2. CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
The concept of a collective identity refers to a set of individuals'
sense of belonging to the group or collective. For the individual, the
identity derived from the collective shapes a part of his or her
personal identity.
Collective Identity is the idea that through participating in social
activities, individuals can gain a sense of belonging and in essence
an "identity" that transcends the individual.
KEY WORDS:
Stryker: this theorist
suggested we interact
with others to create an
identity, this is called
identity negotiation.
This develops a
consistent set of
behaviours that reinforce
the identity of the
person or group. These
behaviours then become
social expectations.
3. KEY WORDS:
Foucault: This
theorist believed people
do not have a 'real'
identity within
themselves; that's just a
way of talking about the
self -- a discourse. An
'identity' is
communicated to others
in your interactions with
them, but this is not a
fixed thing within a
person. It is a shifting,
temporary construction
CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Identity is a vacillating idea as it does not determine a person for their
whole life, but merely adapts depending on their social circumstances.
We, as human beings tend to have a number of different identities –
however we will adopt certain characteristics that make us recognisable
to other people.
4. KEY WORDS:
Hegemony: A
leadership or
dominance, especially by
one state or social group
over others.
Gramsci: used the
term hegemony to show
how the dominant class
can project its own
ideologies so that those
who are subordinated
accept it as 'common
sense' and 'natural'.
CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Hebdige (1979)
• Studied sub- cultures in 1970s.
• Subcultures allow youth to express opposition to society and
challenge hegemony.
• Style is key aspect of subculture – attempt to resist hegemony.
• Representations tend to be limited: Youth as fun or youth as
trouble.
5. KEY WORDS:
Jacques Lacan:
Mirror stage – child
begins to develop their
identity – recognise
themselves in a mirror at
around 6 months, helps
to develop sense of self.
Just like the recognition
of the mirror, images on
screen offer:
• Identification
• Aspiration
CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Subculture
• Music, art
• Fashion:
• Clothing, hairstyle
• Lifestyle/
• practices
• Dialect/ slang
• Opposition/ resistance to dominant culture
• Counterculture
• Place, gender, class, race
6. KEY WORDS:
Jacques Lacan:
Mirror stage – child
begins to develop their
identity – recognise
themselves in a mirror at
around 6 months, helps
to develop sense of self.
Just like the recognition
of the mirror, images on
screen offer:
• Identification
• Aspiration
CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Subculture
• Music, art
• Fashion:
• Clothing, hairstyle
• Lifestyle/
• practices
• Dialect/ slang
• Opposition/ resistance to dominant culture
• Counterculture
• Place, gender, class, race
Think about this different subcultures of
the youth today.
Create a montage of their identities –
what are their interests? How do they
dress? What are their ideologies?
8. YYoouutthh SSuubbccuullttuurreess
• Key Quote: “Subcultures try to compensate for
the failure of the larger culture to provide
adequate status, acceptance and identity. In the
youth subculture, youth find their age-related
needs met.” (Tittley, p.2).
• Youth are no longer children but they are also not yet
adults, i.e. they are too old to sit in with Mum and Dad on
a Saturday night watching Casualty, but they are not old
enough to get into bars, pubs and clubs etc. They do not
have a fixed identity at this point so they form these
subcultures to forge their own as a collective.
10. YYoouutthh SSuubbccuullttuurreess
Kelman (1958) wrote about social influence and identified
three areas of conformity:
•1.Compliance – public but not private conformity
•2.Identification – influenced by someone who is liked and
respected
•3.Internalisation – completely accept the beliefs and
behaviour of a group and conform publicly and privately
11. YYoouutthh SSuubbccuullttuurreess
Thrasher (1927) studied gangs in the jails and on the streets of Chicago.
He found various reasons for young people joining gangs, including:
•A sense of family – mostly from broken homes so desired a group of
people to feel part of.
•Guidance – again, because of lack of family guidance they seek
someone to teach them and to help structure their belief system.
•Solidarity – giving them the self-esteem and security that they longed
for.
•Gangs were forming in Chicago as a result of urban neglect. These
young people represented the “inner cracks of identity that occur in the
turbulent years of adolescence”.
12. YYoouutthh SSuubbccuullttuurreess
• Willis (1977) studied British youths and
found that they were struggling to deal with
the changes sweeping post-war Britain.
They therefore developed these ‘deviant’
subcultures and employed a variety of
strategies including “outright aggression” to
deal with these changes.
14. KEY WORDS:
Gramsci: used the
term hegemony to show
how the dominant class
can project its own
ideologies so that those
who are subordinated
accept it as 'common
sense' and 'natural'.
Cultivation
Theory: George
Gerbner believed that
the more time people
spend ‘living’ in the
television, the more they
are to believe social
reality portrayed on
television. The
Cultivation Theory leaves
people with a
misconstrued perception
of what is true in our
world.
MMeeddiiaa IInnfflluueennccee:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
The media used its influence by portraying
their hegemonic view of what the youth
should be like.
Cultivation Theory
The hope was that they young would see this
and believe this is how they SHOULD behave.
15. KEY WORDS:
Dichotomous:
Divided or dividing into
two parts or
Classifications.
CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
11994455--6600ss::
Economic potential is obvious – market of the
future, but also the first negative stereotypes.
Youth simultaneously represented “a prosperous
and liberated future” and “a culture of moral
decline”
First sign of adult culture’s dichotomous image of
teenagers
Film example: ‘The Wild One’
16. KEY WORDS:
Hegemony: A
leadership or
dominance, especially by
one state or social group
over others.
Ideology: The
opinions, beliefs and
ways of thinking
characteristics of a
particular person, group
or nation.
Polysemic:
Different individuals can
interpret different
meanings from the text.
MMeeddiiaa IInnfflluueennccee:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
• Adults have always voiced their views of
teenagers in a predominately negative way.
• Adult mainstream exploited the image of
the ‘rebel teen’
• Sold to teenagers as aspiration
• Sold to adults as a fear
17. KEY WORDS:
Moral Panic: an
intense feeling expressed
in a population about an
issue that appears to
threaten the social
order.
MMeeddiiaa IInnfflluueennccee:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Marcuse suggests that
the mass media carry with
them prescribed attitudes
and habits, certain
intellectual and emotional
reactions which bind the
consumer and reduce
them to a mindless mass.
– leading to a passive
audience.
This could/and would lead
to Cohen’s idea of Moral
Panic. The feel of the
youth imitating what they
see.
Acland argues that media
representations of
delinquent youths actually
reinforce hegemony. They
do this by constructing an
idea of ‘normal’ adult and
youth behaviour, and
contrasting it with deviant
youth behaviour which is
shown to be unacceptable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCENBce_dls
19. MMeeddiiaa IInnfflluueennccee:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
Cultural theorist Henry A. Giroux argues that in media
representations of young people ‘youth becomes an empty
category’ (1997) which reflects the anxieties and interests of adult
society.
From this perspective media representations of the collective
identities of young people are constructed by adults, and serve the
needs of adult society.
This approach to youth identity and the media raises several
questions about the relationship between media and identity.
20. The Wild One
Adult’s fears and
anxieties
Re-enforcing
hegemony
Youth’s response
21. HHooww aarree tthhee yyoouutthh rreepprreesseenntteedd
wwiitthhiinn tthhee mmeeddiiaa..
Introduction
Henry A Giroux argues in media representations ‘youth becomes an empty category’
reflecting the concerns of adults.
•media representations of youth serve the purpose of the middle class adults who produce
them
•media representation of youth reinforce hegemony
•Explain how you are going to be exploring this in ‘The Wild One’
Historical Representations
Media representations of young people have always tended to be negative, look back at the
ancient quotes describing youth.
Main focus
‘The Wild One’ (1953) shows a motorcycle gang terrorising a small town. It focused on a
delinquent, anti-social youth.
This representation reflected anxieties of middle class adult society, in relation to the threat
to hegemony posed by young people. – use specific examples.
KEY WORDS:
• Foucault
• Hegemony
• Gramsci
• Jacques Lacan
• Cultivation
theory
• Ideology
• Polysemic
• Moral Panic
• Marcuse
• Acland
23. Rebel Without A
Cause
Adult’s fears and
anxieties
Re-enforcing
hegemony
Youth’s response
24. CCoolllleeccttiivvee IIddeennttiittyy:: YYoouutthh CCuullttuurree
1. How does the opening of Rebel Without A Cause help to
demonstrate Giroux’s idea of the youth being an ‘empty
category’?
2. What is the main character’s identity?
3. What do you think the ‘adult’ fear might be?
4. How might this have created a moral panic amongst the older
audiences during the time?
5. What do you think the hegemonic values are in the opening?
6. How might a younger audience respond to this opening?
