Phenomenology

Question 1

What’s Husserl’s philosophy?

Answer 1

• He argues we only make sense of society as we imposing meanings on it
• We make mental categories to classify information e.g the category of ‘four-legged furniture for eating off’ enables us to identity a table
• The world as we know it, and only be a product of our mind.

Question 2

Outline Schutz’s idea

Answer 2

• He applies Husserl’s idea to the social world.
• Argues categories and concepts aren’t unique to ourselves and we share them with members of society

Question 3

What are typifications?

Answer 3

• Shared categories of knowledge
• Enable us to organise our experiences into a shared world of meaning

Question 4

How does the meaning of experience vary due to the social context, in Schutz’s view?

Answer 4

• e.g. raising your arm class has a different meaning to at an auction.
• The meaning isn’t given by the action but by the context
• Meanings unstable and unclear, if others classify the action in different ways.

Question 5

How do typifications stabilise meanings?

Answer 5

• Typifications clarify meaning by ensuring we agree on the meaning of things.
• This allows us to communicate and cooperate to achieve our goals.
• Without typifications, social order would be impossible. e.g. if you see a object as a desk (to write on) but someone else sees it as an alter (for worshipping), problems might result

Question 6

Describe ‘recipe knowledge’

Answer 6

• Schutz argues we have a stock of shared typifications that we use to make sense of our experiences, called ‘recipe knowledge’, as we can follow it without thinking too much, and get the desired results
• e.g. we all know a red light means stop, enabling us to drive safely
• This knowledge is the world. For Schutz, the social world is a subjective world that can only exist when we share meaning

Question 7

Give disadvantages of phenomenology

Answer 7

• Functionalist argue the creation of social order is due to institution providing socialisation creating value consensus
• Marxists critique the concept of ‘typifications’ has it is actually hegemony, as insitituion enforce middle-class habitus
• Phenomenology (PM) argues everything is social instruct, the theory is also made up and not relevant