Cult
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
| Revision as of 21:17, 8 February 2008 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Current revision Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| - | [[Image:Index Librorum Prohibitorum.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The '''''Index Librorum Prohibitorum''''' ("[[banned books|List of Prohibited Books]]") is a list of publications which the [[Catholic|Catholic Church]] [[censorship|censored]] for being a [[danger]] to itself and the faith of its members. The various [[edition]]s also contain the rules of the [[Church]] relating to the reading, selling and censorship of books. The aim of the list was to prevent the reading of [[morality|immoral]] books or works containing [[theology|theological]] errors and to prevent the [[corruption]] of the faithful.]] | + | [[Image:Tommaso.Laureti.Triumph.of.Christianity.jpg|left|thumb|200px|This page '''{{PAGENAME}}''' is part of the [[religion]] series.<br><Small>Illustration: ''[[Triumph of Christianity]]'' (detail) by Tommaso Laureti (1530-1602.)</small>]] |
| - | {{Template}} | + | {| class="toccolours" style="float: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 2em; font-size: 85%; background:#c6dbf7; color:black; width:30em; max-width: 40%;" cellspacing="5" |
| - | A [[cult]] following is a group of [[fan]]s devoted to a [[people|specific persons]] or [[cultural artifact]]s, examples are [[cult film|film]]s, [[television]] or [[radio program]]s, [[cult fiction|novel]]s, [[musician]]s, [[writer]]s and [[director]]s. These dedicated followings are usually [[minority|relatively small]] and pertain to items that don't have broad mainstream appeal due to their [[underground]] subject matter or [[experimental]] style. | + | | style="text-align: left;" | |
| + | "The difference between a [[cult]] or a [[sect]] and a [[religion]], is [[size]], a small number of [[follower]]s vs. a [[multitude]]."--Sholem Stein | ||
| + | <hr> | ||
| + | "Certain [[cultural artifacts]] and their makers enjoy a [[cult following]]: there is [[cult fiction]], there are [[cult films]] and there is [[underground music]]." --Sholem Stein | ||
| + | |} | ||
| + | [[Image:Napoléon Bonaparte abdicated in Fontainebleau.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Cult of personality]], illustration: ''[[Napoléon Bonaparte abdicated in Fontainebleau]]'' (1845) by Paul Delaroche]] | ||
| - | == Definition== | + | {{Template}} |
| - | For a general definition of what it means for an item to be a 'cult item' there are certain guidelines. First of all keep in mind that many fans of cult items have a religious, idolatrous and [[fetishistic]] [[devotion]] -- appropriately so because the terms [[cult]], [[fetish]] and [[idol]] have their origins in '[[primitive]]' [[religion]]. Furthermore, cult items rarely belong to the mainstream and the devotion of their fans is often obsessive. There is also a historical and genre element: cult items generally don't gain that status until some time after their release and certain genres such as horror, erotica and science fiction attract cults more easily than others. In literary and cinematic fiction, cult items often contain "subversive" elements like references to non-normative forms of sexuality and as such have often been censored or banned. Lastly, cult items are collectible and are avidly collected. | + | In modern English, a '''cult''' is a [[social group]] that is defined by its [[unusual]] [[Religion|religious]], [[spirituality|spiritual]], or [[Philosophy|philosophical]] beliefs, or by its [[submission]] to a particular [[Cult of personality|personality]], [[cult object|object]], or [[goal]]. This sense of the term is controversial, having divergent definitions both in [[popular culture]] and [[academia]], and has also been an ongoing source of contention among scholars across several fields of study. The word "cult" is usually considered [[pejorative]]. |
| - | == By medium == | + | An older sense of the word [[Cult (religious practice)| ''cult'']] involves a set of religious devotional practices that are conventional within their culture, are related to a particular figure, and are often associated with a particular place. References to the "cult" of a particular [[List of Catholic saints| Catholic saint]], or the [[imperial cult of ancient Rome]], for example, use this sense of the word. |
| - | [[cult fiction]] - [[cult director]]s - [[cult film]]s - [[cult movie star]]s - [[cult object]]s - [[cult television]] - [[underground music]] | + | |
| - | == Related == | + | While the literal and original sense of the word remains in use in the English language, a derived sense of "excessive devotion" arose in the 19th century. |
| - | [[audience]] - [[camp]] - [[classic]] - [[cult following]] - [[cult of personality]] - [[cult classic]] - [[cult status]] - [[fan]] - [[god]] - [[greatness]] - [[idol]] - [[love]] - [[minority]] - [[non mainstream]] - [[nostalgia]] - [[obsession]] - [[rare]] - [[religion]] - [[underground]] | + | |
| - | == AHD Definition == | + | Beginning in the 1930s, cults became the object of [[sociology|sociological study]] in the context of the study of religious behavior. Since the 1940s the [[Christian countercult movement]] has opposed some [[sect]]s and [[new religious movement]]s, labeling them "cults" because of their [[Heterodoxy|unorthodox beliefs]]. Since the 1970s, the secular [[anti-cult movement]] has opposed certain groups, and in reaction to acts of violence which have been committed by some of their members, it has frequently charged them with practicing [[mind control]]. Scholars and the media have disputed some of the claims and actions of anti-cult movements, leading to further public controversy. |
| - | # Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing. | + | Sociological classifications of religious movements may identify a cult as a social group with [[Deviance (sociology) |socially deviant]] or [[Novelty |novel]] beliefs and practices, although this is often unclear. Other researchers present a less-organized picture of cults, saying that they arise spontaneously around novel beliefs and practices. Groups labelled as "cults" range in size from local groups with a few followers to international organizations with millions of adherents. |
| - | # The object of such devotion. | + | ==Connotation== |
| - | # An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest. --AHD | + | The word '''cult''' in current popular usage is a [[pejorative]] term for a [[new religious movement]] or other group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre by the larger [[society]]. |
| - | == Devoted aficionados == | + | Usage of the word has been controversial. One reason is that the word "cult" (as used in the pejorative sense) is considered a subjective term, used as an [[ad hominem]] attack against groups with simply differing doctrines or practices, and without a clear or consistent definition. |
| - | Something that has a following of devoted aficionados. | + | ==Etymology== |
| + | The word originally denoted a system of [[Cult (religious practice)|ritual practices]]. The word was first used in the early 17th century denoting homage paid to a divinity and borrowed via the French ''culte'' from [[Latin]] ''cultus'' "worship", from the adjective ''cultus'' "inhabited, cultivated, worshipped", derived from the verb ''[[colere]]'' "care, cultivate." | ||
| - | See the following: | + | ==See also== |
| - | + | *[[Cults and new religious movements in literature and popular culture]] | |
| - | * [[cult fiction]] | + | **[[Cargo cult]] |
| - | * [[cult director]] | + | *[[Cult of personality]] |
| - | * [[cult figure]] | + | *[[Cult following]] |
| - | * [[cult film]] | + | **[[Cult fiction]] |
| - | * [[cult movie stars]] | + | **[[Cult film]] |
| - | * [[cult objects]] (product design) | + | *[[Fetish]] |
| - | * [[cult radio]] | + | {{GFDL}} |
| - | * [[cult television]] | + | |
| - | * A [[cult of personality]] is sometimes used to refer to a political leader and his following, voluntary or otherwise. | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | == Definition (religion) == | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | In anthropology, an organization for the conduct of ritual, magical, or other religious observances. Many so-called primitive tribes, for example, have ancestor cults, in which dead ancestors are considered divine and activities are organized to respect their memory and invoke their aid. A cult is also a religious group held together by a dominant, often charismatic individual, or by the worship of a divinity, an idol, or some other object. (See animism, fetish, and totemism.) --Bartleby.com | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | * A practice within a religion; see cult (religion). | + | |
| - | ** A religious group often existing on the margins of society; see cult and new religious movement. | + | |
| - | ** A group which exploits and destroys its members or even non-members; see destructive cult | + | |
| - | * Some of these cults have been known to participate in cult homicide and/or cult suicide. | + | |
| - | --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_%28disambiguation%29 [Oct 2004] | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | == Devotion == | + | |
| - | * Ardent, often selfless affection and dedication, as to a person or principle. See Synonyms at love. | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | --AHD | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | + | ||
| - | + | ||
| - | == Defining cult items == | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | + | ||
| - | * Cult items are in the eye of the beholders. | + | |
| - | * Cult items are may or may not be mainstream. | + | |
| - | * Cult items attract obsessive fans | + | |
| - | * Cult items generally don't gain that status until some time after their release. | + | |
| - | * An item that attracts too large a number of fans cannot be regarded as a cult item. | + | |
| - | * In fiction, items of certain genres (horror, science fiction) are more likely to be regarded as "cult" items. | + | |
| - | * The attraction of cult items is sometimes totally different to the original intentions of the author. | + | |
| - | * In fiction, cult items often contain "subversive" elements like references to homosexuality. | + | |
| - | * Cult items are collectible and are avidly collected. | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | == Cult classic == | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | A cult classic is a work of fiction, it can be a film or television show or book, that is extremely popular with a select audience. A cult classic may or may not enjoy mainstream success. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_classic [Oct 2004] | + | |
| - | Cult in the mass produced arts | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | In Literature, one might refer to "cult books" or "cult fiction", in cinema, one refers to "cult movies", "cult cinema" or "cult films", in music one refers not to cult, but to "underground music", "alternative". | + | |
| - | [[Category:Non-mainstream]] | + | |
Current revision
Illustration: Triumph of Christianity (detail) by Tommaso Laureti (1530-1602.)
|
"The difference between a cult or a sect and a religion, is size, a small number of followers vs. a multitude."--Sholem Stein "Certain cultural artifacts and their makers enjoy a cult following: there is cult fiction, there are cult films and there is underground music." --Sholem Stein |
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
In modern English, a cult is a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs, or by its submission to a particular personality, object, or goal. This sense of the term is controversial, having divergent definitions both in popular culture and academia, and has also been an ongoing source of contention among scholars across several fields of study. The word "cult" is usually considered pejorative.
An older sense of the word cult involves a set of religious devotional practices that are conventional within their culture, are related to a particular figure, and are often associated with a particular place. References to the "cult" of a particular Catholic saint, or the imperial cult of ancient Rome, for example, use this sense of the word.
While the literal and original sense of the word remains in use in the English language, a derived sense of "excessive devotion" arose in the 19th century.
Beginning in the 1930s, cults became the object of sociological study in the context of the study of religious behavior. Since the 1940s the Christian countercult movement has opposed some sects and new religious movements, labeling them "cults" because of their unorthodox beliefs. Since the 1970s, the secular anti-cult movement has opposed certain groups, and in reaction to acts of violence which have been committed by some of their members, it has frequently charged them with practicing mind control. Scholars and the media have disputed some of the claims and actions of anti-cult movements, leading to further public controversy.
Sociological classifications of religious movements may identify a cult as a social group with socially deviant or novel beliefs and practices, although this is often unclear. Other researchers present a less-organized picture of cults, saying that they arise spontaneously around novel beliefs and practices. Groups labelled as "cults" range in size from local groups with a few followers to international organizations with millions of adherents.
Connotation
The word cult in current popular usage is a pejorative term for a new religious movement or other group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre by the larger society.
Usage of the word has been controversial. One reason is that the word "cult" (as used in the pejorative sense) is considered a subjective term, used as an ad hominem attack against groups with simply differing doctrines or practices, and without a clear or consistent definition.
Etymology
The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices. The word was first used in the early 17th century denoting homage paid to a divinity and borrowed via the French culte from Latin cultus "worship", from the adjective cultus "inhabited, cultivated, worshipped", derived from the verb colere "care, cultivate."
See also
- Cults and new religious movements in literature and popular culture
- Cult of personality
- Cult following
- Fetish
