Comparison between Venice Beach CA and the articles of Dick Hebdige
Culture is a diverse aspect that every person has to understand for a better existence in society. It is a dynamic aspect as it is subject to change. Different authors directed their efforts towards writing about the different elements of culture. One of these scholars is Dick Hebdige, whose articles prove to be significant in this essay. The articles under focus are titled ‘The Unnatural Break’ and ‘Function of Subculture.’ The articles present both known and unknown cultural elements, and it requires a reader to critically evaluate them and apply the elements to their surroundings. It is worth noting that culture calls for a good reading of the world surrounding people and recognizing the interaction processes between different aspects like institutions, spectators and media texts. Therefore, this paper compares Venice Beach with Dick’s articles, which are mentioned above.
The different insights and thoughts in the articles inform the analysis and description of Venice.
Venice Beach is a town found in California and it is known for its commercial, residential, and recreational services across the world. The activities make the culture of the town to be unique. A person needs to have visited or stayed in the town to understand the cultural uniqueness to apply the read aspects to it. In the ‘Function of Subculture,’ Hedges argues that cultures are determined by specificity and conjuncture. Subculture represents communal engagements, and the factors that help their organization include class, age and activities (Hebdige, 1999). Linking this idea to Venice, it is easy to notice different artists prefer performing on the beach as it is composed of their target audience. This has a history from the birth of different music groups and artists, including the rock band known as ‘The Doors,’ Perry Farrell and Jane’s Addiction. The crossover music and hardcore metal musical hybrid are common in Venice Beach, and they lead to the formation of the music subculture in the area. Many musicians have been born and resided in the area, and they helped develop the music culture that the beach is well known for (Klug, 2017). Most of the residents celebrate the music love culture as it represents its social position, while some people criticize the type of music on the beach as they think it is a problem of culture. The occurrence agrees with Hebdige’s thinking that any culture style brings out a double response. The first response is that it has an alternative celebration. The second response is the ridiculing of the style culture by the people who consider it a social problem (Hebdige, 1979). Therefore, Hebdige’s arguments have an application to the subcultures of Venice.
The youthful position greatly influences the culture of Venice. This is the reason why there are games that are played by the youths that visit the beach. For example, some shops sell surfboards, bicycles and roller stakes to visitors. Therefore, the economy of the beach depends on tourism to a large extent. Borrowing from Hebdige’s idea, the youth culture has a close relation to the polarization process. The increased spending by the working class, which is majorly made up of the youth, result in the creation of markets meant to absorb the increasing surplus, which is an aspect that is evident in Venice Beach (Hebdige, 1999). The youth consider class being meaningful, which is why various authors have written about the youth’s trending styles. The same applies to Venice, where the youth are characterized by the trending fashion styles that help differentiate their class levels. The social group of Venice’s youth has developed a distinct life pattern that defines their social expression. Hebdige helps understand the development of subcultures on the beach as his aspects have a deep relation to them.
It is a fact that most cultures have historical rooting, and Venice is not an exception. There are many historical monuments in Venice include the Venice Public Art Walls. The walls were on the Venice Pavilion building, and most people considered them ‘graffiti pits.’ There is a period when using the walls for imagery was considered illegal, but the aspect has changed with time. It is a beloved area for artists to showcase their experience through drawings (Koza, 2020). Therefore, art and graffiti make up part of the Venice subculture. An analysis of the art from Hebdige’s writing helps understand the element well. According to the author, the historical ties are unbreakable. He gives an example of the teddy bear styles that resulted from some historical events, including the upper-class style in the 1970s and narcissism (Hebdige, 1999).
Another notable subculture of the beach is the street performers. It is normal to be welcomed by various street performers in different locations. They form an entertainment source that helps them generate some income from both the tourists and the residents. Hebdige argues that some symbolic objects and styles come up as a result of unity, which helps people express themselves in different situations and experiences (Hebdige, 1979). The street performers are taken as symbolic objects of Venice Beach as they represent part of the beach’s subculture. The performances have a basis on the beach’s experiences and situations to get to understand what to expect during their visits.
Finally, there is an appreciation of the cultural diversity of other people. The tourists visiting the beach have different cultures, but surprisingly, none of the cultures have influenced Venice’s culture. It can easily be summarized in a simple statement: When you visit Venice, you have to do what Venice’s people do. The exposure to different subcultures makes people learn a lot. Hebdige says that the people that belong to the same subculture share a common language (Hebdige, 1999). A better part of the beach population speaks English because of its geographical location in the United States. The different visitors that visit the area speak other languages. However, the varying languages do not influence the English language that residents of the area speak. Borrowing from what the media and different spectators say, Venice Beach is among the best destinations worldwide for anyone who wants to go for a vacation and experience new things. It is a clean beach that has good security and safeguards the interests of the visitors. Different blogs have. The interpretation of the subcultures based on Hebdige’s articles provide a good view of the beach. The essay has an excellent analysis of the application of Hebdige’s concepts and the subcultures of Venice. The analysis and interpretation may vary for different people, and the element gives room for more research to be done on the subject.
References
Hebdige, D. (1979). Subculture: The unnatural break. na.
Hebdige, D. (1999). The function of subculture. The cultural studies reader, 2, 441-450.
Klug, D. (2017). These Kind of Dreams: Dystopian Depictions of California in the Music Video “Californication.”
Koza, A. (2020). Grove Hall Public Art Project: Impact on Community and Cityscape (Doctoral dissertation).