culture and idenity key thinkers Flashcards
social action
cooley “the looking glass self”
reactions of others may make us change or modify our view of ourselves and our behaviour.
- imagine how i must appear to others
- imagine judgement of others
- develop myself through the judgement of others
social action
becker and lamert
labelling theory
if we believe something to be true, then this belief will afffect how we act- we become what others see us
social actions
mead
“i” and “me”
“i” = private self “me” = social self
Goffman
“impression management”
(dramaturgical model)
projecting particular impressions of themselves “presentation of self” by putting on a “show”
there’s a “front” stage where we act out our roles and a “back” stage where we strip out of our roles
socialisation
parsons (functionalist)
sees the family as a “personality factory” where the child is a blank slate and the parents mould the child into the image of society
mass media makes sense of the world around us
socialisation
feminists
no value consensus and people are socilasied into gender roles based on the values of men
marxist
- family is used by the capitalist class to install values such as obedience for authority.
- religion socialises working class into false ideas, blind faith distracts from exploitation.
- media creates false needs.
- educations encourages conformity through the hidden curriculum.
social class
bourdieu (habitus)
the dominant class has the power to impose its own views on what counts as good taste to the rest of society
zweig
increasing propriety led to a decrease in the numbers of working class and growth in middle class
social class
charlesworth
those at the bottom of working class are misunderstood by other social classes because they experience a negative self identity
functionalists
distinct class cultures create distinct class identities since those in similar class positions are similar people. individuals “know their place”
social class
postmodernists
present day identities are much more fluid and unclear, individuals are free to become who they wish
marxists
working class are deprived of education and are subjective to a act of low culture, cultural reproduction
social class
feminists
see social class over exaggerated as a results of gender relations and identity are ignored
new rights
if people work hard they can be any class they want
new marxists
class identity is created that enables the development of the true class consciousness which struggles against the ruling class hegemony
gender
wilkinson
there’s been a fundamental shift in values about women, “genderquake” attitudes moved away from family and towards career
mac and ghaill
males are experiencing the “crisis of masculinity” because of a decline in traditional jobs, resulting in high levels of male unemployment
gender
connell
coined the phrase “hegemonic masculinity” to describe the dominant male stereotypes and therefore awe can also talk about “hegemonic feminists”
oakley- primary socialisation
- manipulation- boys involved in physical play and girls are cuddled.
- canalisation- girls and boys exposed to different toys.
- verbal appellations- praised for different behaviour appropriate to gender.
- differential activity exposure- girls do domestic work and boys do the physical work.
sexuality
weeks
sexuality is a product of culture rather than biology, it is said to be socially constructed (homosexuality was seen as criminal)
Goffman “impression management”
to conceal aspects of their sexuality from others.
he claims that homosexuality carries less costal stigma than it did in the past
sexuality
mcrobbie
“beauty stakes have gone up from men”
ethnicity
yingers 3 ethnicity categories
-perception of others.
-perception by those in the group.
-share common cultural characteristics;
common descent
geographical origins
history
language
religion
traditions and rituals
ethnicity
jonal
found british asians have a dual identity in that they inherit an asian is with and adopt a british one. results in asian youth adopting a “white mask” in order to interact with white peers at school
beck - hybrid identity
young people played with different cultural “masks” and different styles. inter ethnic friendships and marriages mean that groups borrow ideas. leading to the blurring of boundaries
ethnicity
mcdood
ethnic identity’s in the uk changing.
wearing ethnic clothes were less important for young people than for their parents. second generation immigrants see themselves as british compared to first generations
gilroy
black and white culture has become mixed. black americans who adopt “gangsta” fashions as a response to revise have made themselves tools of exploration by white run global economies. their styles stolen by whites
ethnicity
basit
- ethnic identities are changeable.
- he interviews british asian school girls who suggested that they combine elements of british and asian cultures
- they created their identity based on their asian cultures. but in a british context
british nationality
gulbernav and goldblatt 5 key themes
- geography
- religion
- war
- british empire
- monaracy
waters - under treat
celtic identity for scottish and welsh, more likely to express their welsh and scottish identity respectively because the association of britishness with englishmen
british nationality
hall
because of globalisation, national culture may be leading to new cultures of hybridity
postmodernists
national identity is becoming diluted
mcdood
second generation ethnic minorities thought themselves as mostly british
curtice and heath
people identitied themselves as “english” rather than “british” has increased from 7% to 17%, “little englanders”
disability
finklestein - marxist (1980)
our cultural attitudes towards the disabled may be a product of capitalist empathetic of work. requires a healthy and fit workforce, disabled become an economic burden
marsh and keating (2006)
very few of us are really independent, we are dependent on many aids
age
parsons (functionalism)
age groups are vital for functioning of society - childhood is for socialisation
vincent (marxist)
important part of stratification. old age means material deprivation and middle age is focused on leisure
age
oakley (feminist)
woman are the same as children
women are seen as childlike and emotional, needing protection
hockey and james
media stereotypes often serve to make old age appear childlike
age
pilcher
age categories are breaking down people more concerned with self identity
aries
in medieval times childhood wasn’t separate to adulthood. they went straight to work
age
cohen
media shows young people to create a moral panic
johnson and blytheway
ageism “offensive exercise of power through reference of age”
laslett
“third age “ younger age of retirement- high expectancy and more prosperity
globalalisatuon
Ray
globalisation creates a more complex and fluid society
postmodern
muggleton - youth subcultures
conducted 57 interviews
found most disliked being labelled as belonging to a particular subculture
leotard
social class, gender, age and ethnicity for identity are what he calls “metanarratives” - no longer explain identity
postmodern
rojek and roberts
products and lifestyles we follow are a bigger part of identity
bockock
people are shopping for lifestyles and therefore buying identities
giddens
“projects of the self”
we actively construct our identity
postmodern
taylor
society is an “endless shopping mall”
where people have choice over how they look, what they consume and what they believe in”
bauman (advertisement)
have symbolic significance
postmodern
strinati
media forms our sense of reality and how we define ourselves
work
gini
“what we do is what we’ll become” how we earn money, how much, how it affects our status
drukhiem - lack of work
“anomie” - normlessness or sense of insecurity and uncertainty from change
work
rich and loretto
loss of work based friends and work routine, led to a personal crisi or confidence
bauman
work is no longer the central axis of identity and there’s more value on what we consume
work
doherty
long term employment is increasing meaning people gain an identity from a career.
evidence of upskilling
satisfied with their jobs
