MAINSTREAM AND COUNTERCULTURE
| dc.contributor.author | Aretov, Nikolay | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2026-02-16T13:05:37Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2026-02-16T13:05:37Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2026 | |
| dc.description.abstract | The concept of province can be read as what lies outside the centre – broadly speaking, outside the canon and the dominant mainstream. This article continues observations on literary stratification by introducing and discussing the concepts of mainstream, counterculture, and underground, which are less frequently used in Bulgarian academic criticism, and examines their place within the established typology. The mainstream is a dynamic phenomenon: it follows dominant representations and tastes, achieves commercial success, and is popularised by the media. The existing typology – primarily based on politics – is critiqued. I argue that for a phenomenon to be classified as counterculture or underground, it must not only oppose the mainstream aesthetically but also in its mode of dissemination. Counterculture is understood as the expression of (often suppressed) minorities that oppose cultural and/or social norms and seek alternative dissemination channels. Conditional examples include non-traditional folklore (jokes), chapbooks (pesnopoyki), samizdat, 1980s public readings, the fantasy genre, and certain popular music forms (punk, rap, chalga). The article highlights such phenomena and authors, demonstrating their links to contemporary folklore and urban argot. | |
| dc.identifier.issn | 3033-0599 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://doi.uni-plovdiv.bg/handle/store/983 | |
| dc.language.iso | other | |
| dc.publisher | Plovdiv University Press | |
| dc.subject | stratification | |
| dc.subject | mainstream | |
| dc.subject | popular literature | |
| dc.subject | unofficial folklore | |
| dc.subject | counterculture | |
| dc.subject | underground culture | |
| dc.title | MAINSTREAM AND COUNTERCULTURE | |
| dc.type | Article |