How to Commercialize Shaolin Culture Outside China: A Discussion Within the Framework of Bourdieu’s Cultural Capital

Liying Liu, Jun Yang, Youkuan Shi and Guotuan Wang

SAGE Open, 2022, vol. 12, issue 4, 21582440221140845

Abstract: Shaolin culture’s commercialization in China, along with the country’s political and economic modernization process, is controversial, and many critics are concerned about the ramifications of its commercialization. This study presents a brief history of the Shaolin Temple Cultural Center in Los Angeles using data collected from two in-depth interviews. Within the framework of Bourdieu’s cultural capital theory, the Center’s development in the highly capitalized and fiercely competitive American cultural market provides some valuable insights into Shaolin culture’s path to commercialization. This path can be characterized as the transformation of Shaolin cultural capital into social capital through its integration into local communities via cultural performances, thus promoting capital upgrading and re-institutionalization.

Keywords: Shaolin culture; cultural communication; commercialization; cultural capital; Los Angeles Shaolin Temple Cultural Center (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:sagope:v:12:y:2022:i:4:p:21582440221140845

DOI: 10.1177/21582440221140845

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