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On cultural criticism — Part 2
This is part two of a series I am writing about the current state of cultural criticism. To read part 1, click here.
iv. marketing and representation
I mentioned in part one of this mini-series of articles that the concept of representation has been co-opted for marketing purposes. Our need to see ourselves onscreen — originally a critique of how pop culture refused to properly represent people of color and other marginalized populations — has been turned into a commodity, a unique selling point for the selling of media. In turn, this has emptied the concept of its affective value and, at the same time, pushed critical audiences to be wary of media marketed to specific audiences. After all, if representation is done badly and in a stigmatizing way, it can do more harm than good.
An example of this is the audience response to Happiest Season (2020), the first lesbian Christmas film. On the one hand, it was fun to see a lesbian couple in a holiday romcom. On the other, queer folks like myself were very critical of the narrative and the lesbian relationship being shown onscreen. I remember some queer people complaining that people were being too critical, that we hardly ever get representation like this and should be grateful.
