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Sociology Theories And Methods - Paper 1 Or 3 > The concept of modernity and post modernity in relation to sociological theory > Flashcards

The concept of modernity and post modernity in relation to sociological theory Flashcards

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1
Q

What do modernism and post modernism refer to?

A

Beliefs and theories which are associated with 2 periods in human society known as ‘modernity’ which began in the 1700s and post modernity around the 1800s.

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2
Q

Bauman
Chaos, uncertainty and the collapse of social structures

A

See society in a constant state of change which is unpredictable and marked by chaos and uncertainty - Liquid modernity.

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3
Q

What are modernist theories part of?

A

The enlightenment project - the idea that society can progress through the use of human reason.

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4
Q

How was society changing according to postmodernists?

A

In a way that modernist social theories could no longer provide adequate explanations of society.

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5
Q

What factors meant that traditional sources of identity were becoming irrelevant?

A

Rise in new media
Rapid technology changes
Growth of service and knowledge based industries
Globalisation
Consumer culture

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6
Q

What are people more focused on now instead of political parties?

A

New social and political partied which are interested in single issues concerning culture, identity, lifestyle and quality of life which reflect their personal interests.

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7
Q

What did social change mean peoples lives were becoming?

A

More insecure and unpredictable.

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8
Q

What did science become to be seen as when postmodernism emerged?

A

The cause of problems rather than the solution.

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9
Q

What do many sociologists argue we are now increasingly affected by?

A

Globalisation

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10
Q

How has globalisation affected technological changes?

A

Satellite communications, internet etc have created time, space compression between people.
This brings risks on a global scale.
Beck risk society - threats from human made as well as natural disasters.

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11
Q

How has globalisation affected economic changes?

A
  • electronic economy production of info instead of goods
  • 24 hour financial transactions
  • Trans national companies e.g. Coca Cola - 500 of these toegther = 1/2 of the total value of commodities produced.
  • Sklair - global capitalist class.
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12
Q

Political changes due to globalisation
Why does Ohmae call the work ‘boarderless’?

A

Transnational companies and consumers have more power than national governments.

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13
Q

How has globalisation affected changed in culture and identity?

A
  • Harder for cultures to exist in isolation from each other.
  • We live in a global culture - western opened media companies spread western ideas
  • economic integration encourages global culture
  • increased movement of people
  • undermines traditional sources of identity
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14
Q

What does Giddens call disembedding?

A

The way social relations are lifted out of social contexts and no loner confined by time and space.

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15
Q

What undermines national identities?

A

Tourism, travel, immigration, emigration, migrant labour, illegal immigrants and asylum seekers.

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16
Q

What are national cultures and what are they increasingly becoming?

A

Diluted and increasingly becoming global cultures - the same food, consumer goods, films, music and fashions found around the world based on Western cultures.

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17
Q

What do people form identities around?

A

Images and consumer lifestyles drawn from global culture e.g. through TV and internet rather than traditional sources of identity like their local community, social class, gender or ethnicity.

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18
Q

According to Browne what has gloablisation meant?

A

Modernist sociology formed around concepts such as structure/ action and social class, gender and ethnicity within the framework of the national state need to be rejected or reformulated to take into account the new contexts of globalisation and global interconnectedness.

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19
Q

What does Lyotard argue people no longer believe n?

A

The myth of truth - society can no longer be understood through general theories or metanarratves (Marxism or functionalism).

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20
Q

What do Postmodernists think about social constraints?

A

That there are few social constraints on people as structuralist approaches suggest.

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21
Q

How does Lyotard see society characterised by?

A

Growing individualism - mass of individuals with few social bonds connecting them.

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22
Q

How do people form identities?

A

Through individual choices in education, health and personal relationships as well as the consumer goods they buy.

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23
Q

What does Baudrillard call the end of the social?

A

The fact people now form their own identities - how they see themselves and how others see and define them.

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24
Q

How does Baudrillard see society as?

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A

Media saturated - mass media used to reflect reality but now it dominates and distorts the way we see the world.
This caused culture to become fragmented and unstable.

25
What does Baudrillard suggest the media presents?
Simulacra - images which appear to reflect events in the real world but have no basis in reality.
26
An example of how images of real life events are distorted
Video reporting has removed blood suffering and corpses from war meaning the TV presents a sanitised version of conflicts.
27
What does Baudrillard call the distorted view of the world?
Hyper reality.
28
What and why is Baudrillard particularly critical of?
Television - sees it as the main source of simulacra and our inability to distinguish between image and reality.
29
What does Giddens say much of our world has become?
A make believe universe in which we are responding to media images rather than real people or places.
30
What does Bradley see new identities being created by?
Globalisation - brings different cultures together meaning identities are no longer fixed and people can adopt different identities based on consumer lifestyles.
31
How does Bauman see life in postmodernism society?
Like a shopping mall - people stroll around consuming, trying and changing their identity.
32
What does Baudrillard think life in post modernity involves?
The search for satisfaction of media created desires and pressures to consumer with individual identity and behaviour no longer formed by class, ethnicity or gender but by images, info and signs gained from media.
33
How have lost the power to improve society due to being unable to distinguish between image and reality?
If we can't grasp reality we cannot change it meaning the central goal of the enlightenment project is unachievable.
34
How does Focault see a discourse?
As a set of ideas that have become established as knowledge or way of thinking and speaking around the world.
35
What does Focault describe discourse as?
Power/ knowledge.
36
What happens when we use discourse?
It makes us see things in a particular way so it is a form of knowledge and domination.
37
Example of discourse today
Our view of madness is formed by the discourse of psychiatry which describes it using terms such as 'schizophrenia.' However in the past when religious discourse was dominant, madness was seen as 'possession by spirits.'
38
What do Marxists believe in the enlightenment project?
Achieving objective knowledge and using it to improve society. E.g. Marx view of w/c revolution could overthrow capitalism and bring an end to exploitation.
39
What do Marxists such as Jameson and Harvey believe today's society has moved from?
Modernity to post modernity seeing major changes in society.
40
How do Marxists describe postmodernism culture?
In similar terms to postmodernists emphasising the importance of media images, diversity and instability.
41
How do Marxists see postmodernity which is different to the way Baudrillard and Lyotard see it?
See it as the product of the most recent stage of capitalism not a fundamental break from the past.
42
When and why did postmodernism arise according to Harvey?
Arouse out of capitalist crisis in the 70s which saw the end of the long economic boom leading to a new regime of accumulation.
43
What does Harvey call the new way of achieving profitability which came about in capitalist crisis?
'Flexible accumulation' or post Fordism - involves using info, tech, an expanded service and finance sector, job insecurity and the requirement of workers to be flexible to fit employers needs.
44
What does flexible accumulation permit?
The production of customised products for mass markets and easy switching from producing one product to producing another.
45
How did flexible accumulation bring changes in consumption?
Turned leisure, culture and identity into commodities.
46
What does Jameson say postmodernity represents?
A more developed form of capitalism because it commodifies nearly all aspects of life including identities.
47
What does Harvey argue that the more developed form of capitalism leads to?
Compression of time and space - commodification of culture, creation of worldwide financial markets and new info/ communication technologies which all serve to shrink the globe.
48
How do Harvey and Jameson argue flexible accumulation has brought political changes?
Weakened w/c and socialist movements and a variety of oppositional movements have merged instead such as environmentalism, women's liberation and anti-racism.
49
What do Harvey and Jameson hope new social movements can form?
A rainbow alliance to bring about change.
50
What two ways does Marxism differ from postmodernity according to Best and Keller?
1. Retain faith in a Marxist theory as a means of explaining these changes. 2. Argue the goal of the enlightenment project can still be achieved.
51
Strengths of Marxist theories of postmodernity
They can offer a sociological explanation of them by relating recent changes in society to the nature of capitalism.
52
Limitations of Marxist theories of postmodernity
By accepting that political opposition to capitalism has fragmented into many different social movements such as feminism, Marxist theories appear to abandon the possibility that the enlightenment project would be achieved by the w/c.
53
Strengths of postmodernism
- Highlighted some important cultural changes especially in areas of the media, culture and identity. - Emphasise the construction of identity has become more fluid and complex- can't be reduced to a response to social structural factors. - Provides insight into most contemporary social changes such as growing risk and uncertainty, globalisation and the growing power of media. - By challenging sociological metanarratives it has encouraged sociologists to reflect upon their assumptions, how they set about their research and the meaning of contemporary social changes.
54
Criticisms of postmodernity
- Exaggerates the scale of social change - cultural tastes are still strongly influenced by class, gender and ethnicity. - Harvey - Marxism argues many changes identified as evidence of postmodernity can be explained by modernist theories such as Marxism. - Postmodernism itself is a metanarrative - Lyotard's theory is self defeating.
55
What do theories of late modernity provide?
A sociological alternative to postmodernism showing that rational analysis of society remains possible and recognising that whilst our knowledge may never be perfect we can still use it to improve society and reduce risks.
56
What does reflexivity suggest?
That we reflect our actions and then are free to reshape our lives accordingly to reduce our exposure risks however not everyone has this option e.g. the poor.
57
Rustin
Criticising Beck argues that capitalism and the pursuit of profit at all costs that is the source of risk not tech.
58
Hirst
Rejects Becks view that movements such as environmentalism will bring about change arguing they're too fragmented to challenge capitalism.

Sociology Theories And Methods - Paper 1 Or 3 (7 decks)

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