First Advisor

Leslie A. Rill

Date of Publication

Fall 12-13-2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Communication

Department

Communication

Language

English

Subjects

Alternative rock music -- Oregon -- Portland -- History and criticism, Popular music -- Oregon -- Portland -- History and criticism, Group identity -- Oregon -- Portland, Geographical perception -- Oregon -- Portland

DOI

10.15760/etd.1488

Physical Description

1 online resource (iii, 118 pages)

Abstract

This study looks at how place and local identity of Portland are described within music lyrics from Portland, Oregon popular indie-rock artists. Employing a constant comparative analysis on a set of 1,201 songs from 21 different popular Portland indie-rock artists, the themes of landscapes and climate were found to represent place, and themes of lifestyles and attitudes represented local identity. Reviewing the uncovered themes showed a strong connection between representations of place and local identity within lyrics and common stereotypes or understandings of the city of Portland and its indie-rock music scene. The results of this study illustrate how place and local identity are communicated through popular but locally-tied music lyrics and how these lyrics may describe cities.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/10359

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