A Tale of Two Sociologies: The Critical and the Pragmatic Stance in Contemporary French Sociology
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors draw a parallel between two contemporary French conceptions of sociology, i.e., critical and pragmatic, in terms of the principles and strategies of its sociological method.
Abstract: This paper draws a parallel between two contemporary French conceptions of sociology. Each is first considered in terms of the principles and strategies of its sociological method. Through an analogy with Marx's philosophy of social science, critical sociology is shown to make an heuristic use for the analysis of cultures and social structures of the resistance to sociology that the sociologist encounters in the social objects, whereas pragmatic sociology adopts a pluralistic and descriptive strategy towards actions, actors and things. The paper then tries to show how common interests or trading zones could allow both critical and pragmatic sociology to profit from their competitive relation by taking each other as objects of sociological analysis.
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TL;DR: In this article, a model of the sense of justice as it is displayed in ordinary situated disputes is proposed, which accounts for a plurality of legitimate forms of evaluation which are used in the process of critique and justification, and it escapes a relativism of values by demonstrating that all these forms satisfy a set of common requirements.
Abstract: The paper offers a modelling of the sense of justice as it is displayed in ordinary situated disputes. While this model accounts for a plurality of legitimate forms of evaluation which are used in the process of critique and justification, it escapes a relativism of values by demonstrating that all these forms satisfy a set of common requirements. The reasonable character of the everyday sense of justice is also anchored in a reality test involving the engagement of objects which qualify for a certain form of evaluation. The paper discusses this model in relation to competing theories of justice, and models of social action and interaction.
210 citations
TL;DR: The authors discuss how French Pragmatist Sociology complements institutional logics by helping it address its main limitations or blind spots, such as microfoundations and recursiveness, legitimacy struggles, and materiality.
Abstract: Research on institutional logics has exploded in the last decade. Much of this work has taken its inspiration from Friedland and Alford’s call to “bring society back in” to organizational analysis. Interestingly, when Friedland and Alford published their seminal piece, another body of work with similar focus emerged in France under the banner of French Pragmatist Sociology. In this article, we discuss how French Pragmatist Sociology complements institutional logics by helping it address its main limitations or blind spots. These include (a) microfoundations and recursiveness (how institutions are formed, maintained, or changed at a micro level), (b) legitimacy struggles (how struggles are resolved on a day-to-day basis), (c) morality (as an important element underscoring institutional logics), and (d) materiality (as physical and tangible instantiations of logics). We conclude by suggesting that a rapprochement between both approaches provides an elegant means of bridging the lingering divide between “old...
199 citations
Cites background from "A Tale of Two Sociologies: The Crit..."
...This dichotomy partially explains why Bourdieu’s critical sociology is often regarded as a sociology of culture, whereas Boltanski and Thévenot’s pragmatist sociology is regarded as a sociology of action (Bénatouïl, 1999; Silber, 2003)....
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TL;DR: The core claims of the practice turn in International Relations (IR) remain ambiguous as discussed by the authors, and it is worth noting that practice approaches entail a distinctive view on the drivers of social relations, arguing against individualistic-interest and norm-based actor models.
Abstract: The core claims of the practice turn in International Relations (IR) remain ambiguous. What promises does international practice theory hold for the field? How does the kind of theorizing it produces differ from existing perspectives? What kind of research agenda does it produce? This article addresses these questions. Drawing on the work of Andreas Reckwitz, we show that practice approaches entail a distinctive view on the drivers of social relations. Practice theories argue against individualistic-interest and norm-based actor models. They situate knowledge in practice rather than “mental frames” or “discourse.” Practice approaches focus on how groups perform their practical activities in world politics to renew and reproduce social order. They therefore overcome familiar dualisms—agents and structures, subjects and objects, and ideational and material—that plague IR theory. Practice theories are a heterogeneous family, but, as we argue, share a range of core commitments. Realizing the promise of the practice turn requires considering the full spectrum of its approaches. However, the field primarily draws on trajectories in international practice theory that emphasize reproduction and hierarchies. It should pay greater attention to practice approaches rooted in pragmatism and that emphasize contingency and change. We conclude with an outline of core challenges that the future agenda of international practice theory must tackle.
178 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore how the order-of-worth framework has been applied to empirical studies of organizations, focusing on the coexistence of competing orders of worth in organizations.
Abstract: Different notions of multiple rationalities have recently been applied to describe the phenomena of co-existence of competing rationalities in organizations. These include institutional pluralism, institutional logics, competing rationalities and pluralistic contexts. The French pragmatic sociologists Luc Boltanski and Laurent Thevenot have contributed to this line of research with a sophisticated theoretical framework of orders of worth, which has been applied in an increasing number of empirical studies. This article explores how the order of worth framework has been applied to empirical studies of organizations. First, I summarize the basic ideas of the framework, stressing the aspects of special relevance for studies of organizations. Second, I review the empirical studies focusing on the coexistence of competing orders of worth in organizations showing that the order of worth framework primarily has been related to three main themes in organizational research: non-profit and co-operative organization...
170 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the concept of worlds of justification as developed in Convention Theory (CT) is utilized to address the emerging complexity of organic production in New Zealand, and the authors conclude with the imperative to move beyond bifurcation and acknowledge the greater complexity of negotiated outcomes that might be achieved from a CT perspective than from existing political economy-derived models.
144 citations
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Book•
01 Jan 1979
TL;DR: In this article, a social critic of the judgement of taste is presented, and a "vulgar" critic of 'pure' criticiques is proposed to counter this critique.
Abstract: Preface to the English-Language Edition Introduction Part 1: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste 1. The Aristocracy of Culture Part 2: The Economy of Practices 2. The Social Space and its Transformations 3. The Habitus and the Space of Life-Styles 4. The Dynamics of Fields Part 3: Class Tastes and Life-Styles 5. The Sense of Distinction 6. Cultural Good Will 7. The Choice of the Necessary 8. Culture and Politics Conclusion: Classes and Classifications Postscript: Towards a 'Vulgar' Critique of 'Pure' Critiques Appendices Notes Credits Index
23,806 citations
Book•
01 Jan 1980
TL;DR: In this article, the Imaginary Anthropology of Subjectivism is described as an "imaginary anthropology of subjectivism" and the social uses of kinship are discussed. And the work of time is discussed.
Abstract: Preface. Part I: Critique of Theoretical Reason. Foreword. 1. Objectifying Objectification. 2. The Imaginary Anthropology of Subjectivism. 3. Structures, Habitus, Practices. 4. Belief and the Body. 5. The Logic of Practice. 6. The Work of Time. 7. Symbolic Capital. 8. Modes of Domination. 9. The Objectivity of the Subjective. Part II: Practical Logics. 1. Land and Matrimonial Strategies. 2. The social uses of kinship. 3. Irresistible Analogy. Appendix. Bibliography. Index.
10,416 citations
Book•
01 Jan 1991
TL;DR: This article argued that we are modern as long as we split our political process in two - between politics proper, and science and technology, which allowed the formidable expansion of the Western empires.
Abstract: What makes us modern? This is a classic question in philosophy as well as in political science. However it is often raised without including science and technology in its definition. The argument of this book is that we are modern as long as we split our political process in two - between politics proper, and science and technology. This division allows the formidable expansion of the Western empires. However it has become more and more difficult to maintain this distance between science and politics. Hence the postmodern predicament - the feeling that the modern stance is no longer acceptable but that there is no alternative. The solution, advances one of France's leading sociologists of science, is to realize that we have never been modern to begin with. The comparative anthropology this text provides reintroduces science to the fabric of daily life and aims to make us compatible both with our past and with other cultures wrongly called pre-modern.
8,858 citations
Book•
15 Jul 1992
TL;DR: The authors provides a systematic and accessible overview of the internal logic of Bourdieu's work by explicating thematic and methodological principles underlying his work, including a theory of knowledge, practice, and society.
Abstract: Over the last three decades, the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu has produced one of the most imaginative and subtle bodies of social theory and research of the post war era. Yet, despite the influence of his work, no single introduction to his wide-ranging "oeuvre" is available. This book, intended for an English-speaking audience, offers a systematic and accessible overview, providing interpretive keys to the internal logic of Bourdieu's work by explicating thematic and methodological principles underlying his work. The structure of Bourdieu's theory of knowledge, practice, and society is first dissected by Loi c Wacquant; he then collaborates with Bourdieu in a dialogue in which they discuss central concepts of Bourdieu's work, confront the main objections and criticisms his work has met, and outline Bourdieu's views of the relation of sociology to philosophy, economics, history, and politics. The final section captures Bourdieu in action in the seminar room as he addresses the topic of how to practice the craft of reflexive sociology. Throughout, they stress Bourdieu's emphasis on reflexivity--his inclusion of a theory of intellectual practice as an integral component of a theory of society--and on method--particularly his manner of posing problems that permits a transfer of knowledge from one area of inquiry into another. Amplified by notes and an extensive bibliography, this synthetic view is essential reading for both students and advanced scholars. Pierre Bourdieu is Professor of Sociology at the Colle ge de France. Loi c J. D. Wacquant is a Junior Fellow, Society of Fellows, Harvard University.
8,465 citations