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
