Popular Culture In Early Modern Europe Flashcards
(12 cards)
1
Q
What is ‘Popular’?
A
- the people, equates to roughly 80% of the population, not elite culture like monarchy
- not a homogenous group, Europe is big
- not all rural peasants
2
Q
What is Culture?
A
- essentially anything done in free time
- not yet a working week/ weekend division
- anything from pub songs to large festivals
3
Q
The Social Calendar
A
- no fixed daily/weekly routine, Sunday as the day of rest
- church calendar of importance, Christmas and Easter
- 1/3 of all days are feast days in the Catholic calendar
4
Q
Spaces
A
- lack of privacy, all public culture
- all about communal spaces such as public squares and village greens
- taverns and ale houses were popular
5
Q
Carnival and Mardi Gras
A
- period before lent where everything is used up before you can’t have it
- in Italy and Spain runs from Boxing Day to Easter
- carnival of Viareggio had been running since the Middle Ages with floats
6
Q
Reading and Literature
A
- beginning of popular poets and authors (Defoe, Wordsworth, Austen)
- 1640s 30% of men were literate
- 1750s 60% of men literate vs 25% women
6
Q
Songs
A
- singing regarded as particularly important
- often rude or involved drinking games, not dissimilar to football chants
- oxford project made 30,000 of them available
6
Q
Sports
A
Ban of football on Sundays wasn’t lifted until the 70s
6
Q
Carnival and Mardi Gras
A
- period before lent where everything is used up before you can’t have it
- in Italy and Spain runs from Boxing Day to Easter
- carnival of Viareggio had been running since the Middle Ages with floats
6
Q
Bull Fighting
A
Popular in Spain, dated back to the roman times
7
Q
Riots and Moral Outcries
A
- excessive drinking and hard life could lead to violence
- food riots in 1580s England
- church had moral objections against bawdy houses, riot against brothels in 1668
8
Q
Variations
A
- geographic, weather across Europe is diverse
- reformation impacting different areas
- different calendars (Gregorian and Julian)
