Leavisite Critique of Mass Culture and Cultural Standards

Leavisite Critique of Mass Culture

The Pre-Industrial Ideal vs. Mass Civilization

The Leavises argued that everything was different prior to the Industrial Revolution. As an example, the world of Shakespeare's contemporaries was one that boasted an organic, vital, common culture; the Industrial Revolution was seen as shattering the unity of this healthy organic, common culture. Mass civilization was characterized by increasing commercialism and declining standards. So, the Leavises associated the consumption of mass culture with passive diversion.

Consequences of Industrial Culture

There were, according to the Leavises, important consequences for the definition of culture. Given the worst effects of industrial culture, there was a need for society to learn forms of discrimination. Hence, they insisted on the importance of developing canons of great works to resolve this issue. In this way, Arnold's fear that civilization is threatened by the forces of barbarism finds resonance: in this case, the continued spread of mass culture characterized by standardization and what the Leavises called levelling down. The problem here for the Leavises is that mass culture appeals to the lowest common denominator and thereby impoverishes life.

Americanization and Cultural Impoverishment

This cultural impoverishment is made worse by the increasing Americanization of British cultural life with the importation of American popular culture like Hollywood films, comics, and Westerns. This Americanization is made still worse by the gradual weakening of the influence, importance, and authority of the self-elected cultural minority who attempt to preserve the great cultural tradition.

Countering Decline: Critical Awareness

But, how might we counter the problems of standardization, levelling down, and gradual Americanization? The practical answer was training in critical awareness. The Leavises suggested we could read what they saw as the debased language of the popular press and advertisements, but in a critical way. They emphasized that the debasement of language was not just a question of words but a devaluation of emotions and the quality of life.

Resistance and the Role of Cultural Studies

The idea of defending ideals of “high” culture from the barbarous forces of industrialism leads to another important strand in cultural studies: the idea of resistance. The Leavises were involved in a consciousness-raising project to warn against, and provide adequate training to counter, the worst effects of mass culture. Leavis and Thompson were pointing to an important phenomenon of mass culture; they were seeing it as a form of manipulation which requires close reading; and they were suggesting ways in which the public may learn to see through advertising and thus resist its power. One consequence of this procedure is that cultural analysis is not simply an exercise of interpretation—it is interpretation with specific ends in mind. That is, to make people more aware of questionable practices and to bring about what is seen as a positive change. Much of cultural studies has this in common with Leavisite criticism: consciousness-raising is considered an important activity in itself because it may be the first step towards change.