Plebeian culture and capitalism: the case of the Xiquets de Valls

Abstract

The aim of this article is to analyse a particular manifestation of what is known as “plebeian culture” —the appearance of the Xiquets de Valls (human towers) in the early 19th century—, in a context where a developing capitalism that liquidated traditional ways of life was filling significant layers of the population with insecurities. The article expands on the features of this “plebeian culture” which are recognizable in the origin of the “castells” (human towers): their legitimization by the “custom”, their corporate behaviour, their unfolding of both social and emotional networks, their expressive symbolism, their independence from the “patrician culture” and the expenditure as a symbol of the new monetary economy. Particular emphasis is placed on the context of conflict in which this cultural demonstration takes place, as long as it determines the forms of its social projection. Finally, the emergence of the “castells” is defined as an expression of resistance to the loss of security and certainty.