Our discussion in class on Thursday was interesting.Sort of. I think the most interesting thing about it was the conclusion that maybe John Leland just wanted to write a book about race relations in the history of America but needed a “hook” to get people to read his ramblings. So, he entitled his book“Hip:The History” and led his prospective audience to believe he was writing about popular culture.What a trickster!
And now we draw the semester to a close by projecting hip ten years or more into The Future. So, I guess the question in my mind is should I pursue the idea of “hip” as a representation of popular culture? Or should I follow Leland’s lead and project race relations 10 years from now? Urgh. Maybe the biggest question of all is will I be able to escape my past and reinvent myself as an idividual who never thinks about "hip" again?
I'm not sure you need to make at choice (or distinction) between the two. I think what Leland has done is to explore the interactions of race in the context of popular culture, how one reflects and directs the other.
It's all mixed up, and I don't think there is any separating the two, not really. And I think that's part of the beauty of Leland's book.
was interesting. Sort of. I think the most interesting thing about it was the conclusion that maybe John Leland just wanted to write a book about race relations in the history of America but needed a “hook” to get people to read his ramblings. So, he entitled his book “Hip: The History” and led his prospective audience to believe he was writing about popular culture. What a trickster! 
And now we draw the semester to a close by projecting hip ten years or more into The Future. So, I guess the question in my mind is should I pursue the idea of “hip” as a representation of popular culture? Or should I follow Leland’s lead and project race relations 10 years from now? Urgh. Maybe the biggest question of all is will I be able to escape my past and reinvent myself as an idividual who never thinks about "hip" again?
I'm not sure you need to make at choice (or distinction) between the two. I think what Leland has done is to explore the interactions of race in the context of popular culture, how one reflects and directs the other.
ReplyDeleteIt's all mixed up, and I don't think there is any separating the two, not really. And I think that's part of the beauty of Leland's book.