The Various Contemporary Issues that Bolstered Popular Culture

As a medium for the masses, popular culture is a channel that can be described as a democracy: it is
made by the people, for the people.

Social Classes and Class Struggle

A social class is a group of people within a society who possess the same socioeconomic status.
 lower class - large group of people who live along or below the poverty line. “desperate times call
for desperate measures” (Money and Happiness).
 middle class ‘working class’ - largest and most diverse group of people who lives along and beyond
the poverty line. Their income is sufficient to provide some. It serves as the backbone of the
economy.
 upper class small group of people who live beyond the poverty line. They have the means to gain
all the basic necessities in life – which leads them to invest more in their lives and live in luxury.

Indian caste system - The most famous social class system.

The caste is divided into two (2) major groups, with one (1) group further subdivided into four (4)
sections.
 First group is the service of the nobility and the divine.
 Second group is the service of the common folk who, in turn, can also serve the first group.
caste system was borne out of the Islamic Rule in the 13 th century, reinforced during the British
Occupation.

The Filipino caste system has changed over the years. It’s very first iteration was during the pre-colonial
period, where men and women shared equal opportunity.
 Datu and Babaylan – the highest position in Filipino society.
Babaylan - the highest religious position covered by Filipino women and homosexual men.
Datu - the highest position that leads the barangay.
 Maharlika - the feudal lords who agreed to band with each other as an unbreakable alliance.
when one of them is elected to be the datu, the rest become the Vassals (people who hold
theland under a more powerful leader for allegiance).
Their Western counterparts are the Nobility.
 Maginoo - group of people that served under the maharlika as their vassals.
Their Western counterparts are the gentry.
 Timawa - people who lived freely and in the service of the land. (ordinary folk, scholars, and
merchants.)
 Alipin - the lowest major caste in the pre-colonial Filipino caste system.
o Aliping namamahay - workers of the land, similar to peasants in Western feudal classes.
o Aliping saguiguilid - the lowest of the low because they represent actual slaves. prisoners of
war from other tribes or communities, they worked tirelessly in order to earn their freedom.
The Casta system is an incentivized system wherein each casta pays taxes based on their racial
heritage.
 Indios (Filipinos) and Aetas (Aetas and other indigenous tribes) had base taxes; they paid the
minimum amount of tax.
 Sangleys pay quadruple the base tax due to them being Chinese.
 Blancos, the top three (3) classifications, were exempted from paying taxes.
Mestizajes pay taxes, however, despite having mixed heritage. This is because not all members of
the mestizaje contain Spanish blood. The mestizo de sangley, for example, were required to pay
double the base tax due to their Chinese-Filipino heritages.
o Insulares - the first natural-born Filipinos with pure Spanish blood. called as ‘Filipinos’.
o Americanos - Spaniards born from the American colonies. They were exempted from paying
taxes and held power and influence next to the Peninsulares.
o Peninsulares - They were exempted from paying taxes and held the most power and
influence.
o Mestizajes – were a varied casta because they comprised four (4) mixed heritages, of which
they had their own hierarchy.
 Mestizo de Español - the highest of the four (4) because it is the intermarriage of a Filipino
and a Spaniard. no taxes since they had Spanish blood in them.
 Tornatras - someone with Spanish and Chinese blood. considered as the odd ones because
their mixed heritages meant that their taxations were also confusing.
 Mestizo de Bombay - Filipino and Bombay (Indian) heritages. the mestizo de Bombay paid
no taxes since Indians were not part of the casta.
 Mestizo de Sangley - Filipino and Chinese heritages. The lowest among the four (4), they
paid fewer taxes from a Chinese standpoint but paid more than indios.

when there’s a disparity between social classes, class struggles would inevitably follow.
1. The fall of aristocracy -- and the Tsardom – in Russia marked the beginning of the Soviet Union.
Portrayed in international films such as Romanovy: Ventsenosnaya semya (EN: The Romanovs: An
Imperial Family) and the animated film Anastasia, the fall of the Tsardom and the rise of Marxism
came about after Nicholas II abdicated the throne as a result of the February Revolution.
2. Ernesto “Che” Guevara - the countercultural movement and rebellion, which earned him
dichotomous infamy. “Public Enemy No. 1” of the United States.
3. revolutionaries that fought against foreign rule. Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal, Diego Silang, and
his wife Gabriela, and Antonio Luna, represented class struggle and injustice
4. During the Marcos period, people began to notice the rise of cronyism (the partial treatment of
a leader to his associates by giving them high positions in a system)
nepotism (the partial treatment of a leader to his family and friends by giving them high
positions in a system).
-This period is still remembered in the Mendiola Massacre, the cancellation of Voltes V, in the
novel (eventually became a film) Dekada ’70, and to prominent figures of this period such as
Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr., Bonifacio “Boni” Ilagan, and (infamously) the Marcos family to
name a few.
 -This period is the Desaparecidos (Martial Law victims that are still missing to this day), crony,
and Imeldific (uniquely Filipino, not used internationally), to name a few.

The idea of class struggle is evident

In music: Upuan (by GLOC-9), Tatsulok (by Bamboo), and Gangsta’s Paradise (by Coolio) In films:
Snowpiercer and Parasite (directed by Bong Joon-ho), El Hoyo (EN: The Platform, by Galder Gaztelu-
Urrutia) and The Purge (by James DeMonaco) In musicals: Les Misérables and Miss Saigon

Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression Humans experience several changes in their
bodies when they reach the puberty stage. Generally, this is the period of self-discovery.

 Sex - biological trait that determines one’s reproductive function based on the gametes present.
two (2) sexes:
male (for sperm-carrying gametes)
female (for ovum- carrying gametes).
Intersex people - hermaphrodites (a portmanteau of the Greek gods Hermes and Aphrodite).
 Gender - characteristics of women, men, boys, and girls that are socially constructed.
Two (2) terms of gender:
- Gender identity
- Expression
 Sexual orientation - to describe one’s inclination to another person in terms of romance,
emotions, and sexual urges.
Two (2) categories:
 Androphilia - to describe one’s attraction to men and/or masculinity.
gay (homosexual) - Men who are attracted to other men
heterosexual (straight) - women who are attracted to men
 Gynephilia - to describe one’s attraction to women and/or femininity.
Lesbian (homosexual) - women who are attracted to other women.
o Bisexuals (ambiphilia) - experiencing both androphilia and gynephilia.
o Pansexual (ambiphilic) - they are attracted to all people regardless of sexual orientation, they
love all sexes (and genders).
o asexual - people with no sexual attraction to other sexual orientations or genders.
Gender identity - to describe one’s self-evaluation regarding their gender. Everything can dictate
one’s gender, but only the self can identify who they are and who they will show to the world.
o cisgender - People whose gender is identified with the sex they are born in are categorized
under.
cis-male - Men who identify as male (regardless of sexual orientation)
cis-female - women who identify as female (regardless of sexual orientation)
o transgender - People whose gender is identified with the notion that they were born in the
wrong sex.
transwomen - Men who identify as female (regardless of sexual orientation)
transmen - women who identify as male (regardless of sexual orientation)
o genderqueer (queer) - their gender does not fall into either cis or trans.
o agender - in their perspective, there is no one gender that can describe them.
non-binary - they do not strictly conform to the categories of sexual orientation nor to the
categories of gender identity.
 Gender expression - to describe how people express their gender through actions, mannerisms, and
fashion choices.
Three (3) categories of gender expression.
 o Masculinity - expression whose qualities or attributes are regarded as characteristically male.
(strength, courage, independence, leadership, and assertiveness.
o Femininity - expression whose qualities or attributes are regarded as characteristically female.
(empathy, humility, gracefulness, gentleness, and sensitivity).
o Androgyny - expression of both male and female qualities or attributes. expressing gender-
neutral characteristics.
gender ambiguity – it may arise, which can lead to certain issues if people are not educated about the
gender spectrum such as the bathroom issue of Gretchen Diez. how to address them (pronouns
debate) and allowing transgendered people to compete in events.

Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression Bill (SOGIE Bill) is written and deliberated in the
Legislative branch. It ensures that everyone enjoys the same human rights to live, to express
themselves and to be free of discrimination.
This bill includes:
 proper use of pronouns to address someone (he/him, she/her, they/them or sometimes one’s
name for people who want to be gender-neutral)
 Equal opportunities and
 Reduce, if not eliminate, gender discrimination.

Race, Racism, and Representation

humans are the only animals that define “race” as a social construct.

race - the idea that the human species is divided into distinct groups.
racism -the behaviors or attitudes that reflect and foster the belief

Racial Science
Since the Age of Exploration, the European explorers noted that their appearance is markedly different
from the other peoples they met on their voyages.
racial science – the inherent idea that humankind is split into separate and unequal races. used in
pseudoscientific research to propagate the concept “the basis on being human.”

Four (4) scientists of the 18th and 19th centuries were notable for promoting racial science.
 Carolus Linnaeus, “Father of Modern Taxonomy”
- paved the way to accurately differentiate species from one another. The very first scientist to sort
and “categorize” humans.
 Petrus Camper, “Dutch physician”
- believed that the ancient Greeks almost achieved human perfection – the ultimate basis on “what
is human-looking.
” Using facial angles, he studied how other races can be deemed “beautiful”
 Johan Friedrich Blumenbach “Caucasian”
- describe people that lived on the slopes of Mount Caucasus in Europe, essentially giving a racial
name to white people.
 Samuel George Morton, “Father of American School of Ethnography,”
- theorized that intelligence has a correlation to brain size.
Racial and Cultural Appropriation of Indigenous People
Appropriation - the conscientious act of taking something for one’s own gain, usually without the
expressed permission from the owner. It can be applied to any aspect of one’s life.
racial appropriation - the act of subjugating one race for the benefit of the other (slavery)
“Jim Crow policies” (laws that enforce racial segregation) being abolished and let people of color gain
recognition and acceptance, equality is not as widespread, and segregation is still evident.
Two (2) distinct names to the indigenous peoples.
- Luzon calls them Igorot (“mountaineer”)
- Mindanao calls them Lumad (“indigenous”)
These indigenous peoples used their collective names in identifying themselves.
 Igorot indigenous peoples
o Abra
 Tinguian
o Apayao
 Bontoc
 Gaddang
 Isneg
 Kalinga
o Benguet
 Ibaloi
 Kankanaey
o Ifugao
 Ifugao
o Isabela
 Gaddang
o Kalinga
 Bontoc
 Gaddang
 Isneg
 Kalinga
o Mountain Province
 Bontoc
o Nueva Vizcaya
 Ilongot
 Lumad indigenous peoples
o Bangsamoro (region)
 Tiruray (or Teduray)
o CARAGA (region)
 Banwa-on (or Banwaon)
 Talandig (or Talaandig)
 Manobo
 Kamigin
 Mamanwa
o Davao (region)
 Guiangga
 Manobo
 Ata
 Tagabawa
 Tagakaolo (or Tagakaulo)
 Mandaya
 Mansaka
 Kalagan
 T’boli (or Tagabili)
o North Mindanao (region)
 Bukidnon
  Manobo
 Ata
o SOCCSKSARGEN (region)
 Blaan
 Higaonon
 Mamanwa
 Manobo
 Ata
 Dulangan
 Tasaday
 Kulaman
 Sangil (or Sangir)
o Zamboanga Peninsula (region)
 Subanon (or Subanen)
o Undefined abode
 Magguangan
 Manobo
 Bagobo (nomadic)
 Clata (or Guiangan)
 Tagabawa
 Ubo (or Ovu)

There are other indigenous tribes in the Philippines

 Aetas in Eastern Luzon (Atis in the Visayas)
 Mangyans in Mindoro
 Badjaos in Sulu
 All the indigenous tribes in Palawan
cultural appropriation - the use of objects and/or elements of a non-dominant culture in ways that
either disrespect the sanctity of the material, discredit the origin of the material, reinforce
stereotypes, or contribute to racial oppression.

Ex.
- whitewashing in visual entertainment, where white people are cast into characters that are
people of color narrative-wise.
- on the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s in order to portray a Japanese character.
- casting of American actor Johnny Depp in the role of Tonto
- an American Indian, in the movie The Lone Ranger.
model minority myth. When Asians began to migrate to the United States, many nations
struggled to assimilate because of their strong cultural heritage
There are many forms of cultural appropriation, aside from the ones mentioned above. It can occur in:
 Intellectual property - stories and knowledge of the indigenous peoples not being recognized nor
credited
 Artifacts - American Indian feather headdresses worn in visual media without consent nor credit;
 Dance - voguing being credited to Madonna instead of the LGBTQIA+ communities
 Clothing and Fashion - Gucci selling US$ 800 turbans as an accessory
 Language - English language used by white people being the “proper” way to speak the language
 Music - rock music, where white people were credited for the genre and finding success
  Food - a Filipino running an eat-all-you-can ssamgyupsal business, never knowing that Koreans eat
ssamgyupsal as bar food

 Religious symbols - the revered Manji symbol of Buddhists being converted into the infamous
Swastika used by the Nazis
 Decorations - selling something as an ethnic decoration instead of naming where it comes from
 Medicine - ridiculing traditional medicine that truly works while accepting pseudoscientific
“traditional” medicine, such as homeopathy, crystal therapy as alternatives;
 Makeup - the “fox-eye makeup” trend in Tiktok that accentuates the eyes to be more slanted,
while Asians had to do eyelid surgery because their naturally slanted eyes were ridiculed and
mocked;
 Hairstyles - the cornrows as “okay” on whites but not on people of color, whereas it originally is
worn by black people
 Tattoos - Chinese scripts used as tattoos, never knowing what these scripts mean
 Wellness practices - people doing yoga without researching (or knowing) its religious roots.

Peace Studies
Since the 21st century is riddled with wars and other acts of violence left and right after the wars
that were wrought by the previous century, people have begun to study why wars start and how to
prevent and/or resolve any acts of violence. Now with fields of studies becoming interdisciplinary, a
new field of study was born: peace studies.

Peace studies - interdisciplinary field that cements itself on the studies on political science,
sociology, history, anthropology, theology, psychology, philosophy to provide one with an
understanding of how armed conflicts begin; to give ways on how to prevent and resolve them, and
to build peaceful and just systems and societies.

In popular culture, peace studies can take on some of the ideologies found in some countercultures
hippie movement - promotes peace
punk movement - acknowledges the flaws of the various government systems.

The Creation and Consumption of Popular Culture

Popular culture can be categorized into six (6) major groups. These major groups are the things that
affect everyone as humans, as people living on the same planet. popular culture is a form of
contemporary trend.

Contemporary Trends
Contemporary trends can be defined by combining the definitions of the individual words that
comprise them.
 Contemporary - is anything existing or happening within the same period.
Ex. Andy Warhol and Lino Brocka were contemporary artists of the 1900s despite having wildly
contrasting creative styles.
 trend - a prevailing inclination, a general movement, or a current preference.
Ex. Twitter keeps track of the current trending topics, events, or people through the use of
hashtags.
contemporary trends - current preferences occurring within the same time period.
Ex. Tiktok, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat are all trends that became famous in the early
21st century.
 Flops (Bombs) - popular culture icons that did not meet the standards for them to be considered
successful.
Ex. Sony Betamax, Apple Newton, and Nintendo’s VirtualBoy console.
 Fads - popular culture icons that gain a significant following. It do not last long and can be
replaced by the next “big thing” if given enough time and clamor.
Ex. Justice League, the Aktins and the South Beach Diet regimens, Flappy Bird, and Tamagotchi.
 Sleeper hits - started out as weak but became famous over time. applicable in movies.
Ex. I’m Drunk; I Love You, Ma’ Rosa, and Four Sisters and a Wedding.
 Some popular culture icons cater only to certain subcultures because these subcultures deem that
only they show appreciation to these icons.
Cult following - fans’ devotion to them.
Ex. Invader Zim, Star Wars, Mean Girls.
In our country, love teams get a cult following from them, such as Alden Richards - Maine
Mendoza (AlDub), Nora Aunor - Tirso Cruz III (Guy and Pip), and Kathryn Bernardo - Daniel Padilla
(KathNiel).
 blockbuster (or widely acclaimed) - well-liked by everybody it leaves a lasting impression on
them, be it through the experience of peer reviews. They are memorialized for their expressed
qualities, aesthetics, and impact, among others. EX. our national heroes, Titanic, My Amnesia
Girl, and 3 Idiots.
 Parodies, samplings, and remixes - made by the people that are consumed by other people. It
aims to provide entertainment, but how they achieve this is done differently.
o Parodies - When something becomes a part of popular culture, expect that people will create
something out of it either out of appreciation or mockery. It designed to imitate or satirize
something using the same form.
Ex. Michael V’s parody songs Bathroom Dance (parodying Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance), Uh-Oh
(parodying UDD’s Oo).
o Samplings – it reuses them to create new things from it without the intention of satirizing it or
completely imitating it. Particularly used in the music industry. It reuses of a particular song’s
portion in another recording.
Ex. Ava Max’s Kings and Queens and Coolio’s Gangsta’s Paradise use samples from Bonnie
Tyler’s If You Were a Woman.
o Remixing - a variant of an original recording made through rearrangement of the piece or by
adding more layers to the original piece. completely “rip apart” one music piece and
“repurpose” it in another song, combining two or more songs into one cohesive.
Ex. Music producers and disc jockeys (or DJs) cater to the creation of remixes.

Enduring High and Folk Cultures

It has been stressed that popular culture is made by the people, for the people. It has also been
stressed that the working class dictates which aspects of their cultures shall be retained and which
ones will be removed.
Classics - Depending on the spectrum being observed, one (1) classic to one subculture is different
from other subcultures – although there are icons that are not completely exclusive to a particular
subculture.
Ex. Tchaikovsky’s The Nut Cracker, This enduring high culture icon is also shared with the
Christmas subculture in the West. Lea Salonga, an icon of both popular and high cultures
because of her diverse theater musical, play, and film performances.

Celebrities
YouTube gamer Charles “Charlie” White Jr. (penguinz0 Cr1TiKaL) commented about the rapidly
declining health of YouTuber Nicholas Perry (Nikocado Avocado) due to his mukbang content – which
led to Perry’s obesity while also gaining Perry’s fame. Both YouTubers are considered online
celebrities

Being a celebrity is the state of being celebrated. it is a general recognition of a person or a

group as a result of fame given to them by the mass media.
Celebrities are made, not born. They can either be short-lived or enduring, depending on their rise to
fame. Such stars can also be categorized the way popular culture is categorized.
 Entertainment: Briliante Mendoza, Lualhati Bautista, Dingdong Dantes, Angel Locsin, Guillermo del
Torro.
 Lifestyle: Ben Cab, Vera Wang, Jose Nepomuceno, as well as chefs and foodies such as Pablo “Boy”
Logro, Erwan Heussaff,
 Sports: competitive eSports gamers such as Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, Clement “Puppey” Ivanov,
Jinn Marrey “Palos” Lamatao.
 News: Anderson Cooper, Henry Omaga- Diaz, Noli de Castro, Mike Enriquez, and Kara David.
 Politics: Aung San Suu Kyi, Harry Roque, Ernesto “Che” Guevarra, Benigno Simeon “Noynoy”
Aquino III, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
 Technology: Laina Morris (“Overly Attached Girlfriend”), Kyle Craven (“Bad Luck Brian”). It also
covers YouTubers such as Lloyd Café Cadena, Helen Payawal (“HelenOnFleek”), and Jimmy
Donaldson (“MrBeast”)

Celebrity classified into seven (7) main groups of celebrity fame (or infamy).
 Singers - who perform vocal performances called songs. Ex. Jasmine Trias, Regine Velasquez-
Alcasid, KZ Tandingan, BTS, and Blackpink.
 Actors - perform visual entertainment with varying genres. stage and theater plays, television
shows, films, and (currently) web series. Ex. Chris Pratt, Winston Duke, Lea Salonga.
 Reality show participants - who join game shows shot live for others to watch at home. People
who enter these competitions eventually become famous themselves. Ex. Kim Chiu, Melisa
“Melai” Cantiveros, Ejay Falcon, James Reid.
 TV presenters - host events that are seen on television. newscasters, event hosts, radio DJs. Ex.
Mel Tiangco, Tim Yap, Jeffrey “Mr. Fu” Espiritu.
 Athletes - who compete in sports events. Nowadays, it also includes eSports players. Ex. Alvin
Patrimonio and Hidilyn Diaz.
 Politicians - who run for government office and are sworn to help their countrymen and protect
the country from foreign interests. Ex. Rodrigo Duterte, Corazon Aquino, Ferdinand Marcos.
 Persons-of-Interests - who become celebrities either through association or infamy.
 The term used for this contemporary trend is called ‘celebrification’, the process wherein an
individual (ordinary people or public figures) become a celebrity (or famous).
o People become celebrities through association if they have prior connections to any existing
celebrities or well-known groups and made names for themselves independent from their
associates. Ex. Kim Kardashian (as the stylist of Paris Hilton), Jacksepticeye (after being given a
shout-out from PewDiePie).
o People would become celebrities through infamy if they earned a negative reputation for
themselves, usually through crime. Ex. Charles Manson (for starting a cult).

But why do we idolize them so much (and yes, there are people who worship criminals)?

There are a few reasons why:

1. The public idolizes people because they are viewed as important, powerful, or even famous
2. Most live vicariously (watching other people do something and imagine that they did it) through
them because man desires to be recognized.
3. Following celebrities drive some people to lead different lives because of their vicarious actions,
which can be both a positive and a negative.
4. Gossips involving celebrities seem livelier and more valuable.

Celebrities are people, too. It is just that mass media (sometimes, even the paparazzi) keep on
following them.

Marketability and Industry for Popular Culture

businesses can capitalize on popular culture to sell their merchandise.
Businesses are now beginning to pick up on this trend and have started to change their marketing
strategies to stay relevant in the public conscience and entice more customers
As studied by Magna Global, IPG Media Lab, and Twitter, entitled “The Impact of Culture,”
businesses can capitalize on popular culture to grab the attention of consumers – especially to the
younger generations. people are starting to look at what is present in today’s culture that can help
them decide what to buy
To summarize,
1. Businesses create a popular culture to stay relevant. In the past, it is effective to keep on top of
every working class’s mind. However, with today’s standards, consumers are now expecting
businesses to be more involved with other aspects of popular culture, such as addressing social
issues.
2. While businesses can jump into the popular culture bandwagon, it does not mean that every
business should do the same. Businesses should be insightful in their approach to ensure
authenticity and maintain appropriate brand alignment.
3. In terms of ad presentations, culturally-focused advertising performs differently based on the
target audience and their environment – in all spectrum ranges (i.e., traditional (or folk), popular,
and high