Culture, Cultural Studies

Abstract

Abstract In this entry, various attempts at defining the concept of culture are followed by an account of different classifications and theories of culture. The development of cultural studies, which brought together the elements of literary criticism, Marxist theory, sociology, and several other disciplines within the humanities, is then traced from its beginnings in Britain of the 1960s until its current status worldwide. Besides the “founding fathers” of British cultural studies – Richard Hoggart, Raymond Williams, E. P. Thompson, and, still the most influential figure in cultural studies, Stuart Hall – some other important theoreticians in the field are mentioned, as well as those who have criticized cultural studies.