Stuart Hall's Theoretical Contribution To Cultural Studies

Stuart Hall, known as the Father of Cultural Studies, has won his great reputation by his academic achievement and enthusiastic participation in social political practices. Hall has a wide sphere of vision and takes an active part in heated discussion concerning culture. Through reading Hall's masterpieces intensively and focusing on Hall's theoretical contribution to Cultural Studies, this paper aims at giving an overview of Hall's cultural theories. Hall's contribution to the basic theories of Cultural Studies can be mainly reflected by his redefinition of culture and Cultural Studies. By introducing some key words of Cultural Studies such as discourse, power, subject and difference, Hall definites culture as representation and signifying practices. Meanwhile, Hall explains Cultural Studies on the grounds of articulation and cultural circulation. Hall's theories are closely connected with his social cultural practice. He applies such terms as representation, articulation, hegemony and ideology to constructing paradigm of Cultural Studies, popular culture, mass media and multiculturalism, and achieves a series of scholastic attainments. In the end, the paper deals with the significance of Hall's cultural theories to China's contemporary Cultural Studies from perspective of both reference and introspection. It proposes that our Chinese cultural scholars should stick to traditions of social criticism, promote public education in mass media and develop culture industry with Chinese characteristics.