Module 5 - Pierre Bourdieu - Cultural Theory PDF

SOCI 333 Dr. Gbenga Adejare CONTEMPOARY SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY PIERRE BOURDIEU 1930 - 2002 PROFILE IN BRIEF Born in Denguin, France, on the 1st of August, 1930. Had an early start in public school before moving to Paris where he attended the Lycee Louis-le-Grand Served in the French army in Algeria in...

SOCI 333 Dr. Gbenga Adejare CONTEMPOARY SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY PIERRE BOURDIEU 1930 - 2002 PROFILE IN BRIEF Born in Denguin, France, on the 1st of August, 1930. Had an early start in public school before moving to Paris where he attended the Lycee Louis-le-Grand Served in the French army in Algeria in 1958, Carried out an ethnographic study on the people of Kabyle which led to his first publication - The Sociology of Algeria Before his death att the age of 71 in 2002, he became one of the most celebrated contemporary sociological theorists. WORK (MAJOR) 1 The School as a Conservative Force (1966) Bourdieu drew inspirations from Karl 2 Outline of a Theory of Practice (1977) 3 Reproduction in Education, Society, and Culture (1977) 4 Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Max, Max Weber, Gaston Bachelard, Georges Canguilhem, Emile Durkheim, Antonio Gramsci , Michel Foucault, and many others Taste (1984) 5 6 "Forms of Capital" (1986) Language and Symbolic Power (1991) IMPORTANT SOCIOLOGICAL QUOTES INTEREST AND LEGACY The works of Bourdieu developed around themes such as : Reflexive sociology Symbolic power Social space Hysteresis Cultural reproduction Self-analysis Methodological relationism Etc. BACKGROUND: READING BOURDIEU Social Ontology : What is the nature of the social world, the lifeworld? As sociologists, should we focus on social groups or the system? o The work of Bourdieu addresses this critical questions The work of Bourdieu is one of the most influential, if not the most, treatise on social ontology, as it straddles interrogations of structures, peoples and cultures, practices, and the economic world. Between the Foucaudian proposition and Gidden's structuration is Bourdieu's tapestry of cultural theory. BACKGROUND: READING BOURDIEU Social Ontology : What is the nature of the social world, the lifeworld? As sociologists, should we focus on social groups or the system? oThe work of Bourdieu addresses this critical questions The work of Bourdieu is one of the most influential, if not the most, treatises on social ontology, as it straddles interrogations of structures, peoples and cultures, practices, and the economic world. Between the Foucauldian proposition and Gidden's structuration is Bourdieu's tapestry of cultural theory. Bourdieu's thesis is both integrative and grand DUALISM Bourdieu moved away from dichotomous views about objectivism and subjectivism Rather than highlighting the dyadic conflation of structure and agency, Bourdieu saw a point of convergence between the two through practices (actions produced from the dialectical interactions between system and agency) DUALISM CONT'D In his view, practices are not the outcome of human freewill that can be determined objectively. oThey are products of mediated selection processes – an awareness of the social sphere and the recognition of the importance of position-taking. oBourdieu agrees with Mead that the concept of 'self' is produced through social intercourses. FIELDS AND CAPITAL Field: The lifeworld is a space for actors who are constantly playing games – transactional engagement of agents who have some power. oDifferent practices and bargaining powers are exhibited on the field. oE.g., think of education and the language of instruction, or Technology and the system of coding Capital: This is the traded 'commodity' on the field of social gaming. o"A capital does not exist or function except in relation to a field" (Bourdieu, in Calhoun et al., 2022: 244) HABITUS Habitus is perhaps the most well-known concept advanced by Bourdieu. It refers to "mental or cognitive structures through which people deal with the social world" (Ritzer and Stepnisky, 2022:205) In a dialectical or contrasting manner, habitus represents the internalization of social structure, an objective separation of the structure of social class. oSimilar habitus is shared between those who share the same social class HABITUS CONT'D The social world produces habitus and is constantly being reshaped by it. Habitus is historical and can also be illusionary KEY CONCEPTS Reflexive Sociology: The kind of sociology that is grounded on the use of own empiricism and theorizing to understand the discipline. Autonomous Principle of Characterization: This a principle that promotes specific concentration. E.g., dominant habitus Hysteresis: This refers to a condition that occurs when one takes on a habitus that is in dissonance with the social situation on lives in. KEY CONCEPTS CONT'D Homology: A term Bourdieu used to illustrate the dialectical interdependence of social classes that engender struggles, alliances, conversions, normalization and antithetical emergencies. Social Capital: The degree of access that an actor has to valued social relations KEY CONCEPTS CONT'D Cultural Capital: The sum of knowledge, behavior, relationships, skills, and opportunities that an individual can appropriate Symbolic Capital: The sum of prestige and honour that an actor can claim in a social system