Today marks the tenth installment of Cultural Friday here at SBD. Every Friday up until now I had effortlessly found a topic to work with. This week I was beginning to struggle. I’ve covered food, wine, etiquette, ballet, art and I think music and managed to keep the topics interesting. I’ve managed to avoid the ambien-like topics of poetry and the like, but today I face the fact that much of the low-hanging fruit has been harvested.

I even found myself checking” High Culture” on wikipedia for ideas and here’s what I found (I have marked the topics already covered):

“High culture is traditionally the milieu of arts and sciences fostered under the European Renaissance. Its ideal is the Renaissance man, whose knowledge leads him to a broad and deep understanding of life.

The following fields of experience and study were considered parts of high culture:

* Appreciation for good design, whether decorative or minimalist
* Etiquette
* Fine arts and patronage of museums
* Government, especially public speaking and informed debate
* Haute cuisine and fine wine
* International travel, especially the Grand Tour of Europe
* Life sciences such as botany
* Literature, and the ability to write elegantly as learned from Classical literature and
poetry
* Military service (as an officer) was once a central part of high culture. As war has
become more impersonal and technology-driven since World War I, this aspect has
waned.
* The more financially expensive sports, such as equestrianism, fencing, sailing, and
sculling
* Musical discipline, especially in classical music such as grand opera
* Philosophy, especially of the European tradition
* Refined grooming and haute couture
* Religion, specifically the more early modern forms of Christianity
* Theatre, especially ballet”

That was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. Apparently I have a lot more material to cover than I thought. I had thoughts of putting this to bed but then I read further and found the criticism of high culture. That incensed me enough to forget the idea.

“Critics of high culture see its focus on the European tradition as narrow and possibly even racist. In addition, the education and talent required for much of high culture is seen as elitist, with time wasted that could be spent on more practical improvements to material society. Many critics of high culture hold up popular culture as a more easily understood and enjoyable lifestyle.”

Now that’s the kind of bullshit that makes my head spin. Suddenly I’m a racist for supporting the arts. Apparently I’m also an elitist because I’d rather read a book than say…watch an episode of America’s Funniest Home Videos. Well, you know what? Then I guess I am a fucking elitist—and a proud one. I’m also not a big fan of “dumbing things down” so that the lazy bastards we all seem to be producing these days can tag along for the ride without contributing a single worthwhile thought to society. I’m tired of people who want to make everything easier. These are the same people who give trophies to every single kid at the end of baseball season instead of just giving them to the champions. Everybody expects everything to be easy in life and I’ve had enough of it.

In the next few Cultural Fridays will cover literature, grooming and international travel. I will also do a piece on self-defense, which replaced dueling/rapiers some time ago.

I will be ignoring religion and government because frankly, I find them both offensive.

If you would like to contribute a Cultural Friday article I would welcome them. Topics available: military (I would think honor and or basic field strategies), philosophy, equestrianism, sailing, sculling, life sciences, debate or more specific topics under the umbrella of those listed.

Submissions not guaranteed publication and editorial rights remain with me. What that really means is I won’t post complete shit, but almost anything else, and that I’d like to be able to spell check it and if need be work with the author on basic editorial changes, i.e., punch it up, if need be.