Calling all amateur sociologists to thread...

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

Okay, so it's nigh time to work on my final paper for a sociological theory class. I've chosen the topic of identity formation in adolescents (roughly shooting for 12-17) and how cultural artifacts, specifically music, plays a role in the process of members of this age group "finding themselves". I know this is not untrodden ground, but I've always been curious about this issue in an amateur's capacity, and now I have the chance to ruminate about it for upwards of 10-12 pages. Here's my question: can anyone recommend some good sources for research purposes? Scholarly books and articles are the most welcome, but I'm also willing to look at informal essays, though I likely won't quote them. So far the only text I definitely have in mind is Dick Hebdige's "Subculture". My school has a decent library of social theory, though it's not incredibly current, but that's what the Internet is for. Any takers? Your input is greatly appreciated and will make a budding undergraduate sociologist squirm with glee.

― justin s., Wednesday, 7 May 2003 03:34 (twenty-two years ago)

Hebdige was part of the Center For Cultural Studies at the University of Birmingham, if i remember correctly, led by Stuart Hall. There's a couple of anthologies they put out ('Resistance Through Rituals' is the name of a good one, i think, as is 'Culture, Language, Media') that discuss a number of youth movements etc. Also Simon Frith was a sociologist, so maybe there's something of worth in his stuff?

― Dave M. (rotten03), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 03:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Paul Willis and Angela McRobbie, maybe?

― rosemary (rosemary), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 03:53 (twenty-two years ago)

As I've already mentioned in this forum before - the most interesting interventions/insight that has recently occurred, in my opinion, is in Gender Studies and PopCult -see in particular I Want It That Way by Gayle Wald, and the canonical piece, 'Beatlemania: Girls Just Want to Have Fun' by Barbara Ehrenreich...etc. or 'The Gendered Carnival of Pop' by Diane Railton in Popular Music for a redemptive reading of chart music and teenage girls, rather than the 'boys will be boys' subcultural studies work of Hebdige, which has been cited and exploited to DEATH. And McRobbie, of course...

It kind of fits into the whole ILM Pop Project, particularly FreakyTrigger, you know...

― mdieter, Wednesday, 7 May 2003 06:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Here, sorry

― mdieter, Wednesday, 7 May 2003 06:44 (twenty-two years ago)

find a book called My Music--Charles Keil is one of the authors. they interviewed 30 or so different people and asked what music meant to them in ordinary life. not totally the same as what you're trying to do but it might be helpful.

― M Matos (M Matos), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 07:05 (twenty-two years ago)

possibly impracticable, in re looking and finding, but frank kogan's WHY MUSIC SUCKS zine, issues #1-13, shd be required reading on this topic

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 10:36 (twenty-two years ago)

There was a good essay I read having a go at Hebidge but helpfully I can't remember where I read it, who it was by or what it was called, except the title contained the word "Skijumpers". Basically he was saying that Hebidge (or to be fair the 'Hebidge school') has a starry-eyed notion of subcultural 'cool' and that everybody ignores the probability that most teenagers aren't actually cool at all, they're a bit ordinary and naff.

― Tico Tico (Tico Tico), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 10:39 (twenty-two years ago)

possibly (?):

Defending Ski Jumpers: A Critique of Theories of Youth Subculture, by Gary Clarke

― mark s (mark s), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 10:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Thanks Mark!

The second essay in the book it's from is good as well, a look at gender roles in a local 'scene'. But it's less about broader identity formation and more about the actual practise of music-making communities.

― Tico Tico (Tico Tico), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 10:46 (twenty-two years ago)

Stanley Cohen's "Folk Devils & Moral Panics" is a brilliant study of mods/rockers in the 60s, but relevant to all subsequent youth/music movements (in UK at least)

― bham, Wednesday, 7 May 2003 11:24 (twenty-two years ago)

My sociology lecturer once said that some sociologist who had studied
British class-based subcultures thought that working-class youth listen to loud rock music, because it reminds them of the sounds of the heavy machinery at the factories they work in! Talk about stupid comparisons! I can't remember the sociologist's name, but this was like a famous study or something.

When I was working at a factory, all I wanted to hear afterwards was ambient and bossa nova...

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 11:27 (twenty-two years ago)

A book called summat like 'Music In everyday Life' by Tia DeNora; a book called 'Nobrow' by John Seabrook.

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 12:50 (twenty-two years ago)

i definitely second the Birmingham School lit recommended (Stuart Hall, Angela McRobbie, John Clark(e?)-definitely check out Resistance through Rituals)-Paul Willis and Simon Frith are worth looking into as well.
If you're looking for more traditional sociological theory perhaps Georg Simmel (there's a relevant essay "On Fashion" in On Individuality and Social Forms) and George Herbert Mead would be helpful as well.
There is also a significant amount of more recent literature (post-Birmingham school) that I unfortunately cannot remember authors/titles right now, but if you can wait until tomorrow I can easily get a bibliography of a similar project and let you know!

― emily bee (emilybee), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 14:06 (twenty-two years ago)

Hands down, the book(s) you need to get are "A Misfit's Manifesto: The Spiritual Journey of a Rock N Roll Heart" (your best bet) and "Teenage Wasteland: Suburbia's Dead-End Kids" by the incomparable and brilliant Dr. Donna Gaines. www.DonnaGaines.com *She is my idol*

― Jeanne Fury (Jeanne Fury), Wednesday, 7 May 2003 14:30 (twenty-two years ago)

You people are fucking great. Thank you all so much.

Emily, if you don't mind and would like to pull up that bibliography for me, I would really appreciate it... the paper's not due until next Tuesday, so I have a fair amount of time left to gather sources, prepare an outline, and then stay up until 6am Monday night working on it.

Again, to everyone who posted so far, a million thanks!

― justin s., Thursday, 8 May 2003 00:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Chelsea Starr to thread!

― Chris Barrus (Chris Barrus), Thursday, 8 May 2003 03:51 (twenty-two years ago)

justin-i just emailed you a bunch of stuff, fyi!

― emily bee (emilybee), Thursday, 8 May 2003 14:21 (twenty-two years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.