Soc 462, 10th week

Soc 462, 10th week

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  IDENTITY AND CULTURE SOC462 Asst. Prof. Fatma Altınbaş Sarıgül Istanbul Kemerburgaz University Department of Sociology
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  CLASS AND CONSUMPTION •Assigning individuals to classes is commonly done by using occupation as an indicator; however some theorists argue that the indicators have changed and lifestyles and culture should also be considered now. • However there is a direct link between occupation and income, and the lifestyles or cultural commodities one can consume.
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  Traditional Theoretical Interpretations •Functionalists see class division as natural. • Marxists see class culture and identity as tools of ideological domination. • Neo-marxists are interested in how subcultures develop as pockets of resistance. • Postmodernists argue that present-day identities are much more fluid and ambivalent than past.
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  The History ofClass Culture and Identity Traditional working-class culture with the following values; • Mental and physical bravery • Physical strength • Masculinity • Skills obtained through experience, not education Since the WWII, there has been a sociological debate about the changes in traditional working class. This new working class adopted a life-style that was home- centred, and thus the family became an important site for consumerism. This was an early sign of the rise of a ‘consumer society’ and decline of class identity.
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  Post-industrial Society • Increasedaffluence • Increased consumption • The decline of primary industry • The rise of a service-based economy • The rise of knowledge as a commodity to be used as a basis for status and power • The rise of new managerial and professional classes
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  3 key developmentsfor the decline of class as a factor of identity formation 1. The rise of a much more affluent new working class 2. The expansion of popular culture products 3. The shift from an economy based on production to one based on consumption 2 other historical developments 1. The creation of large multinational companies that developed brand-name products and invested massively in advertising 2. The rapid expansion of the music industry and the development of ‘youth’ as a distinct cultural group.
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  The Consumer Culture •Consumption is bound up with a capitalist economy based on the production of commodities. • The commodities consumed come from popular cultural sources. • Consumption is immediate, based on the instant gratification of needs. • Advertising plays a large role in the creation of wants and desires. • Once products are consumed they are thrown away and rapidly replaced by the next- the newest and the best
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  Types of ConsumerCulture • The passive cultural robot- duped by the power of advertising. • The creative actor, constructing his or her life-style and identity from consumption, exercising free choice. • The deviant consumer, manipulating dominant popular cultural messages, signs and commodities to create a new life-style. • The postmodern consumer, playing with meanings and styles, picking and mixing, concerned only with outer image.
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  New Social Movements •These movements are life-style politics based on the body, and are localized and identity-forming. Sexuality Ethnic identity Gender Environmental concerns • Postmodern politics are about awareness of others, the understanding that one’s body and life are political and the realization that political struggles can exist at both the local and the national level.
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  SEX AND GENDER •FEMINISM- Equality. Not just for woman, but for all people regardless of gender, race, culture, religion, ability, class, nationality or age. • Feminist World View; 1. Society is male dominated- patriarchal 2. Women have been ignored within sociological discussion until recently.
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  Two Waves ofFeminism 1. Started at the end of 19th century. Totally ignored by the founders of sociology. Political and legal rights of women was concerned. 2. Started in the late 1960s with the raise of consciousness-raising movement known as ‘women’s liberation’. • Liberal Feminism • Radical Feminism • Marxist Feminism • Postmodern Feminists
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  Gender Socialization • Gender& Sex • We are socialized into learning how to behave in a masculine or feminine way through the instilling of ‘gender roles’. • Being a man or woman is by nature or by culture? • Masculinity – as an issue.
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  Queer Theory • Foucaultrecognizes that sexuality is a social concept, created by those in power. • Queer theory developed by Seidman (1997), under the influence of Foucault. • It argues that there is no distinction between heterosexual and homosexual; there is a degree of fluidity between the two. • They argue that sociologists should revisit all areas of society to reflect diverse forms of sexuality.
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  • How usefulare the insights of feminism for a sociological understanding of identity?