Cultural Hybridity

by Peter Burke

The period in which we live is marked by increasingly frequent and intense cultural encounters of all kinds. However we react to it, the global trend towards mixing or hybridization is impossible to miss, from curry and chips – recently voted the favourite dish in Britain – to Thai saunas, Zen Judaism, Nigerian Kung Fu, ‘Bollywood’ films or salsa or reggae music. Some people celebrate these phenomena, whilst others fear or condemn them. No wonder, then, that theorists such as Homi Bhabha, Stuart Hall, Paul Gilroy, and Ien Ang, have engaged with hybridity in their work and sought to untangle these complex events and reactions; or that a variety of disciplines now devote increasing attention to the works of these theorists and to the processes of cultural encounter, contact, interaction, exchange and hybridization. In this concise book, leading historian Peter Burke considers these fascinating and contested phenomena, ranging over theories, practices, processes and events in a manner that is as wide-ranging and vibrant as the topic at hand.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Theory

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Peter Burke is a British historian and professor. He was educated by the Jesuits and at St John's College, Oxford, and was a doctoral candidate at St Antony's College. From 1962 to 1979, he was part of the School of European Studies at Sussex University, before moving to the University of Cambridge, where he holds the title of Professor Emeritus of Cultural History and Fellow of Emmanuel College. Burke is celebrated as a historian not only of the early modern era, but one who emphasizes the relevance of social and cultural history to modern issues. He is married to Brazilian historian Maria Lúcia Garcia Pallares-Burke.

Reviews

[Gustavo Racy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a rather interesting introduction to a problematic concept. Evidently written by a historian, not an anthropologist, the book provides a panorama on the issues concerning the idea of hybridity, its problems, productivity and impediments.
I've seen some criticism here accusing Burke of being too white, and reproducing common prejudices typical of a white man. This specific critique was, nonetheless made entirely out of context and related to one specific example, namely, the introduction of western themes into Chinese pottery, and vice-versa, and, as such, feel short of any rigour to be taken seriously. As a white-Brazilian, therefore non-white outside Latin America, I find the concept of creolization extremely problematic, for example, but I can understand where the author is coming from, enchanted as he is with the work of Freyre. And I find it possible to discern things. This is not an opinative piece of work, it is an introduction to the topics and issues revolving the idea of cultural hybridity. And it does its job.

[Lola Rodríguez Bernal]

el texto presenta ejemplos muy ilustrativos sobre el continuo ''hibridismo cultural'' y ahí acaba su legado. todo es ''descriptivo'', un ''mira, por ejemplo''. ¿dónde esta la mirada a las dinámicas de clases, género, etnia? nada. Peter Burke, el tipo persona que cuando lees te hace considerar si realmente estás loca de remate. y aquí no nos gustan este tipo de autores

[Maddie McAllister · Rating 1 out of 5]

had to read for history, very painful and i hated every second. long story short, nothing you do is original, go cry about it

[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won't say I got nothing out of it, but the way this white man showed so little understanding of power, white supremacy, imperialism is, well...not shocking, but still quite disappointing. It's amazing the way everything is simply flattened to cultural exchange without acknowledging the deep violence that occurred in many of these "exchanges." I think the overview of terminology was somewhat useful, though again, where is any discussion about how mestizaje, for example, was used to slowly destroy Indigenous cultures and "whiten" the population? Burke got close when he noted that the Chinese, rather than borrowing European styles, more so chose to display to foreigners the pieces of their culture that seemed to appeal to them, while Europeans actively learned from and appropriated Chinese style, but then ends with the conclusion that "on occasion it is virtually impossible to say whether a given artefact is the work of Asianizing Europeans or Europeanizing Asians" (95-6). I could go on but, white man, please.

[Liberis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Επέκταση του κειμένου μιας διάλεξης, όπως δηλώνει ο συγγραφέα, γεμάτο με παραδείγματα πολιτισμικών ανταλλαγών, υιοθετήσεων, αντιστάσεων από την παγκόσμια νεότερη κυρίως ιστορία. Ένα πολύ εισαγωγικό εγχειρίδιο πολιτισμικών σπουδών, πάνω στο θέμα της πολιτισμικής ανταλλαγής. Γενικά είμαι burke-ικός, οπότε κακό λόγο δε θ' ακούγατε από μένα :)

[Emily Szasz · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up to 4 -- very introductory but some useful concepts

[Ghazal Farooqi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read it only to extract definitions of various terms related to the domain of cultural hybridity.

[Jonathan Alvarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genial libro. Lo deberían leer quienes caen en la muy extendida falacia de creer en la ontología cultural. Grande, Peter Burke.

[Alice Suzart · Rating 3 out of 5]

É uma introdução de 160 páginas. Quando achei que ele ia desenvolver, o livro acabou kk

[Társis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leitura excelente para entender bem as questões que envolvem as trocas culturais, que sempre houveram e que continuam agindo no que chamamos de globalização.
Devia ser obrigatório para pseudo ativistas e justiceiros sociais de diversas matizes, que falam muita bobagem, misturando jargões acadêmicos com expressões do 4 ano do ensino básico.
Enfim, um livro pequeno, excelente, que pode ser relido e consultado.

[Tristan Bridges · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally a lecture on the pervasiveness of "cultural hybridity" in conversations about identity in a variety of different fields, Burke analyzes the trajectories of a diverse body of research to show how hybridity is both illustrative of a cultural capacity to transform, co-opt, adopt, and challenge systems of identity and identification imposed upon them as well as a means through which contemporary inequalities are perpetuated in new ways with distinct consequences. Fun read. Very short!

[missy jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good short intro text w/ lots of examples.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful introduction to the topic of cultural hybridity. It helped me formulate an argument relating cultural hybridity to an archaeological topic. It is broad, but a good start to understanding the idea.