Globalization on the Ground : New Media and the Transformation of Culture, Class, and Gender in India

This book suggests that the primary effects of globalization in India have followed from economic changes rather than new media, creating a small transnational middle class, transforming the lives of people in this class. Focusing on the middle classes in India, the book suggests how globalization has transformed culture, class, and gender in India in the years since economic liberalization. The book argues that with globalization, class identities must be defined more by transnational contexts than within bounded nations; they are based on shared patterns of consumption more than shared positions in the economy; and are increasingly defined by gender relations. In Globalization On The Ground: Media And The Transformation Of Culture, Class, And Gender In India, Steve Derne Argues That The Effects Of Globalization On Existing Cultural Values Differ, Among Social Groups. The Non-elite Middle Class In India, For Whom Globalization Has Brought Little Change In Economic Position And Opportunities, Has Resisted Changes To Existing Ideas About Family, Marriage, And Gender Relations. The Book Suggests That The Non-elite Middle Class Accepts Only Those Meanings Which Can Be Layered On Top Of Existing Meanings That Support Obdurate Social Structures, Thereby Reiterating Existing Social Stereotypes. So, The Newly Available Arnold Schwarzenegger Films Intensify The Association Of Violence With Masculinity, And Foreign Pornography Incites New Means Of Expressing Male Dominance. The Book Also Considers How Globalization Has Transformed Social Class And Gender In India. Derne Argues That With Globalization, Class Identities Are Defined More By Transnational Contexts That Within Bounded Nations, Are Based More On Shared Patterns Of Consumption Than Shared Positions In The Economy, And Are Increasingly Defined By Gender Relations. Globalization On The Ground Will Appeal To Students And Scholars Of Globalization, Mass Media, Cultural Studies, And South Asian Studies.--book Jacket. Introduction -- Culture, Structure And Psyche : A Theory Of Culture And Its Implications For Understanding Globalization And Cultural Change -- Making The Transnational Middle-class In India -- Cultural Continuities And Active Resistance : Globalization, The Reconstitution Of Gender Arrangements, And The Making Of The Indian Middle Class -- Changing Cultural Orientations -- Globalizing Gender Culture -- Conclusion. Steve Derné. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [219]-231) And Index. Unlike élite middle-class Indians, ordinary Indian men are selective in their acceptance of new meanings introduced by cultural globalization. In Globalization on the Ground: Media and the Transformation of Culture, Class, and Gender in India, Steve Derné argues that the effects of globalization on existing cultural values differ among social groups. The non-élite middle class in India, for whom globalization has brought little change in economic position and opportunities, has resisted changes to existing ideas about family, marriage, and gender relations. The book suggests that the non-élite middle class accepts only those meanings which can be layered on top of existing meanings that support obdurate social structures, thereby reiterating existing social stereotypes. So, the newly available Arnold Schwarzenegger films intensify the association of violence with masculinity, and foreign pornography incites new means of expressing male dominance. The book also considers how globalization has transformed class and gender in India. Derné argues that with globalization, class identities are defined more by transnational contexts than within bounded nations, are based more on shared patterns of consumption than shared positions in the economy, and are increasingly defined by gender relations. Globalization on the Ground will appeal to students and scholars of globalization, mass media, cultural studies, and South Asian studies. Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 8 Acknowledgements......Page 14 Introduction......Page 16 Culture, Structure, and Psyche......Page 59 Making the Transnational Middle Class in India......Page 91 Cultural Continuities and Active Resistance......Page 128 Changing Cultural Orientations......Page 163 Globalizing Gender Culture......Page 174 Conclusion......Page 201 Epilogue......Page 213 References......Page 220 Index......Page 233 About the Author......Page 245 Suggests that the primary effects of globalization in India have followed from economic changes rather than fresh media. Focusing on the middle classes in India, this book suggests how globalization has transformed culture, class, and gender in India in the years since economic liberalization. A fascinating exploration of how globalization has transformed culture, class, and gender for the middles classes in India in the years since economic liberalization