Ahh the French

[rah]

I don't think you know much about French culture. At least not as much as I know about American culture.

Typical elitist belief. You have no idea what I know about French culture. You just assume you know more.

[dannubis]

Then what do you know about french culture? You have your nationality working against you.

[molly bloom]

Just what defines culture?

US wine, authors, museums, and artists can hold it's own against any of their FRENCH counterparts.

Given the spending power of places like the Getty, that's hardly surprising- if a Van Gogh or a Titian or a Chardin comes on the market, they can outbid everyone else- should they choose too.

As for artists- that's pretty subjective. Given the age of the U.S. it's a bit too soon to say what posterity will make of Pop Art, Abstract Impressionism and Superrealism. For my taste, I think Winslow Homer and Georgia O'Keeffe are definitely safe bets.

Again with authors, fashion is fickle- I recall all the fuss over Jay McInerney and Donna Tartt, and whatever you say, Mark Twain ain't Balzac or Flaubert.

If you mean the likes of Walter Mosley and George Pelecanos and American film noir and Delta Blues and Sarah Vaughan and the likes of 'Homicide: Life On The Street', then U.S cultural exports are just dandy, like Amos 'n' Andy, as far as I'm concerned. But I'm no fan of plastic fast food or Coke I'm afraid. However I do like sourdough and blueberry muffins..

[rah]

Then what do you know about french culture? You have your nationality working against you.

At least you asked first before spewing out nonsense.

My degree was a BS from a good LAS college. The focus was on philosophy, history, the arts, and political theory. I did study a lot of the classics so I'm not ignorant in those areas.

And as Molly points out, a lot of "culture" is open to interpretation. People should make their own judgments and not blindly following the opinions of others.

[Fake Boris]

Then why every American who is called on the populism of his culture reacts in the exact ****ing same way?

[Hauldren Collider]

So much stuff is starting to make sense now.

QFT

[Elok]

Then why every American who is called on the populism of his culture reacts in the exact ****ing same way?

Which way is that? The problem with contemporary American culture--at least, with the majority of what people overseas get of it--isn't that it's populist, but that it's mass produced by money-men following market research. Our movies, our music, our literature, our food, they're all rather callously engineered to appeal to large groups in a shallow way, and so they do.

[Hauldren Collider]

Personally, I think if more people enjoy it, it's better. Of course there's the Boris point of view, which is that it's only good if it's possible to feel better than other people for having experienced it.

Boris has described incredibly obscure things as "culture", as if random trivia somehow correlates to the worldview of a population. It doesn't.

[Elok]

On reflection, I guess "designed to appeal to a broad group for purely commercial reasons" could be considered a kind of populism, but generally when I hear the P-word I think of something that specifically appeals to and elevates the lower (and larger) social classes. We are nominally egalitarian, but even that's distinct from populism as such, and anyway it's largely lip service.

[rah]

Then why every American who is called on the populism of his culture reacts in the exact ****ing same way?

Another generalization. And in this case, I tried to not discuss what you consider the baser side of our populism culture. People like you just like to point that out and discount anything where there are actual comparisons.

[The Mad Monk]

Then why every American who is called on the populism of his culture reacts in the exact ****ing same way?

Because we like it?

[dannubis]

Which way is that? The problem with contemporary American culture--at least, with the majority of what people overseas get of it--isn't that it's populist, but that it's mass produced by money-men following market research. Our movies, our music, our literature, our food, they're all rather callously engineered to appeal to large groups in a shallow way, and so they do.

I guess this is true

[dannubis]

At least you asked first before spewing out nonsense.

That was not my intention. I do have the impression that most of what comes out of the US is very shallow - hence the comment on nationality - but I didn't mean you personally.

[Elok]

The key words there are comes out of the US. In truth there is a rather large amount of what could more genuinely be called American culture--arts, crafts, music, food, and more, all with a long pedigree--which simply is not exported. And there's a wide variety of it, too, and more continues to be made. Calling McDonald's "American food" is a lot like calling a McDonald's Happy Meal toy "Chinese craftsmanship." It's broadly correct, but still rather misleading, and if you compare the one to roquefort cheese or the other to stained glass, both will inevitably be found wanting.

[rah]

Well said.