Blackburn 1 - 6 Myths

7. The myth of culture. Oh dear, this game is turning into a rout. Simon Blackburn:

As it occurs in phrases such as multiculturalism, working-class culture and the like, this is the myth that there is a definite, admirable, rooted traditional way of being, and that it must be valued and cosseted and, above all, respected. All this is poppycock. Tempores mutant et nos mutamus in illis - the times change and we change with them... What is usually known as culture is a set of symbols enabling people on the inside to recognise and dislike those on the outside.

A more difficult one to adjudicate. Did the ball cross the line there? (What does the assistant referee say? This is what he says...) Blackburn is obviously right that the plea of 'culture' can be used in ways that call for critical scrutiny: it can be used to lament change that has been desirable, liberating; it is also often a way for those who belong to exclude others. But his emphases are unwarrantedly unilateral. Not all change is, of itself, for the better. So, it is possible to be upset for good reason - admirable traditions can be undermined or weaken and die out. Not every culture is an excluding one: think of democratic-pluralist cultures, or think of a 'melting pot' culture, by contrast with chauvinistic-nationalist cultures. It's hard to see how Blackburn can come back from this situation.