Introduction
Russia is one of the countries with the oldest and richest culture around the globe. Intertwined with several factors, the country has continuously witnessed a transformation of its culture and influence from other countries throughout history.
It boasts its excellence in arts with special recognition to philosophy, painting, literature, cinema, architecture and music among other artistic aspects. Additionally, Russia has strong roots in technology and material culture, which are considered as major factors which have significantly affected its popular culture.
It is believed that Russian culture originated from Eastern Europe whose occupants adopted a particular way of living as pagans.
According to research, Russia was tremendously influenced by the Western Europe culture during different moments of its history. With the reforms of leaders like Peter the Great who had diverse ideas, the country continued to develop within the context of European culture for two centuries as opposed to pursuing its own culture (Fleron 1996).
Nevertheless, this was not to continue in the 20th century following the emergence of the communist ideology that played a major role in the culture of the Soviet Union like no other part of the world. Regardless of these transformations and cultural interferences, the country’s cultural heritage comes seventh according to the Nation Brands Index.
It, therefore, follows that there are several factors which have affected Russian popular culture throughout history with a number of these emanating from the country’s interaction with other countries via economic relationships, politics and wars among others.
One of these factors, which according to analysts has immensely influenced Russian culture, is technology. This paper explores how technology affected the development of Russian popular culture in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. To achieve this core objective, the research makes use of up to date sources like books and journals and authentic websites.
Popular culture
This generally refers to people’s ideas, memes, perspectives and other phenomenon that are recognized through an informal agreement within the conventional culture of a given country or community (Danesi 2008, p. 2). Popular culture is highly influenced and propagated by the media as it touches ones daily life.
It has also been argued to be trivial and seeks consensual acknowledgement from the mainstream culture like religious groups and countercultural organizations. Notably, the approach is always malicious and corrupted as propagators may focus on achieving individualized objectives which do not appreciate cultural totality and inclusivity.
The term “popular culture” was commonly used during 19th century to refer to education and cultural transformation of people who belonged to the lower class in the society.
This allowed members of such groups to assume certain aspects of a culture that would identify them as opposed to their counterparts with “true education” in the upper social class (Danesi 2008, p. 3). Due to the countless events that have taken place in the world, the expression “popular culture” has gained new meaning, originating from the United States in the 1960s.
Characterized by hip-hop music, popular culture has largely shaped the mainstream culture of America and other countries around the world. Importantly, its impact has been far reaching with countless cultural settings being assimilated by the popular culture.
According to Stites’ 1992 research, popular culture no longer refers to the culture of peasants and artisans as it was known before. This is mainly because of modernization which has impacted almost every sphere of human life.
He notes that the entire notion of popular culture has been changed by factors which include but not limited to industrialization, commercialization, mass communication, literary professionalism, politicization and social mobility (Stites 1992, p. 1).
Due to influence of the media, some people have gone ahead to denote it as a “mass” culture in the sense that it affects more people as compared to historic days when it was associated with smaller groups of people.
Nevertheless, popular culture has the ability to affect the emotions of people as it is passed over in the form of songs, folk tales or stories which have a flow that define their plot.
The most important thing about popular culture is the ability to reveal the external truth being sought which would otherwise be erased. Additionally, popular culture targets to provide answers to big questions together with determining certain values and the manner in which people are expected to behave.
Moreover, the penetration of the popular culture in Russia was not easy as people viewed it as a friend and foe of the status quo during its introduction in then 19th century (Curtis 1996). Many Russians saw the culture as a social problem when it began in the West and associated it with violence and ability to drain the moral fabric of the lower class.
Although these claims raised debates and discrepancies, it is worth noting that popular culture usually diminishes the impact of the “real” art as people get carried away from what is conventionally acceptable as culture.
With existing varying issues over the impact and benefits of the Russian culture, many affirm that politics and politicians played a major role in shaping and redefining the country’s culture through ideologies and association with the West.
As discussed by Stites, culture which has been created for elites to cater for their needs could also be considered popular. How is this culture communicated and passed to other people in the society? There are channels which have significantly contributed to the spread and influence of popular culture in Russia.
Mass audiences are able to interact with culture through schools and colleges where educationists are empowered to influence learners through a customized curriculum that addresses the need to embrace culture. Additionally, a lot of communication and popular culture broadcasting are done through the media say, television, radio, films and movies among others channels (Stites 1992).
Through this approach, several groups are reached including those that may fall outside the target domain. As such, popular culture has affected different people in Russia as facilitated by the media industry. By the fact that mass audiences usually have varying tastes for popular culture most of these channels of culture transmission incorporate diverse cultural features to capture more people.
On the basis of global interference from other parts of the world, the Soviet possessed several universal features which were mainly dictated and designed by producers who were always driven by their desire to have their products consumed by the public (Brooks 2010).
In this regard, celebrities have also used media technology to influence the public and propagate popular culture in Russia. This is based on the fact that celebrities significantly control the public and may promote the adoption of a certain behavior, fashion, language, music or movie among others.
Through several media options available in Russia, celebs have reached out to a wide range of people including young and old. As a result, many people wished to be associated with some individual celebs by acquiring some of their performance styles, behavior and fashion among other aspects of culture.
Since the introduction of television, movies and cinemas in Russia, the country’s culture has been influenced by infiltration from other parts of the world. Stites noted that the transfer of Odessa comedy and several song rhythms to Moscow was one of the most striking instances throughout the historic transition of culture (Stites 1992).
In understanding Russian popular culture and the manner in which it has been affected by technology, it is imperative to consider the major events which occurred and impacted the lives of majority in the country.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian Empire witnessed agrarian change, industrialization and urbanization, stages which redefined the lifestyles and levels of interaction. Factories were established, allowing people to meet and interact at workplaces. As a result, an atmosphere was created to allow the growth and spread the country’s popular culture.
People were expected to commute to their places of work using train on a daily basis. This further augmented their interaction with people from different parts of the country in speech, songs and fashion among other dimensions of culture.
Many researchers believe that the urban morphology of Russia resembled other societies before its destruction in 1917. This led to improved living standards which allowed a number of people to acquire and consume middle-class products including culture (Stites 1992, p. 9).
In addition, advancement in technology facilitated an expanded rail network, telephone, automobiles, cinema, photographs and cameras. There was also massive intake of foreign styles which found their way in Russia through advanced channels of transport, communication and media.
Through these improved links, Russians developed an appetite for exotic culture as they got exposed to Gypsy, Caucasian and Jewish cultures. Nevertheless, there were social problems which arose leading to the widening gap between the elite and masses, a factor that contributed to widespread animosity, pogroms and numerous strikes (Brooks 2010).
Consequently, many Silver Age artists diverted their attention from the social problems which existed at the moment towards the adoption and championing of the popular culture. There was the emergence of street hooliganism that emanated during café performances in towns.
In other words, popular culture was closely associated with violence as members revolted against the Russian “respectable” culture which mainly consisted of the elites and the rich. This trend was adopted by most people as it was demonstrated through social tension, thirst for information through newspapers, scandals, urban consciousness and crime.
With improved mobility which was augmented by advancement in automobile industry, there was an increase in mobile theater companies and boat tours, allowing music, dances, and folk tales to reach more people than before (Fleron 1996, p. 226).
With the emergence of industries and organized social groups, Russians preferred self-generated entertainment which varied broadly based on different social classes which existed. Modest entertainment was common among the middle class as it was mainly dictated by leisure time, size of income and inherited values among others.
Similarly, the 20th century was characterized by American and European music as it was commonly used in several Russian functions. Some of the songs and styles which were adopted included the tango, the one-step and the cake-walk which were mainly introduced in the country by foreigners and Russian travelers coming from other parts of the world.
Other cases also involved choreographic spies sent from other places to record new steps in the country. Most of these songs were meant for the upper class, as it were, in the New York City. However, they were adopted by the masses and used against the upper class as the gap between the two social groups continued to widen (Stites 1992, p. 11).
It is important to appreciate the fact that this movement of visitors and foreigners from different parts of the world was mainly facilitated by improved technology, especially with the automobile industry. Many people found it easy and convenient to travel because of an established railway network that connected several major towns in Europe and America.
As mentioned before, media technology played a major role in promoting popular culture in Russia. Analysts agree that pictorial material was important in defining the culture of a given group of people. Through combined efforts, several book illustrations and postcards were produced to replace the lubok art.
Later on, several foreign advertising companies flocked the country to join cartoon and caricature production. Importantly, pictures and posters were considered to be essential elements of culture as they depicted emotions, nostalgia and texture (Stites 1992, p. 26). This concept of pictures further triggered the mind of many to explore animations, leading to the ability to record, movies and plays.
On the other hand, postcards became common and important toolkit for teaching huge crowds of people who included peasant buyers. They were taught how to dress thus popularizing a romantic image among Russians although it had earlier been possessed by the educated class.
Common entertainment was significantly influenced by the artistic finishing from graphic technologists who focused at capturing and winning the mind taste of different audiences. It, therefore, suffices to mention that pictorial art was not only a channel of spreading popular culture in Russia but also a segment of Russian culture.
Additionally, movie and film production technology advanced popular culture as it moved theater industry to a new level of entertainment. Most movie producers who first entered into the industry were talented and focused at promoting the culture of their nation.
Due to this advancement, movie audiences became leading by 1914, comprising of students, writers, police officers businessmen, clerks, the elites and almost everybody else in Russia (Beumers 2005, p. 3).
Movie entertainment sold more than any other form of entertainment as many people got introduced to the movie world. It is argued that advertising technology further promoted the industry based on the skills and creativity that was employed in their design. This led to successful wooing of audiences and making it rise above other forms of entertainment.
Conclusion
From the above analysis, it is evident that Russian popular has undergone countless transformational stages throughout human history. The country experienced events and seasons which impacted on its culture. Interaction with Europe and America further affected its culture as Russian visitors and foreigners influenced its population.
Many Russians adopted Western culture, resulting into the division between the elites and the lower classes that remained parallel as they walked on different cultural paths.
However, of importance is the role played by technology. Evidently, technology allowed the propagation and refinement of popular culture throughout the 20th century. Media technology promoted music and movie industry as other discoveries promoted movement and social interaction among people of varying caliber.
References
Beumers, B 2005, Pop culture Russia: media, arts, and lifestyle, ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara, California.
Brooks, J 2010, ‘The Russian Nation Imagined: The Peoples Of Russia As Seen In Popular Imagery, 1860s-1890s’, Journal of Social History, Vol. 43 no. 3, pp. 535-557.
Curtis, G 1996, Russia: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress. Web.
Danesi, M 2008, Popular culture: introductory perspectives, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, Maryland.
Fleron F 1996, ‘Post-Soviet Political Culture in Russia: An Assessment of Recent Empirical Investigations’, Europe-Asia Studies, Vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 225-260.
Stites, A 1992, Russian popular culture: entertainment and society since 1900, Cambridge University Press, Santa Barbara, California.