Taking Back Pop Culture
I suspect Andrew Klavan is too modest to link to his own work here (you'll notice I'm not), so I'm going to do it for him. He's got a good piece in the new City Journal about the importance of reclaiming pop culture for conservative ideas--or for classical liberal ideas, as I've decided to rebrand them.
The idea, as far as I’m concerned, is not to reshape the pop-culture landscape into one of sentimental patriotism and faith or limit artists to the creation of squeaky-clean family entertainment. I merely want to see more art that represents the moral universe as it is: that shows a world, for instance, in which freedom is better than slavery and therefore America is better than, say, Saudi Arabia; a world in which military courage in defense of what’s right is worthy of honor, and therefore a U.S. soldier fighting an Islamofascist is a hero, not an abuser; a world in which faith can be uplifting and not corrupting; in which women and men are different and therefore might be justly treated differently; in which ideas and behaviors can be judged on their own merits whether the people involved with them are white or brown or black.
This is an especially important point, I'd add, because the rest of the world's view of America is pretty much shaped by American pop culture. It certainly isn't shaped by the State Department, which--do I repeat myself?--really needs to grasp, for example, that Turks speak Turkish. People outside of America are deeply affected, both consciously and unconsciously, by Hollywood and the American music industry--they're the United States' unofficial propaganda arm.
Just one thing, Andrew. You write that "Artists work for love more than they do for money." Do tell? Speak for yourself, man. You ask me, none but a blockhead ever wrote except for money.
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Jun '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
There is one genre of popular culture that does support conservative principles; it's called country music.
Jul '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Conservatives in Hollywood are like the Christians in the catacomb era when they scratched out an X in the dust with a sandal if they met someone they thought shared their belief. A mere centuries later, it was a different story. Being exposed for incorrect political beliefs in Hollywood doesn't mean an appointment with lions in the arena, but it is tantamount to career suicide. I doubt many in that fever swamp have Andrew's kind of courage. I saw a trailer for Inception the other day in which the young woman who starred in Juno dutifully repeated the left's cliched critiques of American society as another young actor vigorously nodded in brown-nosing agreement. It may not take centuries to turn the situation around, but decades is a good bet.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Not just pop culture, but educated culture, too. Here in Japan, four nights per week after the news there is a show, hosted by a smart and hard-working woman, that could reasonably be called "Japan: Threats and Opportunities" although that's not the real name. Tonight's show was about the cost of iron ore (it has skyrocketed due to Chinese demand) and what Japan can do to ensure a stable supply, so that major industries are not wiped out. A year ago there was show about the dwindling supply of GRAVEL! (Gravel is used for making concrete. Not having enough gravel is important.) Another show was about the coming worldwide need for large water-processing plants and how Japan could capture the lead from the French (identified as the major rival). Still another show discussed the potentially threatening implications of a Korean company contracting for large amounts of farmland in Madagascar. In America you'd have a show about the lingering effects of racism and how gay marriage is a fundamental right. Irrelevant BS.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
What I especially appreciate is that Andrew understands that you must write for the larger audience, not Focus on the Family with Up, The Incredibles, etc. Those are easy, not Andrew's Damnation Street. Half of my evangelical compatriots would go into cardiac arrest over "Damnation" as "obscenity".
The great Orson Bean (to remind you, dad to Breitbart's wife and possibly Rob's Venice neighbor) wrote a fictionalized account of his conversion to Christianity called Mail For Mikey. The first person narrator is a hard-bitten retired Marine and ex-drunk who gradually slips from rather coarse and ribald expression (he speaks like a Marine- sorry, Andrea- which means that he drops the occasional "f-bomb") as he serves as AA mentor for a young alcoholic.
Over time in the book, both of them find God, new wives, and new lives turned away from prior self-absorption, with smoothing out of the public persona. Orson amusedly describes how the book is not carried in Christian book stores despite its overt message- because of the language in the early part.
Get real, people- we need all of the people to see sweet reason, not just Little Mary Sunshine.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
As I mentioned in another thread (it's more topical here), the need for conservatives in the (video) game industry is a blind spot in conservative discourse.
It's understandable that people for whom Pac-Man and Asteroids are quintessential video games perceive games as childish and mere entertainment. But that was thirty years ago. Now, the average gamer is a working adult. Now, games can unfold as epic dramas and pose serious moral questions. They can explore history or imagine the future. They can deepen knowledge we already have. Video games are a powerful medium of instruction and cultural influence.
Games can teach in many ways. The games of Will Wright are all based on Montessori learning. The games of Sid Meier place gamers in historical situations and include in-game encyclopedias for inspired players to explore. The games of Peter Molyneux and Bioware put players in conundrums that demand moral choices to be made, encouraging deep consideration of real problems.
Conservatives are fools to ignore the gaming industry.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Not "ignore", Aaron, neglect. I'm just not into competitive role-playing, be it paintball or exotic video or Charades. I am hoping that guys like you who like that stuff will design games, just as I hope that talented conservatives (that lets me off the hook right there) will invest in making good movies and TV shows. Even though I seldom watch TV and never go out to movies (NetFlix, forever)
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
You’re dead right about the outsized impact of Hollywood movies abroad, Claire. It's a hobby horse of mine as well.
As a pop-culture author manqué (novels, film, TV…check my Mac!), I've found the gatekeeping function of agents may compound the liberal-bias problem. Not only editors and producers are turned off by conservative—or perhaps just non-liberal—themes, but agents are very liberal as a group (mine sounded like JournoList; I kept mum), so that puts two effective hurdles in the way of would-be Classical Liberal culturemongers (like me).
I can't claim this has hurt me directly—though given the vast array of rejection letters and lack of response, there's probably some in there somewhere—and am fully willing to chalk up whatever problems to the work or my own failings, but it strikes me that Classical Liberal publishing/television/film professionals might want to consciously, actively network new CL people into the business, just as people do with relatives, fellow Ivy grads, co-ethnics, hot girls they want to sleep with, &c.
What say the professionals? Is a Bob Hope Underground feasible—or even desirable? (The password is Kerouac.)
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Duane Oyen: [...] The great Orson Bean (to remind you, dad to Breitbart's wife and possibly Rob's Venice neighbor) wrote a fictionalized account of his conversion to Christianity called Mail For Mikey. The first person narrator is a hard-bitten retired Marine and ex-drunk [...].
Over time in the book, both of them find God, new wives, and new lives turned away from prior self-absorption, with smoothing out of the public persona. Orson amusedly describes how the book is not carried in Christian book stores despite its overt message- because of the language in the early part.
Confronting the reality of the world we live in, with all its corruption, confusion, and errancy, requires two things: an ability to dream the nightmare as well as an ability to point beyond and above it. Both have to be convincing to ordinary readers or viewers. Shakespeare did that masterfully. Though we don't need a new Shakespeare today (it would be nice, we do need artists who can do that.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
I think I'm repeating myself, but Paul Cantor has a great talk over at the von Mises Institute about new art forms and the mistaken suspicion directed at them (i.e, "too much sex & violence! The kids are getting addicted!"). See talk #10, "Culture as Pop Culture." It's essential for anyone who wants to understand the direction the culture is headed, and how to influence that direction. Or heck, just listen to the whole series, it's great.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Cantor's lecture is excellent. Thanks. For a non-gamer, Cantor grasps the subject quite well.
May '10
Re: Taking Back Pop Culture
Aaron, I'd like to know more about Sid Meier (whom I've heard of before). A guy who sings in the choir of a Lutheran church is not what I would have expected from a video game mastermind.