Pop Culture Defined

Popular culture (or pop culture) is the widespread cultural elements in any given society that are perpetuated through that society’s everyday language. It comprises the daily interactions, needs, desires and cultural moments that make up the everyday lives of the mainstream.

Pop culture can include any number of practices, including those pertaining to cooking, clothing, consumption, mass media and the many facets of entertainment such as sports and literature. Popular culture often contrasts with a more exclusive, even elitist “high culture”, that is, the culture of ruling social groups.

Pop Will Eat Itself

Pop culture finds its expression in the mass circulation of items from areas such as fashion, music, sport and film. The world of pop culture has had a particular influence on art from the early 1960s on, through Pop Art. When modern pop culture began during the early 1950s, it made it harder for adults to actively participate. Today, most adults, their kids and grandchildren participate in pop culture directly or indirectly.