On cultural references

Cultural references

The cultural reference refers to the intention of creating analogies, by quoting direct sayings from, or via indirect allusions to, popular culture. When both the transmitter and the recipient understand the cultural reference, both parties enjoy and appreciate "the humour" of relating one thing to another. However, the cultural reference can backfire when the recipient has no background of the cultural reference. At that point, the transmitter of the reference has to resort to a more universal approach to conveying the analogy.

Frustration

The cultural reference that once fermented as a comprehensive synthesis to the transmitter, now becomes a source of frustration when attempting to transmit the synthesis to another. Something so meaningful to the referent would evaporate into nothingness to the recipient. It would feel like leading to a horse to water only to have the horse reject a drink.

Frustration becomes a source of gaslighting for the transmitter, who then wonders if using comparisons bear any utility whatsoever. Or, the transmitter simply moves on trying to “sell out” to a potential audience, by falling back to a more "universal" reference. Alternatively, the transmitter could quit using references altogether. One desires that last path the least because it might “lack soul”.

Thus, the cultural reference provides an analogy that fits well when both parties (both the transmitter and the receiver) appreciate the context. When the context eludes the recipient, the cultural reference collapses into a lake of disorienting confusion. At worst, the cultural reference might even evoke “triggering” sentiments of mockery (as if the transmitter had a flagrant will of “intolerance” towards the recipient!)

Shibboleths

The use of overly local connotations (shibboleths, as one might put it) could alienate a recipient from the full understanding of a cultural reference. Many from a certain country (or even language community) tend to do this and some may even use them purposefully. They almost always think that the rest of the world has had the same upbringing and education. Some of them vehemently use obscure cultural references to determine whether an outsider truly fits their in-group!

Varieties of localisms include references from local sports, foreign films, unpopular music and so on. One has to live in a certain place for a long enough time to grasp the fine-textured nuances of those localisms.

Avoiding frustration

Transmitters of cultural references must know the (pop) cultural background of their potential recipients. A bit of research into the recipients would do wonders.

For example, one should find out whether the recipient knows that famous cartoon with golden-skinned characters really well. If so, the transmitter can liberally utter one-liners from that cartoon to add spice to their conversations! If not, stick to a more universal reference that any adult should know.

Summary

• Cultural references extract from popular culture
  • they can add spice to a mundane conversation
  • they can also alienate someone not privy of the reference
  • some purposefully use them as shibboleths to determine the "in-group-ness" of an individual
• Do some "research" of the cultural background before using cultural references with them, to avoid the "frustration of needing to explain"