LANCASTER UNIVERSITY Popular Music, the Christian Story, and the Quest for Ontological Security David John Gillard MA (Distinction) A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies In Fulfilment of the Requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) DEPARTMENT OF POLITICS, PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION OCTOBER 2019 Abstract Popular Music, the Christian Story, and the Quest for Ontological Security David John Gillard MA A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies In Fulfilment of the Requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) October 2019 The crisis of socialisation into Christian belief is, in part, evidence of Western secularisation. Added to this, there is evidence of significant existential restlessness. Moreover, many individuals feel alienated from the Church, which has been the historic Western provider of a discourse offering ontological security. Such restlessness finds emotional expression within a popular music culture that frequently interrogates Christian belief. It is argued here that not only is there a hegemonic resistance to Christian discourse, but that the Church inadvertently colludes with these forces, favouring its historic, rationalistic methods of evangelism, the effectiveness of which is now limited. This thesis offers a model to redress aspects of this disconnect, arguing for the significance of affective spaces within which spiritual reflection is encouraged. Using Zygmunt Bauman’s sociology of liquid modernity the thesis considers the fluid nature of Western society. In particular, it explores the ways in which popular music articulates core themes in a society in which individuals are effectively bricoleurs, drawing from popular culture in order to tactically resist hegemony. Central to the discussion is the idea that humans are ‘hard wired’ to develop a sense of self in a proto-musical manner. Drawing on these ideas, the thesis examines popular music as an ‘asylum’ and as a ‘prosthetic technology,’ stimulating meaning-making affective spaces. By using creative space for spiritual reflection, it is argued that the Church can encourage “affective-reflective dialogue” to help individuals listen to the Christian discourse in liquid modernity. Declaration of Thesis I hereby declare that the thesis is my own work and has not been submitted for the award of a higher degree elsewhere. WORD COUNT: 77, 501 David John Gillard i Acknowledgments With grateful thanks to Professor Christopher Partridge for his advice and guidance. ii Contents: Declarations i Acknowledgment ii Contents iii Introduction Introduction 1 Method 1 Rationale and Literature Review 5 Overview 12 Chapter 1 Sociological expressions of restlessness 14 1. Liquid modernity 17 2. Ontological Security and emotions 25 3. Popular culture 39 Summary 49 Chapter 2 Restless society expressed within popular music 51 1. How popular music expresses restlessness 54 2. How popular culture expresses fear and risk 57 3. How popular music expresses a need for belonging 59 4. How popular music expresses a fear of belonging 65 5. How popular music expresses a need for differing cultural symbols: 66 The Cultural Omnivore 6. How popular music expresses a frustrated pursuit of cosmopolitanism 69 7. How Popular music expresses the happy narrative and the narcissist 72 8. How Popular music wants to explore beyond the lifeworld 79 Concluding Comment 81 iii Chapter 3 Christian belief and secularisation 83 1. From corporate religious belief to the Enlightenment 84 2. From ‘hard’ to ‘soft secularisation’ 87 3. From the Postsecular to the ‘Rise of the nones’ 94 Religious narratives and imagery in popular music 99 Concluding comment 104 Chapter 4 Lyrical content, transcendence and shalom 106 1. Security and ultimate concern in song 108 Understanding transcendence 112 Singing lyrically about transcendence 115 2. Tillich and ultimate concern 124 3. Can popular music re-enchant? 131 4. Lyrics and theology 135 Chapter 5 Music and emotion 141 1. Musical Communication 143 Communicative musicality 143 From musical control to enchantment 146 Differing theories of music and emotion 150 Music and induced emotion 152 Cognitive, discursive and induced emotional engagement with music 154 2. Music in everyday life 155 3. Affective space as an asylum 159 4. Strong experiences with music 160 5. Theological response 168 Summary 172 Chapter 6 A theology of emotion and popular music. 176 1. Liquid belief and flowing emotions 177 2. CSSR and pedagogy 179 3. Theologizing PACE 188 iv 4. Outline of a theology of emotion and popular music 194 Postscript – Bauman’s heritage 199 Conclusion 200 Bibliography 205 Videography 231 Discography 232 v INTRODUCTION Western society, it could be argued, is suffering from an epidemic of existential restlessness. Structurally, restlessness is expressed towards institutions, especially concerning the abuse of power. Politically, the surprising results of the 2016 ‘Brexit’ referendum, the 2017 British General Election, and even the 2016 American Presidential election have been interpreted as examples of such dissonance (e.g. Fox, 2016; Patel, 2017). I encounter existential restlessness daily in my role as a parish priest, when individuals, reflecting on their lives, ask me profound questions about the meaning of life or the reason for suffering. Social dis-ease and existential dissonance can be seen in the rise in the number of individuals who feel lonely or who struggle with self-esteem issues, anxiety, and depression—especially amongst adolescents and young adults (see, Girlguiding, 2016). This restlessness is evidenced in Western popular culture, notably so within popular music (e.g. see Partridge, 2015). Why do members of Western liberal democracies not feel at ease with themselves? How can the institution of the Church, the historic Western provider of a discourse offering ontological security, speak more effectively into such dis-ease? These issues lie at the centre of the concerns informing this thesis. In particular, three unrelated concerns led me to undertake this work. Firstly, I feel frustration with the continual arguments within the institutional Church around identity. Despite significant research concerning Western societal change these internal arguments affect the ability of the Church to tell its story of divine love, simply evidenced in the decline in church attendance (e.g. Fig. 1). Secondly, I play and listen to music which I find both therapeutic and invigorating. I remember hearing OneRepublic’s ‘Counting Stars’ (2013) playing ‘back to back’ with Ella Henderson’s ‘Ghost’ (2014) on a national commercial radio station. Imagery from both videos came to mind, making me think that in this ostensibly secular age such radio programming should not be occurring. How is it possible for there to be such public reference to God while Christian socialisation is declining? Lastly, I remember entering a music shop in London and hearing a short chord sequence played on a synthesizer. It felt like the sound had somehow penetrated my being. This serious encounter with music (Gabrielsson, 2011) simply and profoundly moved me. I did not equate this with a religious experience, but the sound left its mark on me. How could that be so? What did the feelings of excitement and fulfilment elicited in that moment really mean? To a large extent, this thesis is a critical reflection on these concerns. Method This research brings together three different fields of study: popular music studies, theology and sociology. I am writing primarily from a Christian theological perspective, while seeking 1 to ground that experience with sociological insight which largely reflects the Marxist tradition. In using Marxist analysis as a theoretical tool, I am interested primarily in understanding the significance of the hegemonic forces which shape and structure society. Perhaps needless to say as a Christian priest, the thesis is not a Marxist analysis of religion per se (see Dawson, 2011, 40). Rather, the primary sociological lens through which I examine society and consider the Church’s response to contemporary culture is that provided by Zygmunt Bauman in his work ‘liquid modernity’ (2002). Of course, while there are different approaches and sociological models that could be used, it is recognised that none are absolutely perfect and all have their strengths and weaknesses. They are tools that help us more easily to understand a range of social phenomena and processes. Many years ago, in 1977, Oliver Whitely developed Robin Gill’s work in The Social Context for Theology to address the following questions: ‘Accepting the premise that theologians make certain assumptions about persons, societies, and cultures, and about how human beings behave, what models taken from sociology might provide a basis for theological reflection? From the theological side, the question is: What understandings of persons, societies, and cultures are implicit in the ways in which sociologists attempt to describe and explain the behaviour of human beings?’ (Whitley 1977, 331) While he suggested four models that might be used by Christian theologians, it is clear that the situation is complex and that the scholar needs to be discriminating in the approach taken to a particular area of sociological enquiry. After looking at a number of approaches, it became clear that the sociological work of Bauman around what he theorized as ‘liquid modernity’ offered the best way forward. Again, I do not claim that it is the only way forward and others, such as Christopher Partridge