Cultural appropriation and the intimacy of groups

C. Thi Nguyen, Matthew Strohl

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

39 Scopus citations

Abstract

What could ground normative restrictions concerning cultural appropriation in cases where they are not grounded by independent considerations such as property rights or harm? We propose that such restrictions can be grounded by considerations of intimacy. Consider the familiar phenomenon of interpersonal intimacy. Certain aspects of personal life and interpersonal relationships are afforded various protections in virtue of being intimate. We argue that an analogous phenomenon exists at the level of large groups. In many cases, members of a group engage in shared practices that contribute to a sense of common identity, such as wearing certain hair or clothing styles or performing a certain style of music. Participation in such practices can generate relations of group intimacy, which can ground certain prerogatives in much the same way that interpersonal intimacy can. One such prerogative is making what we call an appropriation claim. An appropriation claim is a request from a group member that non-members refrain from appropriating a given element of the group’s culture. Ignoring appropriation claims can constitute a breach of intimacy. But, we argue, just as for the prerogatives of interpersonal intimacy, in many cases there is no prior fact of the matter about whether the appropriation of a given cultural practice would consitute a breach of intimacy. It depends on what the group decides together.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)981-1002
Number of pages22
JournalPhilosophical Studies
Volume176
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 15 2019

Keywords

  • Appropriation
  • Art
  • Cultural appropriation
  • Cultural ethics
  • Culture
  • Group agency
  • Intimacy

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