Capital : The Cultural And Social Aspects Of Our Lives

Chapter 3 of The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology explains to the reader what culture is and goes into depth of the different concepts within culture. It defines culture as “the entire way of life for a group of people” (Ferris & Stein, 2010, p. 77). Culture is described as a “lens” through which one views the world and is passed from one generation to the next. This “entire way of life”, according to sociologists, consists of two major categories: material and symbolic culture. Material culture involves the entities associated with a cultural group, such as tools, machines, utensils, buildings, and artwork. When examining material culture, it can convey a great deal about a particular group or society. Symbolic culture embraces ways

“Culture comprises traditional ideas and related values, and it is the product of actions” (Kroeber and Kluckhohn, 1952); “it is learned, shared, and transmitted from one generation to the next (Linton, 1945); and it organizes life and helps interpret existence” (Gordon, 1964).

Another relationship Pratt says exists between cultures is the concept of transculturation. Transculturation, she states, is a process in which “members of subordinated or marginal groups select and invent from materials transmitted by a dominant or metropolitan culture” and transform it to fir their own principles by giving it a cultural makeover (Pratt, 505). But why is it necessary for transculturation to be performed by secondary, inferior cultures? It can be argued that different types of people can learn and adapt things from each other even if the distribution of power between them is unequal. Larger

According to Max Weber, the economic and technological relationships that organized and most importantly grew out of the capitalistic production became fundamental forces in the society. This means that one has to adapt to the society that he/she was born into in regards to the division of labor, and the hierarchical social structure. When analyzed, this theory shows that it is difficult for one to envision a life that is alternative to what they were born into.

By incorporating his own sociological thinking and data, McLeod creates a whole new way of thinking about social class through his own research and findings. Most in particular to this is how he analyzed Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital and habitus. He states, “Bourdieu’s most important contribution to reproduction theory is the concept of social capital, which he defines as the general cultural background, knowledge, disposition, and skills that are passed from one generation to the next.” (McLeod 2009: 13). This contribution of Bourdieu’s theory shows how the lower classes shape the attitudes and aspirations of both Brothers and Hallway Hangers throughout. By definition, habitus refers to values, dispositions, and expectations of particular social groups that are acquired through the activities and experiences of everyday life. Bourdieu explains how the cultural capital of having an education and social skills that can be converted to economic capital can lead the upper and working class to cultural

Bourdieu defines cultural capital as "the general background, knowledge, disposition, and skill that are passed from one generation to the next" (13), and he affirms that children from different classes inherit different cultural capital. Bourdieu suggests that the cultural capital that upper class children

Individuals high in social-cultural capital and/or economic capital had power over those with low capital (Bourdieu, p.81, 1979). How stigma functions in Bourdieu’s theory is that the people of Elizabeth were viewed as those low in capital. Living in Elizabeth signified low economic capital. However, through stigmatization,

The primary subject matter of this case concerns the issues faced in an U.S. company with a large percentage of immigrant Latino workers and the resulting interaction with their original Anglo workforce. There are numerous cultural misunderstandings in this case study between Anglo and Latino workforce. The Human Resource Department is unclear how to address the issues facing in the company.

In today 's society, culture is impacting our everyday life, experience and social relations; we are all categorized by our cultural “groups”, but this has changed rapidly throughout the years from one generation to the next. Cultural studies were developed in the late 1950’s, through the 1970’s by the British academic scholars. The British scholars were able engaged cultural analysis and the developed then transformed of the different fields, for example, politically, theoretically and empirically that are now represented around the world.

When Bourdieu refers to , is usually referring to the different types of capitals that one person can acquire. These capitals are economic, linguistic, and cultural (Bourdieu, 1991). Depending of the quantity of each of these capitals, a person is

According to French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, a habitus is referring to a person’s way of thinking, acting, and behaving. A habitus is a structure that helps a person comprehend and deal with society. It can be simply seen as a merger of society and the individual. (Wysocka, Paulina, 2013). Habitus is both a “structured structure”—the effect of the actions of, and our interactions with, others—and a “structuring structure”—it suggests and constrains our future actions (Bourdieu, 1992). In other words, habitus is both the “embodiment of our social location” (i.e., class, ethnicity, race, sexuality, gender, generation, and nationality) (Noble & Watkins, 2003) and “the structure of social relations that generate and give significance

Bourdieu has multiple concepts another one being habitus which is the physical embodiment of cultural capital, to the deeply ingrained habits, skills, and dispositions that we possess due to our experiences throughout life. In the video people like us it referenced peoples

While Articles 22 and 27 do not outline a clear definition of ‘culture’ or ‘cultural,’ I understand these specific Articles to describe ‘cultural’ as the practices within a specific community that members of the community use to mature. Specifically, Article 22—“indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality”—uses culture as a freedom necessary for individual dignity and development. On the other hand, Article 27—“cultural life of the community”—refers to ‘cultural’ as participation in the community.

In 1944, Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer, members of the Frankfurt School who fled from the Nazi Germany to the USA, were publishing their seminal essay ‘The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception’. Political critique, their thesis about the ideological domination of capitalism on cultural production is one that persists today and is regularly renewed (Mukerji & Schudson, 1991). Yet, since the first half of the twentieth century, evolutions have occurred within the ‘Culture Industry’, and while the theory – focusing primarily on the music and cinema industries – is still applicable to some features of contemporary ‘cultural industries’ (Hesmondhalgh, 2007), these changes require a contemporary reconsideration of it.

Pierre Bourdieu made many contributions to the field of anthropology over the course of his academic career. His contributions have shaped the anthropological landscape in the analysis of the maintence of societal structures. Bourdieu’s theoretical approaches of ‘practice theory’, ‘habitus’ and ‘cultural capital’ play a central role in his continuing influence in the field of anthropology.