mgimoruscultureThe Russian Journal of Cultural Studies and CommunicationThe Russian Journal of Cultural Studies and Communication2949-6330МГИМО МИД России10.24833/RJCSC-2023-2-2-14-22mgimorusculture-35Research ArticleNATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL DISCOURSESNATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL DISCOURSESFunctions of Stereotypes in Mass Culture in the Context of Critical MulticulturalismKamalovaS. D.

Sofia D. Kamalova – Ph.D. (Philology), an Associate Professor in English Department No. 3

salyam19@mail.ruMoscow State Institute of International Relations (University)Russian Federation202323012024221422Copyright © Kamalova S.D., 20242024Kamalova S.D.Kamalova S.D.Данная работа распространяется под лицензией Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.https://cultures.mgimo.ru/jour/article/view/35

This article offers a project-based English lesson with university students, which is aimed at studying the way that stereotypes function in mass culture. Critical multiculturalism is currently gaining more and more attention among researchers. Its rise is reflected in English language study books, which stands in stark contrast with the inexhaustible popularity of stereotypes in popular culture. Meanwhile, it is noteworthy that stereotypes are viewed not only as clichéd images of ethnic and socio-cultural groups, but they also participate in categorizing the flow of incoming information and thus act as an essential tool of cognition. During the preparation for the project-based lesson, students studied and analysed the functioning of stereotypes in various samples of popular culture, including commercials and memes, and then presented the results of their research in class. With the help of the teacher, the students identified the following functions of stereotypes in popular culture: cognitive, persuasive, integrative, reflexive, entertaining (including sarcastic), therapeutic, and the function of compression. Further research may continue this list and describe the hierarchical relations between the functions.

critical multiculturalismstereotypefunctions of stereotypessexual objectificationReferencesBakhtin M. M. 1986. Ehstetika slovesnogo tvorchestva [The Aesthetics of Verbal Art]. Moscow: Iskusstvo. (In Russian).Bakhtin M. M. 1986. Ehstetika slovesnogo tvorchestva [The Aesthetics of Verbal Art]. Moscow: Iskusstvo. (In Russian).Bhabha H. K. 1994. The Location of Culture. London and New York: Routledge.Bhabha H. K. 1994. The Location of Culture. London and New York: Routledge.Billig M. 2002. Henri Tajfel’s “Cognitive Aspects of Prejudice” and the Psychology of Bigotry. British Journal of Social Psychology. 41. P. 171–188. DOI: doi:10.1348/014466602760060165.Billig M. 2002. Henri Tajfel’s “Cognitive Aspects of Prejudice” and the Psychology of Bigotry. British Journal of Social Psychology. 41. P. 171–188. DOI: doi:10.1348/014466602760060165.Clark A. 2013. Whatever Next? Predictive Brains, Situated Agents, and the Future of Cognitive Science. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 36. P. 181–253. DOI: doi:10.1017/S0140525X12000477.Clark A. 2013. Whatever Next? Predictive Brains, Situated Agents, and the Future of Cognitive Science. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 36. P. 181–253. DOI: doi:10.1017/S0140525X12000477.Fredrickson B. L., Roberts T. 1997. Objectification Theory: Toward Understanding Women’s Lived Experiences and Mental Health Risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly. 21. P. 173–206.Fredrickson B. L., Roberts T. 1997. Objectification Theory: Toward Understanding Women’s Lived Experiences and Mental Health Risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly. 21. P. 173–206.Grigoryan A. A., Grigoryan A. Y. 2021. Ob”ektivatsiya zhenshchiny kak odin iz vidov seksizma [Objectification of Women as a Type of Sexism]. Vestnik IVGU. Seriya: Gumanitarnye nauki [Ivanovo State University Bulletin]. 2(5–10). (In Russian).Grigoryan A. A., Grigoryan A. Y. 2021. Ob”ektivatsiya zhenshchiny kak odin iz vidov seksizma [Objectification of Women as a Type of Sexism]. Vestnik IVGU. Seriya: Gumanitarnye nauki [Ivanovo State University Bulletin]. 2(5–10). (In Russian).Lippmann W. 1922. Public Opinion. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company.Lippmann W. 1922. Public Opinion. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company.McLaren P. 1994. White Terror and Oppositional Agency: Towards a Critical Multiculturalism. In D. T. Goldberg (ed.). Multiculturalism. A Critical Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. P. 45–74.McLaren P. 1994. White Terror and Oppositional Agency: Towards a Critical Multiculturalism. In D. T. Goldberg (ed.). Multiculturalism. A Critical Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. P. 45–74.Romanov A. S. 2013. Ehtnicheskii anekdot kak sredstvo otrazheniya stereotipov ob amerikanskikh voennosluzhashchikh [Ethnic Jokes as a Means of Reflecting Stereotypes about American Military Men]. Vestnik RUDN, seriya Lingvistika [Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia Bulletin, Linguistics Series]. 3. P. 113–124. (In Russian).Romanov A. S. 2013. Ehtnicheskii anekdot kak sredstvo otrazheniya stereotipov ob amerikanskikh voennosluzhashchikh [Ethnic Jokes as a Means of Reflecting Stereotypes about American Military Men]. Vestnik RUDN, seriya Lingvistika [Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia Bulletin, Linguistics Series]. 3. P. 113–124. (In Russian).Said E. 1978. Orientalism. New York: Pantheon.Said E. 1978. Orientalism. New York: Pantheon.Shchurina Y. V. 2014. Internet-memy: problema tipologii [Internet Memes: Classification].Shchurina Y. V. 2014. Internet-memy: problema tipologii [Internet Memes: Classification].Vestnik Cherepovetskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta [Cherepovetsk State University Bulletin]. 6. P. 85–89. (In Russian).Vestnik Cherepovetskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta [Cherepovetsk State University Bulletin]. 6. P. 85–89. (In Russian).Szymanski D. M., Moffitt L. B., Carr E. R. 2011. Sexual Objectification of Women: Advances to Theory and Research. The Counseling Psychologist. 39(1). P. 6–38.Szymanski D. M., Moffitt L. B., Carr E. R. 2011. Sexual Objectification of Women: Advances to Theory and Research. The Counseling Psychologist. 39(1). P. 6–38.

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest present.