NOVEMBER,1946 possibilityofalivelyestheticorreligiouslife.Ontheother hand,theSSandthegaolersofAuschwitzandDachauhad certainlybeenradicalyimmunisedagainstanygermof culture. 4. InEngland,theindustrialrevolutionbeganaround1750. EngelsandMelvileobserveditseffectsbetween1840-1850. Havingbeenfortwoorthreegenerationscompletelydeprived ofanycontactwiththerealitiesfromwhichculturecan originateorbekeptalive,themenandwomenofthatperiod hadlostallmemoryofafolkart,andofanyrealcommunal lifeT. hephenomenonhasfolowedindustrialcapitalismthroughouttheworld:Germany,Poland,Russia,China,etc.Cities likeParisandLyonsseemtohaveresistedbetterthanothers. There,in.thenineteenthcentury,atruepopularculturecould befound.ButwhatweknowofconditionsinAlsace,Nantes, theregionLile-Roubaixfrom1830to1860,tellsusthesame atrocioustaleasGreatBritain. Ontheotherhand,weshouldrememberthelevelof indi- vidual and socialeducationamongtheimmigrantswho swarmedintoAmericainthenineteenthcenturyfromIreland, Andalusia,SouthernItaly,EasternEuropeafterhavingshriveledforseveralgenerationsin theirghetosandvilages, crushedbyunimaginablemisery.Tothem,theliberatedNegro sal vesshouldbeadded,andthenativesinthecoloniesbrutal- izedbybadalcoholandforcedlabor orthosemiserable Moroccansexpeledfromtheirfieldsandreducedtoanex- istencethatcouldnotbecaledlifeanymore. Allthesecreatureshadsimplybeenstrippedofeverything human.TherewasnoFolkCultureleft torepressorcorrupt inthem,inordertomakeroomfor theErsatzofculture (orthesystematicnon-culture)thrownonthemarketby capitalismtogetherwiththeotherarticlesofcurrentcon- sumThpe t h io unm. anplantisasturdyone.Theworstslumswere somewhatclearedand,throughrevoltsandstrikes,thewage- workerswrestedalittleleisure,somehygiene,afewschools. Thenthejoyof life,andevenphysicalbeauty,startedblos- somingagain.Butthepastevilcouldnotbeabolished.The tastes,desires,dreams,aspirations,mythsofthose uprooted peoplewerenotnurturedeitherbyundimmedtraditionsor bythosewell-formedandclearlydefinedqualitiesandpeculi- aritieswhosepatternwecal "nature."All thethingsandall thevaluesmadeavailabletothemforuseorknowledgewere notonlypre-fabricatedbutalsomass-fabricated. 5. Whofabricatedthosethingsandvalues?Canwesaythat thevulgarizationofcultureinmoderntimesrevealstheplan ofa"bourgeoisideocracy"whichcanbecomparedtothe planappliedbytheCatholicChurch,ortothefarmorebrutal onescarriedoutbytotalitarianStates? Theratherstartlingfactisthattheclasswhichseizedpower inFranceunderLouis-Philippe,and,byaslowerprocess,ended upbyoccupyinginEnglandtheplaceswhichhadinearlier timesbeenmonopolizedbythegentry,thisclassneverpossessedaculturewhichrealyreflecteditsinnerconvictions andspontaneouspreferences.Theseupstartssimplytookover (notwithoutafeelingofuneasiness)thefurnitureof their predecessors,withouteverquitesucceedinginmakingthemselvesathome.Theyacceptedthehumanities;scientificprog- ress;suchnotionsaspolitenessandluxury;suchestablished Vaulesashonor(chivalry),glory(especialymilitaryglory), virtue(withapreferenceforacertainasceticism).Buttheir managementof thispatrimonywasaclumsyaffair.They couldnevergetridofacertainpeculiarlysuspiciousattitude towarndsuchnesnnleaosmedfientistsandideologists.Cul- botecaor 355 turchasoftenexisted againstthem (evenAdamSmithex- pressescontemptformerchants,specialists,etc.),andthey havebeenscandalizedorangeredbyoriginalcreationsmore oftenthantheyhavefeltproudforhavinghelpedthem financialy. Paralelwith thisdevelopment,thearistocracyprogressivelylost itsancientholdoncultureandthehigherforms ofsociability. If comparedto thebrilliantnobilityof the 1820s' ,with its liberalprincesandcounts,amongwhom Pushkinwasreceivedasanequal,NicholasII'scourtiers(be theyfriendsortheadversariesofRasputin)werenothingbut lamentableidiots.AroundFranzJosephI,duringthelastpart ofhisreign,onewouldhavelookedinvainforsuchauthen- ticallycultivatedpersonagesasaKaunitz,aMetternich,or evenavonGentz.AmongtheJunkerswhoenjoyedthefavor ofWilhelmII,wasthereasingleonewhocouldbecompared tothevonSteins,vonHardenbergs,Yorks,conversantwith Hegel'sphilosophyandGoethe'spoetry? Thepeculiaruneasiness,butalsothepeculiarvigor,ofthe nineteenthcenturywereduepreciselytothisfact,that"high culture"founditselfshutoffbothfromtherulingclasses andfromthepeople.Whilethepeople,ontheotherhand, wasitselfdisappearingintothe"mass."Hence,spiritual life wasoftendivorcedfromthesocial. 6. ThesearesomeofthereasonswhyIwouldventuretosuggestthefolowingdistinctions: (A)AFolkCulturewhichisthespontaneouscreationof everypopularmilieu,andiseasilyledintosectionalismand regionalism.ThisFolkCultureispartlyleveledbycapitalism andtheuniformitywhichistheinevitablecounterpartof moderncosmopolitanism,andpartlytakenoverandmadesophisticatedbyhighculture(asithashappenedwithallkinds offolk-traditionsinthemusic,plasticartsandliteratureof thelatenineteenthandthetwentiethcenturies). (B)Highculturehasalwaysbeentheprivilegeofanelite. Inthepast,thiselitecoincidedwithasectionofthearistoc- racyandoftheclergy.Withtheformationofthebourgeoisie andwiththedecayof thechurches,theintelectualelite founditself intheambiguouspositionofanaristocraticoutcast,ofnon-consecratedclerics,ofrebelswhoescapedspirit- ualyfromasocialsystemtowhichtheyhadtosubmit in alpracticalmaters. (C)Theseveralvarietiesofhalf-culture,characterizedby alesserorgreateramountofconformism,moralinertia,ex- istencewithoutindividualityorproblems,andespeciallywithoutanylivingcommunionwithone'sfelowmen.ThisEr- satz-cultureistherefuge(andtherampart)oftherulersand 'managersofthepresentsociety,togetherwiththeirsatellites. It isthereignofuneasyconscienceandbadtaste;ofhasty andunscrupulouswork; of insincerity in all itsforms;of artificeand"kitsch"; ofofficialoptimismandsolemnboredom;ofwhatFlaubertcalled pignouflisme. (D)AggressiveanddestructiveAnti-Culture. It representsatremendousforce,amotorizedbarbarianismathou- sandtimesmoredevastatingthanTamburlan'scavalry. It hasat itscommandalltheresourcesof"appliedscience"to- getherwiththepossibilityofexploiting rationaly thelowest instinctsofthehumananimal. AggressiveAnti-Culturecancountamongitsmostrecent achievements:1)modernmilitarismforcedoneverybody withoutdistinction,andnowperfectedaccordingtoitsinner logicbytheatombomb;2) theexterminationofseveral colonialpeoples(wherethenaivebarbarianismof theSpaniardshadfailed;3)thetotalitarianStateofHitlerandStalin —which,forallweknow,mightnotbethelastwordinthis field; 4) modernpropaganda,basedon thedegradationofall
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