Problematizing the Global: An Introduction to Global Culture Revisited

This paper serves as an introduction to the special section on Global Culture Revisited which commemorates the thirtieth anniversary of the publication of the 1990 Global Culture special issue. It examines the development of interest in the various strands of globalization and the question of whether there can be a global culture. The paper discusses the emergence of alternative global histories and the problematization of global knowledge. It examines the view that the current covid-19 pandemic signals a turning point, or change of epoch, that marks the end of peak globalization (Gray, Mignolo). The paper also discusses the view that global was always a limited cartographic term which failed to adequately grasp our terrestrial location on the Earth (Latour). Currently, there is considerable speculation about the emergent politics of a new world order, with civilizational states set alongside nation-states, opening up an epoch of greater pluriversality, and at the same time greater uncertainty

Whither Globalization? An interview with Roland Robertson

In this interview to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Theory Culture & Society special issue on Global Culture, Roland Robertson reflects on his long involvement as one of the major theorists of globalization. He recounts how in his early years as a sociologist there was strong resistance to thinking beyond the nation-state society. He comments on the emergence of the field of interdisciplinary global studies, the concern with global culture and his own attempts to extend the concept of globalization by developing the term glocalization. He also discusses the present covid-19 pandemic and ends with a number of reflections on world history

Mary Douglas on Purity and Danger: An Interview

This interview with Mary Douglas took place at Lancaster University in the Religious Studies Department. The main focus of the interview was her recently published book, Purity and Danger, which had already become a classic of British anthropology. The questions and answers ranged mainly over the differences between the physical body, representations of the body, the body as a classificatory system, and social constructivism. Douglas’s early academic years and the influences on her work, such as the role of Roman Catholicism in her childhood and youth, were discussed. The interview concluded with speculation about the connections between anthropology and colonialism, and how she responded to those developments

The web in marketing : information cue usage in two commercial domains

The study reported in this paper involves a comparison of Resnik &amp; Stern&rsquo;s (e.g., 1977) information cue usage in websites registered in two commercial domains of the World Wide Web (Web)&mdash;.com (global domain managed by VeriSign) and .com.au (a country domain, auDomain, managed by the Australian Domain Name Administrator&mdash;AUDA). The hypothesised higher use of information cues by digital marketers with .com registered domain names relative to .com.au registered domain names is not supported. Examination of the audited websites in the two-domain comparison confirms that the Web provides a richer marketing communication medium than other media analysed in a meta-analysis of 117 datasets by Abernethy &amp; Franke (1996). The study is important given the acknowledged influence of advertising information on consumer responses to ads and the brands they relate, to both in traditional and new media (Aaker &amp; Stayman, 1990; Brown &amp; Stayman, 1992; Bruner &amp; Kumar, 2000).<br /

LOCALISMO, GLOBALISMO E IDENTIDADE CULTURAL

This article develops a critique of simplistic and generalizing interpretations of the globalization process which emphasize either homogenization or fragmentation. The author seeks to underline the complexity of the issue, given contemporary hegemonic situation as well as preservation, adaptation and resistance strategies, employing theoretical arguments illustrated by concrete examples. The article concludes with the proposal of another model for the interpretation of the cultural globalization process, based on the social relations between established and outsider groups.L’article entâme une critique des interprétations du processus de globalisation. Ces interprétations font ressortir soit l’homogénéisation soit la fragmentation produites par ce processus. L’auteur cherche à montrer la complexité du problème face aux situations d’hégémonie et les stratégies de preservation, d’adaptation ou de resistance des cultures locales et particulières, à travers une argumentation théorique illustrée par de nombreux exemples. L’auteur propose alors un autre modèle d’interpretation du processus de globalisation culturelle basé sur les rapports sociaux entre groupes “établis” et “forains”.Este artigo faz uma crítica às interpretações simplistas do processo de globalização que destacam ou a homogeneização ou a fragmentação. O autor procura mostrar a complexidade da questão diante de situações hegemônicas e de estratégias de preservação, adaptação ou resistência de culturas locais e particulares, através da argumentação teórica, ilustrada por vários exemplos de casos concretos. Propõe um outro modelo para a interpretação do processo de globalização cultural baseado na relação social entre grupos “estabelecidos” e “forasteiros”

Životni stil i potrošačka kultura

Preveo: Sven Marceli

The Metropolis and Evangelical Life: Coherence and Fragmentation in the ‘Lost City of London’

This article examines the interplay of different processes of cultural and subjective fragmentation experienced by conservative evangelical Anglicans, based on an ethnographic study of a congregation in central London. The author focuses on the evangelistic speaking practices of members of this church to explore how individuals negotiate contradictory norms of interaction as they move through different city spaces, and considers their response to tensions created by the demands of their workplace and their religious lives. Drawing on Georg Simmel’s ‘The Metropolis and Mental Life’, the author argues that their faith provides a sense of coherence and unity that responds to experiences of cultural fragmentation characteristic of everyday life in the city, while simultaneously leading to a specific consciousness of moral fragmentation that is inherent to conservative evangelicalism

Star Architects, Urban Spectacles and Global Brands: Exploring the Case of the Tokyo Olympics 2020

Olympic stadia are often regarded as a political showcase involving a range of influences: the host nation’s international politics, the interests of transnational capitalism along with site-specific meanings and the power of iconic architecture. By examining the 2020 Tokyo Olympic main stadium as a case study, the paper analyzes the controversial Zaha Hadid’ stadium plan in relation to the Japanese nation branding initiative. In doing so, the paper argues that ‘branding’ should be seen as part of an economic and cultural system which seems to enhance the global value of iconic architects and their buildings. Yet, the power of brands can be understood as a contingent entity. This is because its ambivalenct nature entails a tension between exclusiveness and banality; additionally, it could be difficult for branded architects to work across the different regimes of global and local politics; and they are of course also constrained by the logic of neoliberal transnational capitalism. By investigating a major global branded architect, Zaha Hadid and her architecture plan, the paper considers why a new image of Japan could not be adequately created by Hadid’s aesthetics and narratives of the Olympic stadium which should be regarded as a national cultural legacy. The paper then discusses the contested processes of image-making and narrative creation in relation to the representation of Japan in contemporary Olympic culture. The paper concludes with an examination of Kengo Kuma’s architecture language in his 2020 Tokyo Olympics stadium design

The Olympic Games in Japan and East Asia: Images and Legacies: An Introduction

Introduction to The International Journal of Japanese Sociology Special Issue: 'The Olympic Games in Japan and East Asia: Images and Legacies,' edited by Mike Featherstone & Tomoko Tamar

Digital play and the actualisation of the consumer imagination

In this article, the authors consider emerging consumer practices in digital virtual spaces. Building on constructions of consumer behavior as both a sense-making activity and a resource for the construction of daydreams, as well as anthropological readings of performance, the authors speculate that many performances during digital play are products of consumer fantasy. The authors develop an interpretation of the relationship between the real and the virtual that is better equipped to understand the movement between consumer daydreams and those practices actualized in the material and now also in digital virtual reality. The authors argue that digital virtual performances present opportunities for liminoid transformations through inversions, speculations, and playfulness acted out in aesthetic dramas. To illustrate, the authors consider specific examples of the theatrical productions available to consumers in digital spaces, highlighting the consumer imagination that feeds them, the performances they produce, and the potential for transformation in consumer-players