One Woman's Trash...

by Vanessa Kelly

...is another woman’s pop culture. Hey! I’m Vanessa, and I’m a pop culture addict. Not recovering, thank you, because I’m happy to be one. I was delighted when Jo and the gals asked me to be a regular contributor to the blog, joining this group of kick-ass women who take interesting and iconoclastic looks at movies, books, TV, music, and anything else they damn well want to.

In the few weeks since Jo asked me to join the blog, I’ve been ruminating on my understanding of pop culture and why I have any business writing about it. The first one – what is pop culture – is a tricky and much debated question, especially among the literati. They like to throw around all kinds of postmodern definitions and use big words like neo-Gramscian hegemony...zzzz...what? Oh, sorry. I must have dozed off. Anyway, let’s just say that probably the cleanest definition of pop culture is that it’s culture for the masses. Which would be you and me, baby, in all our TV watching, Tweeting, Facebooking, smart phone texting glory.

Now that we’ve got our definitions straight, why, you may ask, am I qualified to write about pop culture? Let me assure you, dear reader. I am eminently qualified by virtue of the fact that I write romance novels, both historical and contemporary. Who better to navigate the tricky waters that distinguish high culture from pop culture from trash than a romance writer? Because, you know, romance novels are NEVER considered high art, and they are often labelled as trash. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve had to refute that charge with my own books, even to friends and family.

This is where it gets tricky, but some people (you know who you are, you literary and culture snobs, you!) insist that all pop culture is trash. I know! How could anyone think that? But it’s a fairly prevalent attitude so it got me thinking. What’s my personal distinction between pop culture and trash? Because I do think there is trash out there, and stuff that’s not worth watching, or reading, or listening to. I don’t believe in censorship, but I’m not going to waste my time with something that pollutes my brain with meaningless junk.

After extensive research (er, watching TV and cruising the internet) this is what I came up with. Pop culture is something that appeals to most of us by speaking to our common hopes, dreams and aspirations. Doesn’t matter how silly or bizarre the expression, pop culture reflects who we are, who we want to be and, most importantly, who we don’t want to be. Nothing exemplifies this more than the phenomenon of reality shows like American Idol or The Amazing Race. Sure, they can sometimes be cringe-inducing, but who can’t help being excited by the display of so much raw talent or courage? Who can’t help cheering when a young man or woman is plucked from obscurity to go on to stardom? You’d have to be a cold-hearted bastard not to cheer.

So I’d say that pop culture makes us feel hopeful about our futures and reminds us that it’s good to be alive – despite all the challenges and setbacks that we face every day.

As for what constitutes my definition of trash? Essentially anything that demeans us or debases our humanity. Again, reality TV provides some illuminating examples, particularly with shows like Wipeout. Any medium that deliberately humiliates people for sport is pretty much trash in my book. Hell, why not just bring back bear-baiting or cockfights while we’re at it. We don’t always have to be dignified, but we should always treat people with dignity.

But it’s all objective, right? One woman’s trash is another woman’s pop culture, and I hope to have some very lively conversations here at Pop Culture Divas on this very subject. I know what I like, but what about you? What do you think is trash and what do you think is pop culture? Are they one and the same?