Contextual & Theoretical Studies

100 Word Piece of Critical Writing on the theory of Understanding Media Ideology

On Popular Music

by Theodor W. Adorno, with the assistance of George Simpson
Originally published in: Studies in Philosophy and Social Science, New York: Institute of Social Research, 1941, IX, 17-48.

"The conditions for this function of glamor are entirely different from those of frontier life. They apply to the mechanization of labor and to the workaday life of the masses. Boredom has become so great that only the brightest colors have any chance of being lifted out of the general drabness. Yet, it is just those violent colors which bear witness to the omnipotence of mechanical, industrial production itself." (Theodor W. Adorno, 1941) Here he describes how through buying into the glamour of popular music do we escape from our mundane existence. This truly illusrtate our vision of pop culture that exists today and how we buy into things because of the illusion that we can slip into the existence of another. To be elite, to be more that what is considered the working class to which even to some extent could affect even the upper classes, even if you seemingly have a perfect existence the way we use popular music could be a way of slipping into someone else's existence to escape our own demons or reality. It is anti-Marxist which in effect promotes Marxism, the way we buy into a group of music with intentions that we are escaping from the mass culture yet it is mass culture.

"The most immediate implication of this component may be the following: the moment the listener recognizes the hit as the so and so — that is, as something established and known not merely to him alone — he feels safety in numbers and follows the crowd of all these who have heard the song before and who are supposed to have made its reputation. [...] The connecting reaction consists partly in the revelation to the listener that his apparently isolated, individual experience of a particular song is a collective experience." (Theodor W. Adorno, 1941)

Inspite of the fact that his writing were made over 60 years ago his desciption of what is popular music is blurred, describing how opera music could be considered elitist as oppose to jazz is completely subjective, the theory works both ways and is always about perspective. The way people would buy into popular genres of music today such as indie where new bands are constantly sought after and sound the same in maybe rhythem or lyrical is a depiction of popular music and capitalism. How buying into the brand and being recognised by that kind of music would some how make you more elite or more politically aware, is how Adorno describes being, "lifted out of the general drabness," inspite the fact there are another million people following the same indie music. A classic example of this is Madonna's Material Girl, depicting not only the female for as an object to be desired but as passive, aesthetical and as a sexual object, illustrating a role model which people can identify with and idolise. And the way Adorno describes music as being identifiable, you would listen to this and idolise that character because you were feeling that same way. This is of course theory, music is subjective through taste and it should not be ruled out that it is possible to like something because of the sound. As it is possible that although you may not like or appreciate a certain type of music, through listening of it often or through peer pressure you could in fact become accustomed to it or even come to like it.