“STICKIN’
IT TO THE MAN”
EVADING
POLITICAL ECONOMY WITH SUBCULTURE
Cohen
claims that “The Subordinate culture uses a ‘repertoire of strategies and
responses’ as a way of coping and resisting. Theirs is a story of ‘negotiation,
resistance, and struggle.’” This effort is designed to decode and fit into a
system using specific subcultural styles. Be
Kind, Rewind emphasizes these styles in an effort to represent a coping
relationship in subcultures against its popular culture counterpart. Therefore,
I offer that subcultures, such as the community in Be Kind, Rewind, have a value in its characteristics that are “distinctive
in group-life and experience,” giving it purpose and validity above the
political economy.
Williams
defines culture as “the study of
relationships between elements in a whole way of life.” Be Kind, Rewind builds upon a small community in the wake of a
financial crisis. This early introduction to this community expresses the
struggle against political and economical forces (however, this view changes). Though
the town offers unique history, the town officials hope to “transform this slum…
to improve the life of the people.” Moreover, the transformation process from
slum to presentable lightly taps into fears and struggles of the subculture
community. Many of the town folk have negotiated and learned to live with the
circumstances, claiming that “the projects aren’t so bad.” The whole way of life in this
community is structured to “learn and adapt” according to the circumstances.
Characters, such as Mike, generate more resistance and struggle against the
political economy with it conspiracy theories surrounding the local power plant
that it is brainwashing him with micro-waves.
As
a way of “learning and adapting”, subcultures enlist specific traits, goals,
and lifestyles that seem to be recognizing and resisting the economic
oppression. Mike states, “that’s your problem… you have zero ambition. You live
in a dump, the whole city is a dump. What is so great about this town?… The
people have nowhere else to go.” The action of the film is cascaded forward as
there is severe pressure from popular culture to change and amend subculture
lifestyles by demolishing businesses such as the small video store. Though it
is revealed that the video store was not a historical landmark and lacks any
real market value to the political economy, the subculture has negotiated a
reason to fight for their community with a “nice story… even though it’s not
true.” This is a selective tradition; that “certain things are selected for value
and emphasis.”
In
an effort to save the video store, a remarkable thing happens; resistance.
Thought the financial struggle and negotiation with the political economy seems
most dominant, the community recognizes that financial contributions earned
through the making of “The Life and History of Fatz Waller” means more for
their community. The community works together and sees themselves as a part of
the neighborhood that has roots. Roots give people purpose, passion, meaning
that money couldn’t buy. “This is for us – the whole town is participating –
our past belongs to us and we can change it if we want to.” For this community,
changing the past meant changing the future. This community culture brings together
the peoples through a shared history. Creating the documentary of Fatz Waller’s
life was the crutch that created unity and history for the people.
The
efforts were to save the video store. When the funds weren’t able to be raised, the roots
were not destroyed. In fact the roots remained and grew stronger. Subculture
intends to resist the political and economical strains that cannot replace
community dress, music, ritual, or argot. All these things remain in place and
intact (encoded) in each individual community. Each subculture faces the
dominant in various forms decoding the dominant as a way of coping; some must negotiate more than others, or resist more
than others, but all experience struggle against the political economy.
Communities find a way to cope in their formation of their communities and
their selective traditions (their roots). Most notably, Jazz and suburban
cultures relate on this remarkable level that resists the political economy and
strives for a complete and rooted community; to arrive ‘home’ - “Swing low,
sweet chariot, coming for to carry me home.”
Jack
Black has always resisted and portrayed the dress, music, ritual and argot of
various other subcultures, the push back remains (in the School of Rock):
“Because
the world is run by the Man. The Man, oh, you don't know the Man. He's
everywhere. In the White House... down the hall... Ms. Mullins, she's the Man.
And the Man ruined the ozone, he's burning down the Amazon, and he kidnapped
Shamu and put her in a chlorine tank! And there used to be a way to stick it to
the Man. It was called rock 'n roll, but guess what, oh no, the Man ruined
that, too, with a little thing called MTV!... But, you can't just say it, man.
You've gotta feel it in your blood and guts! If you wanna rock, you gotta break
the rules. You gotta get mad at the man!... Come on man, we're on a mission.
One great rock show can change the world...”
Be Kind, Rewind has proved its purpose and
validity as a representation of subculture negotiation, resistance, and
struggle. The political economy fuels the communal roots that expand beyond
economic constraints. By coping, we recognize the presence of the political
economy, but we decode that we “are not cultural dupes” and that “power cannot
be explained by capitalist relations of in economic terms.” The power is within
the values and relationships we have placed in our subculture coping strategies
such as community building, the arts, friendship, music and much more. Be Kind, Rewind has shown us not to “let
the man get us down, to rise above.” (Much thank to the School of Rock for also blending this unique artistic and communal
force against the political economy.)
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