Modernity, Post Modernity & Globalisation Flashcards
What is meant by the nation-state in modern society?
Refers to a bounded territory ruled by a powerful centralised state, whose population share the same language and culture, the nation-state is a powerful source of identity for its citizens who identify with symbols such as the flag and large sporting events. The state uses institutions such as education to regulate the citizens lives
Evidence for multiculturalism?
In 2021, census around 20% of people in England identified themselves as belonging to a non-white ethnic minority group
How does rationalisation show that society is modern?
Weber
Whereby scientific and rational ways of thinking replace religious ones. This leads to secularisation. He argues this occurs during the Protestant reformation in the late 16th century, prior to this the catholic medieval worldview dominated this, the world was seen as magical with supernatural forces present
Evidence to support rationalisation?
Census 2021 - 40% ‘no religion’
- the scientific approach to society is seen through major institutions such as the education system which reinforces scientific ways of thinking through the national curriculum
How does rejection of meta narratives show that society is postmodern?
- No foundation to knowledge, the enlightenment project of achieving progress through scientific knowledge is dead
- People are highly critical of meta narratives (theories that claim to have found the truth such as feminism and Marxism)
- Postmodernists take a relativist position, all views are true for those who hold them, are equally valid
Lyotard: knowledge is based on different ways of seeing the world, postmodern society allows groups who have been marginalised by modern society to be heard, no singular institution can claim the monopoly over the truth
Evidence that meta narratives are being rejected?
Study by the British educational research journal; found that 30% of state secondary school teachers heard the Covid microchip theory being discussed
What is simulacra & hyperreality?
Bauldrillard
- Believes in simulacra, the idea that previous societies were based on the production of material goods whereas postmodern society is based on buying and selling knowledge in the form of images and signs
- Signs stand for nothing and do not reflect reality
- Media saturation helps to create hyper realty and simulacra through bombarding people with images until we no longer believe what is real
- Reality has been replaced with false imagers, we cannot distinguish between real and unreal, we cannot improve society
Evidence for hyper reality?
AI firm deeptrce in September 2019 found 15,000 deepfake videos online, 96% had pornographic content and 99% were faces of female celebrities mapped onto porn stars
How does risk society show we are in late modernity?
Beck
Todays world, people faces new dangers;
- in the past, society faced dangers as a result of its inability to control nature, such as drought, famine and disease
- today, the dangers we face are manufactured risks from human activities such as global warming
- sees this as a period of growing individualism, we become increasingly reflexive and must think for ourselves as tradition no longer governs how we act
- as a result , we develop a ‘risk consciousness’ we are more aware of perceived risks and seek to avoid them
Evidence for late modernity
2023, was declare the warmest year on record, climate change is linked to the use of fossil fuelled which release greenhouse gases, negative impact on the environment including more intense weather and rapid melting of glaciers causing sea levels to rise
