Monday, April 23, 2012

Cultural Space & Youth


Cultural Space, Postmodernism, Youth, and Resistance were covered, discussed, and reflected in segments of two films we saw last week: Lost in Translation, starring Bill Murray, and Rebel Without a Cause, staring James Dean. Lost in Translation is a more recent film depicting aspects of postmodernism: hegemony that influences in both directions, effects of globalization, and transnational corporations. The setting is an over-the-hill, famous American actor making a Japanese commercial in Tokyo. His displacement there takes on the aire of the Absurd. The urbanization of Tokyo reflects disposition of people in the margins of life, fragmentation, with skyscrapers hovering down upon the city. Murray’s character is well known in Tokyo and he is treated deferentially. Murray’s character, in trying to sell a Japanese liquor brand, reflects Hollywood’s hegemony.
            The director of the commercial barks his instructions in Japanese for several minutes like an angry WW II  Japanese general, whereupon a benign Japanese female interpreter then breaks-down the translations in one simple sentence, giving the scenes nonsensical, humorous, and surrealistic postmodern bents. Surrounding the hotel where Murray’s character and other characters are staying, skyscrapers reflect signs of transnational companies, thus making the world closer in globalization space. Other scenes between Murray’s character and a ostensible Japanese hooker reflects modernism’s absurdity, and scenes of a young American couple manifest the disconnect and fragmentation of the modern/postmodern era. To encapsulate the essence of the film, bricolage is a term that comes most to my mind, or the rearrangement and juxtaposition of previously unconnected elements producing new meaning in fresh contexts, or at least trying to do so.
The first film that we had seen first, Rebel Without a Cause, takes place in the USA during the 1950s. It reflects many of the themes we read about in Chris Barker’s chapter #13: “Youth, Style and Resistance. Parsons points out that “youth or adolescence is a social category which emerged with the changing family roles generated by the development of capitalism” (407). Since post WWII, this youth culture has more time designated to their growth and for the first time has become a separate group onto themselves. Parsons goes on to write “the transition from childhood dependence to adult autonomy normally involves a rebellious phase” (408). This is manifest in the film as the teenagers have a lot of time on their hands just to cause horrific mischief that includes unnecessary death.  If we segue and jump to the future, their knives have been replaces with guns, and their rebelling at nothing in particular has been replaced with crime from drug trafficking and battles over turf.  
This teenage subgroup in this film seems distinctly American, though, now, technology, and cyberspace have influenced hegemony going both ways , giving youth groups in all countries parts of  each other, lessening their distinctness. Barker posits “Youth cultures are not pure, authentic and locally bounded; rather, they are syncretic and hybridized products of interactions across space” (424). A major theme in this story--alienation with parents (as reflected with the characters of James Dean, Natalie Woods, and Sal Mineo) are prevalent in every generation. If not the parents specifically than the government, corporation, music, or clothing, which serve as the  parental surrogate being resisted. However, as Sarah Thornton points out (in more modern times);     
·        Youth cultures are not unified but marked by internal difference.
·        Youth cultures are increasingly fragmented.
·        The idea of grass roots, media-free authentic subculture cannot be sustained. (Barker 426)


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