Outlines of a Theory of Plural Habitus
Outlines of a Theory of Plural Habitus

Author: Miklós Hadas

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-11-14

Total Pages: 109

ISBN-13: 100053071X

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This book explores the thought of Pierre Bourdieu, one of the most influential sociologists of the twentieth century, proposing a modification and extension of his concept of habitus. Building on Bourdieu’s notion of the translational reproduction of social structure – the idea that while social classes move in the same direction, dominant groups are able to preserve their relative power position, thus maintaining the structure of the gap – the author proposes that as social structures change, habitus change correspondingly, and thus become plural. Informed by Norbert Elias’ process sociology, this volume offers examples of habitus pluralisation, arguing that this modification of Bourdieu’s thought renders it more suitable for the study of social changes and represents the development of a path that Bourdieu himself had begun to explore in the later stages of his career. As such it will appeal to scholars of sociology and social theory with interests in historical sociology, process sociology, social structures and the thought of Bourdieu.

Critical Theory of Coloniality
Critical Theory of Coloniality

Author: Paulo Henrique Martins

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2022-04-19

Total Pages: 326

ISBN-13: 100056956X

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This book reveals how the critique of the domination of capitalism inaugurated by the Frankfurt School becomes pluriversal, motivating the historical Critical Theory of Coloniality (CTC) dialogue between the Global South and the Global North. CTC expresses the emergence and historical actuality of a set of intellectual fields aimed at denouncing domination and promoting emancipatory ideas at the borders of colonial capitalism. The book argues that the actuality of the CTC relies on the importance of valuing theoretical and methodological pluralism in the context of the necessary redefinition of the directions of global society. It reveals a plural reflection of scientific, moral, and aesthetic character in different areas of former planetary colonisation such as Asia, Africa, and America but also on the borders of Europe. This book is aimed at researchers and students in the social sciences as well as in interdisciplinary studies. It is attractive to those who are interested in the plural development of theoretical criticism outside the European universe and who seek to understand how capitalist power has metamorphosed with planetary coloniality. Considering this book implies important reflections on topics such as development, modernity, tradition, imperialism, dependency, and democracy, it is interesting to specialists in development issues, international relations, and policymakers.

Bourdieusian Media Studies
Bourdieusian Media Studies

Author: Johan Lindell

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2024-07-15

Total Pages: 141

ISBN-13: 104012111X

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Bourdieusian Media Studies illustrates the merits of Pierre Bourdieu’s cultural sociological approach in the field of media studies, explicating exactly what a “Bourdieusian” analysis of media would entail, and what new understandings of the digital media landscape would emerge from such an analysis. The author applies the Bourdieusian concepts of social field, capital, and habitus to understand the social conditions of media and cultural production, media users’ practices and preferences, and the power dynamics entailed in social media networks. Based on a careful illumination of Bourdieu’s concepts, epistemological assumptions, and methodological approach, the book presents a range of case studies covering television production, the field of media studies itself, media use, and social media networks. Illustrating the craft of Bourdieusian media studies and shedding new light on key dynamics of digital media culture, this book will appeal to scholars and students working in media studies, media theory, sociology of media, digital media, and cultural production.

Karl Polanyi and the Paradoxes of the Double Movement
Karl Polanyi and the Paradoxes of the Double Movement

Author: John Vail

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2022-04-19

Total Pages: 327

ISBN-13: 1000569853

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This book offers a critical reconstruction of the double movement, the central thesis of Karl Polanyi’s The Great Transformation, one of the most influential books of the 20th century. The double movement is the establishment of a free market economy and the subsequent effort by society to ameliorate the destructive effects of the market. In Polanyi’s bold vision, the double movement constituted the hidden gear of social change and historical transformation within capitalism. The book is a forensic examination and critique of Polanyi’s argument. It develops an interpretive framework of the double movement as four interrelated social processes: the establishment of the self-regulating market, the rise of a market society that deepens and extends market imperatives, a social protection phase that constrains the market and safeguards society, and the contradictions and crises that result from this clash of social principles. The book will be an indispensable guide for students and scholars across the social sciences which illuminates the relevance of Polanyi’s insights to a critical understanding of the contemporary era –the scourge of insecurity and inequality, the multiple crises of neoliberalism, the rise of right wing populism- as well as those interested in egalitarian and emancipatory alternatives to capitalism.

Making Citizenship Work
Making Citizenship Work

Author: Rodolfo Rosales

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2022-08-24

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 1000615103

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Making Citizenship Work seeks to address questions of how a community reaches a place where it can actually make citizenship work. A second question addressed is "What does citizenship represent to different communities?" Across thirteen chapters a collection of experts traverse multiple disciplines in analyzing citizenship from different points of access. Each chapter revolves around the premise that empowerment of communities, and individuals within the community, comes in different forms and is governed by multiple needs and visions. Authors utilize case studies to demonstrate the different roles that communities from a broad sector of our society adopt to accomplish constructing democratic processes that reflect their goals, needs, and cultures. Concurrently authors address the structural obstacles to the empowerment of communities, arguing that the democratic process does not and cannot accommodate the diverse communities of society within a single universalistic model of citizenship. They conclude that fundamentally citizenship is not simply a legal right, an obligation, a state of rights, but a practice, an action on the behalf of community. Making Citizenship Work challenges conventional thinking about politics while also encouraging readers to go beyond the box that deters us from visualizing a human society. It is an ideal book for undergraduate and graduate courses in political science, sociology, history, social work and Ethnic Studies.

Gabriel Tarde
Gabriel Tarde

Author: David Toews

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2022-06-09

Total Pages: 180

ISBN-13: 1000570398

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This book presents the core ideas of early sociologist Gabriel Tarde and suggests a new pathway for sociology based on his foundational work. Rejecting anthropocentrism, Tarde highlights the contrast between the natural and the artificial, uniquely emphasizing the positive significance of the artificial in an age in which people have come to distrust it profoundly. Recovering Tarde’s theory today in the context of contemporary as well as classical scholarship and recognizing how it fits with such phenomena as quantum physics and digital media, this book develops the concept of the cosmological imagination as the context for a critical Tardian analysis of artifice that can bring together what we know about our contemporary future-oriented global societies. How we know the universe, our place in it, the place of other animals and objects in it, our global socialities, our human claims of power and privilege within it, are pointed questions Tarde asks as he wonders whether a future temporality conducive to constant artifice has become our normal human way of life. Considering our ambivalence about modern products and modernity in general, our thinking about the future, and our tendency to forget what nature used to signify in its presentation of problems beyond our control, such as illnesses and epidemics, Gabriel Tarde: The Future of the Artificial demonstrates the reasons for which we need to return to Tarde’s work to rediscover its relevance for public debate as we seek to think through the new era and its societies in which culture and nature are no longer distinct. This book will appeal to scholars of social and political theory with interests in our digital age, new sociologies of materials and objects, neomonadology, and the thought of Gabriel Tarde.

Nationalism and Hegemony
Nationalism and Hegemony

Author: Michaelangelo Anastasiou

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2022-04-15

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1000572323

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This book develops a contemporary theory of nationalism that addresses 21st century political challenges, exploring theoretical and empirical understandings of the concepts of ‘the nation’ and ‘nationalism’ and the failure of various theoretical accounts to decipher the diverse manner by which nationalism comes to be embedded in our social and political world. Accounting for the dynamism and ‘intertextuality’ of nationalism, Nationalism and Hegemony shows how ‘the nation’ and ‘nationalism’ come to be consolidated as conceptual and experiential power structures and how the interests of political groups are advanced through diverse nationalist modalities, which can at any time be activated for political purposes. A critique of the various and diverse manifestations of nationalism, this contribution to both theory and political practice will appeal to scholars working in the fields of sociology and social and political theory.

Anatomies of Modern Discontent
Anatomies of Modern Discontent

Author: Thomas S. Henricks

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2022-03-03

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 1000550966

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This book provides an overview and analysis of the thought of figures across the human and social sciences on the character, causes, and consequences of discontent in modern societies. Exploring the important social and cultural conditions associated with modernity, it focuses on the contributions of 38 prominent scholars from the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries – philosophers, historians, and social scientists – on the subject of discontent and social malaise, and individual and collective well-being. Thematically organized, this volume offers brief portraits of the lives and key ideas of these thinkers, leading toward a presentation of modernity as a “differentiated complaint.” Reclaiming an important tradition in the human and social sciences that sees life on a grand scale, that integrates personal affairs with social and cultural matters, and that dares people to recommit themselves to this broader vision of human involvement, Anatomies of Modern Discontent will appeal to readers across the social sciences and humanities, particularly those with interests in social theory, sociology, and philosophy.

Towards a Sociology of the Open Society
Towards a Sociology of the Open Society

Author: Masoud Mohammadi Alamuti

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2022-11-30

Total Pages: 186

ISBN-13: 1000783634

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This book applies the general theory of critical rationalism in order to develop a new sociology of the open society, in general, and a new analysis of the transition from a closed society to an open society in particular. It presents a criticism of Karl Popper’s analysis of human action for opening up a closed society, followed by a critical study of the mainstream sociology to show how justificational models of knowledge and rational action have prevented sociology from addressing the contribution of human action to social change. This book provides new sociologies of closed and open societies. It argues that in the closed society "a low level" of critical rationality is activated by people to define the meaning of the good life and social institutions of law, polity and economy. Masoud Mohammadi Alamuti proposes five mechanisms of opening up closed society through the model of social change, inspired by the philosophy of critical rationalism. This volume is "the first systematic attempt" to apply the philosophy of critical rationalism in order to present a "normative sociology of the open society". It will be of interest to postgraduate researchers and professional readers in philosophy, sociology, moral science, law, politics and economics. In addition, this book would benefit research centres, policymakers and civil society activists interested in the ideas of critical rationalism and the open society.