Fringe and Fortune: The Role of Critics in High and Popular ArtWhy does the distinction between high and popular art persist in spite of postmodernist predictions that it should vanish? Departing from the conventional view that such distinctions are class-related, Wesley Shrum concentrates instead on the way individuals form opinions about culture through the mediation of critics. He shows that it is the extent to which critics shape the reception of an art form that determines its place in the cultural hierarchy. Those who patronize "lowbrow" art--stand-up comedy, cabaret, movies, and popular music--do not heed critical opinions nearly as much as do those who patronize "highbrow" art--theater, opera, and classical music. Thus the role of critics is crucial to understanding the nature of cultural hierarchy and its persistence. Shrum supports his argument through an inquiry into the performing arts, focusing on the Edinburgh Fringe, the world's largest and most diverse art festival. |
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... means used in the creation of such effects . After much deliberation he settles on “ porridge and raspberries . ” The youth is an avid consumer of art , no less than the critic . He craves understanding of the genre , and cues whereby ...
... mean by mediation and they are the focus here . Opera may be attended by the upper classes , but the upper classes do not like all the opera they see and certainly do not attend all the opera they could . General background factors do ...
... mean by high - status art forms . “ Serious ” works are those works about which critical talk is relevant . The idea of highbrow mediation entails that the role of experts depends on the art form . “ Experts , " as the term is used here ...
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Contents
10 | |
CHAPTER | 25 |
CHAPTER | 42 |
CHAPTER THREE | 63 |
TABLES | 69 |
CHAPTER FOUR | 83 |
Assembly Rooms | 85 |
CHAPTER FIVE | 109 |
CHAPTER SEVEN | 144 |
CHAPTER EIGHT | 165 |
CHAPTER NINE | 181 |
CHAPTER | 193 |
EPILOGUE | 213 |
NOTES | 229 |
BIBLIOGRAPHY | 265 |
CHAPTER | 125 |