Thinking Activity: Cultural Studies
Hello Readers! In this blog, I'm responding to a thinking activity by Dr. Dilip Barad sir , Department of English, MKBU. Which is focusing on Cultural Studies, Media, Power, and the concept of a truly educated person. I'll be sharing my thoughts on the videos and blog referenced by Dr. Dilip Barad sir( Cultural Studies: Media, Power and Truly Educated Person) and delving into the analysis of three key topics related to these videos. Let's dive into the exploration of power and media studies within the realm of cultural studies.
Three Major Topics:-
1. Power in cultural studies
2. Importance of Media Studies in our Digital Culture
3. Who can be considered as a 'Truly Educated Person'?
Power in Cultural Studies:-
In cultural studies, power is a key idea. It means that everything in society is shaped by people and their interactions. Power, in this context, is about the relationships between individuals who have different roles and statuses in society.
When we talk about power, three big questions come up.
Where does Power come from?
How is it exercised?
What can you do ?
'Power is the ability to make others do what you would have theme do.'
The idea of power is central in various parts of our lives, like in families, workplaces, and relationships. It often involves the concept of dominance. When we focus on power in civic areas (places where a community is involved in its social and political life), there are six sources that shape how power is structured.
1. Physical Force:-
It's refers to the Violence and it's involves groups like the police or Militia. It's about making things happen through strength and authority.
2. Wealth:-
Wealth refers to the Money. Money creates the ability to buy results and to buy almost any other kind of power.
3. State Action:-
It's refers to the government. This is the use of law and bureaucracy to compel people to do or not do certain things. In Democracy, the power is given to the government through elections.
4. Social Norms:-
In this power areas, it's not about a big government controlling everything. Instead, it's about how society works smoothly. Think of it like all the customs, traditions, and cultures we have - they're guided by social norms. These norms influence how people behave and can even impact laws. It's like an invisible force shaping how we do things together.
5. Ideas:-
Individual thoughts and ideas are very important. They can inspire people to change how they think and act. For example, Raja Ram Mohan Roy had the idea to end the practice of Sati, and that's ideas motivated a big change in society.
6. Numbers :-
In Democracy, it's all about the people. The Message have the power to choose their leaders through elections. When these numbers come together, they have the ability to make significant changes and hold a certain kind of power.
Think of power like a river that never stays still. It's always moving, either building up strength or losing it. If you're not doing something with it, it's doing something to you. It's a bit like water – it can be a problem if not controlled. Policymaking, for example, is a way that people use power.
Now, the big question is: What can we do about it? The answer is simple: literacy. But not just reading and writing words. It's about understanding and using power, like learning to navigate the river. Literacy here means knowing how to read and write in the language of power, so we can influence and understand it better. It's like having a map for the river of power.
How to Read Power?
Reading power isn't just about understanding written words. It's about looking at society like you're reading a book. When you see something you think is wrong, you can't stop there. You need to figure out who has power, why it's like that, who's responsible, who supports it, and then study how they make it happen. It's like reading before you write—understanding the story of power helps you shape the next chapters.
How to Write Power?
When you write, first believe that you have the right to do so. Writing has the power to bring about change in society, so express what you believe. Next, organize your ideas and try to find common ground with others. Writing about power often means challenging it, so practice dealing with conflicts and start with small changes. This is what citizenship is about—asking questions and challenging those in power.
Power + Character = Great Citizenship
Deciding if you want to benefit everyone or just yourself is a choice – are you pro-social or anti-social?
Michel Foucault said power isn't just one force; it's a mix of different influences shaping events. He argued that even a powerful person doesn't act alone; they draw authority from accepted ways of thinking and practices. Foucault's "genealogy" method explores things like prison designs and the stories of those considered "deviants," often overlooked by traditional historians.
When we're part of a power structure, our identity is shaped not just by who we are but also by the groups we belong to. We naturally want to defend our group, but it becomes a problem when our group's beliefs clash with reality.
(Click here to watch video on TedEd platform Power in Cultural Studies))
Partisanship in politics goes beyond just supporting a party. It involves strong preferences for different groups or ideas, like political, ethnic, religious, and national identities. Being loyal to a political party can give you a sense of identity, but it can also lead to ignoring evidence that goes against your party's views. This has become more intense with growing political divides, possibly because people are living closer to like-minded individuals and relying on media that shares their views.
Importance of Media Studies in Popular Culture:-
In our digital era, it's crucial to study media. It's not just about traditional ways anymore; digital media has a huge impact. Media's job is to uncover hidden truths about political powers, but often, it tends to support specific power groups. Cultural Studies pays attention to media culture because it believes media strongly influences ideologies and political culture. Noam Chomsky highlights five filters of mass media:
- Media Owernership
- Advertising
- Media Elite
- Flack
- Common Economy
When studying media in cultural studies, understanding the five filters is crucial—they're all connected, aiming ultimately for profit.
In any structure or group, there's always a dominant power shaping how society works. This is true for political and elite groups. It's important to see who has the power to determine how society functions. About 20% of the population, the educated ones, play a crucial role in decision-making, while the other 80% often just follow orders.
Propaganda is key in media studies. Elite media, which sets the agenda, influences local media in various ways, like selecting topics, framing issues, and filtering information. Why? Because the media's main source of income is advertising. Media is expensive, and advertisers pay to access audiences, not just consumers. So, media organizations are ultimately motivated by profit.
The third filter, Media Elite, is about how journalism struggles to keep those in power in check. The system encourages cooperation, making it challenging to challenge powerful entities. Governments and corporations know how to influence the media by providing exclusive stories and expert interviews. Challenging those in power can mean losing access to valuable information.
Who can be considered as a 'Truly Educated Person'?
According to Noam Chomsky, being a truly educated person isn't just about getting degrees. He looks back to Wilhelm von Humboldt, who believed that independence in inquiry and creativity is vital for a fulfilled human being.
Chomsky highlights the importance of questioning and creativity in education. He shares a story from a physics class where students focused on what they discovered rather than what was taught. Being truly educated, for Chomsky, means having the ability to question and create based on understanding available resources.
He outlines the skills of a truly educated person, including knowing where to look, asking serious questions, questioning standard beliefs, and forming meaningful questions. True education goes beyond memorization; it involves the capacity to independently navigate challenges, challenge assumptions, and collaborate with others.
Chomsky stresses that from primary to graduate school, an educational system should cultivate the ability to inquire, create, and collaborate independently. In the best cases, some educational systems succeed in nurturing these qualities, producing individuals who, by Chomsky's standards, are truly educated.
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