Social Class, Cultural Repertoires, and Popular Culture: The Case of Film

This research examines two different conceptions of the relationship between social class and familiarity with popular culture in the United States. Specifically, it focuses on differences between members of the upper-middle class and members of the lower-middle class in terms of their film viewing...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological forum (Randolph, N.J.) N.J.), 2000-03, Vol.15 (1), p.145-163
Main Authors: Barnett, Lisa A., Allen, Michael Patrick
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Art cinema
Audiences
Class
Class Analysis
Class Differences
Culture
Demography
High culture
Lower Class
Middle Class
Motion picture industry
Movies
Neighborhoods
Popular culture
Preferences
Social classes
Social integration. Social relations. Social participation
Social organization. Social system. Social structure
Sociology
Television
Television Viewing
U.S.A
United States of America
Upper Class
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Summary:This research examines two different conceptions of the relationship between social class and familiarity with popular culture in the United States. Specifically, it focuses on differences between members of the upper-middle class and members of the lower-middle class in terms of their film viewing practices. The data for this analysis was obtained from a survey of 364 individuals randomly selected from two neighborhoods in a medium-sized city, one predominantly upper-middle class and the other predominantly lower-middle class. Members of the upper-middle class view more "art" films, as well as more "classic" films and "blockbuster" films, than members of the lower-middle class. These differences are largely attributable to the fact that members of the upper-middle class view more films both in theaters and on videocassettes than members of the lower-middle class. Moreover, these differences are reduced, but not entirely eliminated, by the fact that members of the lower-middle class view more films on television than members of the upper-middle class. Finally, these differences in the film-viewing practices of the members of these two social classes, as identified by their neighborhood of residence, obtain even controlling for a series of demographic and socioeconomic background variables.
ISSN:0884-8971
1573-7861
DOI:10.1023/A:1007502405539