others are 
    excluded). Ex:
    1. English written tradition: poem, prose  
        canon and non-canon, high culture. Low culture
           Ex. Shakespeare, Puccini’s/Pavarotti’s Nessun Dorma 
       2. Scottish traditional costume, Kilt, was significant for 
           the Highlands but then was taken over by the
           lowlands as distinctive feature. So, its meaning is 
           constantly changing in Scottish society.