Theological Views on Culture

Question 1

describe the functionalist view of culture

Answer 1

-social glue for society and maintains social order and value consensus
-collective consciousness imparted through culture

Question 2

evaluate the functionalist view of culture

Answer 2

-marxists/feminists agree that culture is a social control but it functions to benefit certain groups
-postmodernists see culture as multiple and diverse instead of singular and consensus

Question 3

describe the marxist view of culture

Answer 3

-culture is a form of social control to benefit ruling class to sustain the capitalist system by imparting dominant ideology and distracting workers from their exploitation (fcc)

Question 4

describe the Frankfurt school of Neo Marxists view on culture using Adorno

Answer 4

-Adorno argues mass culture creates false needs that they must consume eg through advertising
-also created through a projection of what is normal (commodity fetishism) eg horoscopes and rags to riches stories in lotteries project that life is determined by luck which creates a passive w/c and prevents revolution

Question 5

describe the Frankfurt school for neo marxists view of culture using Bordieu

Answer 5

-cultural capital and habitus = learnt knowledge/appreciation of respected and high cultural products that give ruling class status/ advantages
-often seen in education which reproduces class inequalities

Question 6

describe the Frankfurt school of Neo Marxists view on culture using Gramsci

Answer 6

-Gramsci argues hegemony (common sense capitalist culture) is dominant but alternative counter hegemony cultures exist
-eg prefer popular to mass culture and see potential of youth cultures

Question 7

evaluate marxist and neo marxist views

Answer 7

-functionalist argue culture unified society whereas feminists argue it benefits the patriarchy not the ruling class
-marxist theorists do not agree with each other

Question 8

give 3 neo marxist theorists

Answer 8

-Adorno
-Bordieu
-Gramsci

Question 9

describe the feminist view of culture

Answer 9

-popular culture stereotypes women into certain social roles which normalise/ justify the patriarchy
-eg Charlie’s Angels

Question 10

give two feminist theorists on culture

Answer 10

-McRobbie
-Wolf

Question 11

what was McRobbies study

Answer 11

studied how magazines promoted trad housewife roles

Question 12

what was Wolfs study

Answer 12

-media portrays trad images of women to keep women oppressed in a narrow range of roles
-believe in the beauty myth that their bodies are projects in constant need of improving

Question 13

evaluate the feminist views of culture

Answer 13

-postmodern feminists see media rep for women empowering eg Charlie’s Angels and Madonna
-functionalists argue women benefit from social order just as much as men

Question 14

describe the interactionist view of culture using Goffman

Answer 14

-culture is shaped by ppl
-Goffman studied his norms were developed by interactions between ppl eg pedestrians avoiding bumping into ppl and giving up seats for elders

Question 15

describe the postmodernist view of culture

Answer 15

-culture is diverse
-popular culture is diverse and essentially mass culture
-cultural relativism = no one culture is better than another

Question 16

evaluate the interactionist view of culture

Answer 16

-interactionist perspective influenced neo marxist perspectives
-does not inform us of phenomena in society purely observational

Question 17

evaluate the postmodernist view of culture

Answer 17

-cultural relativism is problematic when cultural practices are harmful eg female genital mutilation should be condemned
-postmodern perspective influential as sociologists avoid judging cultures as superior