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An Overview of Ralf
Dahrendorf 1929 -
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- Biography & Major Works |
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THE COMBINATION OF FUNCTIONALISM & CONFLICT THEORY EXAMINES
SOCIETAL NORMAL OPERATIONS, & SOCIAL CHANGE |
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Dahrendorf integrated Marxism & structural functionalism |
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Dahrendorf operates at the same, macro, level as structural functionalists
& looks at many of the same issues of stability, functions, etc. |
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Dahrendorf theorized that on the one hand some parts of society fit
together well & function smoothly while on the other hand, other parts
of society experience considerable conflict |
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Ritzer believes that Dahrendorf's theory suffers from a lack of Marxism |
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Dahrendorf's Chart on the Continuum
from Structural - Functionalism to Conflict Theory
shows that many
of the most important differences btwn structural functionalism &
conflict theory actually represent poles on the end of a continuum, rather
than different realities |
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Society exists btwn these two poles & may even have two
simultaneous faces: consensus & conflict |
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Consensus is an illusion
Society is held together by authority
Legitimacy/authority is precarious |
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DAHRENDORF FOLLOWS MARX ON THE POWER OF GRP INTERESTS BUT DIVERGES
ON ECON INTERESTS, HOLDING THAT MULTI CLASS SOCIETAL GRPS DEVELOP OTHER
COMMON INTERESTS |
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Dahrendorf interprets Marx through structural functionalism |
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The criticisms of structural functionalism that are addressed by Dahrendorf's
theory are that it ignores change & upheaval & is too conservative |
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Dahrendorf accepts Marx's ideas on
- the two class theory where Dahrendorf calls the two classes the superordinate
& the subordinate classes
- organized ( or manifest ) group interests such as the labor movement
- & unorganized ( or latent ) group interests such as conservative
workers |
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Dahrendorf differs from Marx is his beliefs that: |
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1. The revolution will NOT end class conflict.
There will always be conflict |
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2. Class conflict in advanced industrial society is NOT
based primarily or only on economic interests |
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3. The upper class no longer owns & controls
the means of production |
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4. Dahrendorf accepts the managerial control thesis
that
control is divorced from ownership w/ non owning managers controlling the
economy |
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5. The growth of the middle class in industrial
societies has altered the nature of the economic divisions as described
by Marx |
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6. Conflict theory ignores order & stability;
it's too radical |
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7. For most Marxism & conflict theory, conflict emerges,
unexplained, from structural functional like systems |
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INTERESTS ARE NOT BASED ONLY ON CLASS, BUT ON LIFESTYLE AS WELL |
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Dahrendorf is similar to Marx on his belief that interests are not
psychological, but structurally generated by defined positions |
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Taking Marx's understanding of interests, Dahrendorf combines
it w/ the structural functionalist's understanding of manifest & latent
functions |
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Manifest interests are conscious / intended interests and
Latent interests are unconscious / unintended interests |
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Dahrendorf's examination of manifest & latent interests is similar
to, but an expansion of, Marx's concept of class consciousness |
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Interest groups are groups in support of latent/manifest interests
Conflict groups are interest groups that are engaged in conflict |
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Social change occurs when conflict groups form |
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Dahrendorf is similar to Weber in his beliefs on authority |
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- Authority resides in positions not individual thus one
may have authority in one sphere but not another |
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- Legitimate authority has sanctions to back it up |
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Dahrendorf accepts Weber's position that power struggles in modern
society occur inside bureaucracies, & not as direct conflict btwn classes |
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IMPERATIVELY COORDINATED ASSOC (ICAs) ARE BASED ON PEOPLE'S COMMON
INTEREST IN AN ISSUE OF IMPORTANCE TO THEM |
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Class conflict will occur in imperatively coordinated associations
( ICAs ) |
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ICAs include any association of people that is controlled by
a hierarchy, thus an ICA is composed of dichotomous interest groups |
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ICAs are like bureaucratic organizations centered around the major
tasks/ structures in society i.e. economic or businesses, religion,
politics, family, etc. |
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Conflict will be spread among various power groups w/in organizations
& among interest groups in society |
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ICAs come in all sizes & examples of ICAs in the social structures
include:
1. Peers
fraternities, sororities, a network of friend, NGOs, social mvmts, etc.
2. Family
tribal, extended, nuclear/traditional, single parent, grandparent, etc.
3. Religion
church, mosque, synagogue, temple, a high church official or a simple member
4. Work
executive or consumer or worker or watch dog group
5. Govt
political elite or just a citizen
6. Military
family support grps, citizen honor guards, welcome committees
7. Charity
support grps, public interest grps, watch dog grps
8. Ed
university president or student
9. Media
watch dog grps, citizen watch grps
10. Leisure / Rec informal rec grps, rec assoc |
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ICAs are so pervasive in society, that individual & group interests
are structured by the individual or group relationships to these
associations such as personal connections, org to org connections; org
to network connections, network to network connections |
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W/in all ICAs there are authority roles of domination &
subordination |
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On ICAs, Dahrendorf said, "One of the central theses of this study
consists in the assumption that this differential distribution of authority
invariably becomes the determining factor of systematic social conflicts
of a type that is germane to class conflicts in the traditional (Marxist)
sense of this term." |
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Unlike Marx, Dahrendorf recognized all kinds of individual or group
interests |
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Dahrendorf recognized all kinds of individual or group interests related
to
- material rewards
- freedom
- status recognition
- leisure
- all kinds of services from each other
- any kind of interest that develops inside an ICA |
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ICAs ARE BASED ON COMMON LIFESTYLE INTERESTS, BUT CLASS / ECON INTERESTS
STILL PLAY A ROLE |
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The key is that the means to attaining interests are related to authority
positions in ICAs |
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The haves get what they want while the have nots do not
get what they want & so they tend to challenge the status quo |
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A critique of Dahrendorf is that while he is examining org behavior,
organizational analysis, org conflict, org development, etc. is not examined |
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Individuals take positions in many ICAs at the same time |
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Each position in an ICA represents a different set of interests in
relation to the authority or lack of authority held |
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An ICA's interests are latent until they become recognized & acted
upon at which time they may become manifest to the actors |
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Each of the social structures may be seen as being made up of ICAs
each of which acts upon it's latent & manifest interests
1. Peers
2. Family
3. Religion
4. Work
5. Govt
6. Military
7. Charity
8. Ed
9. Media
10. Leisure / Rec |
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Critiques of Dahrendorf |
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a. ICA conflict is much different than
class conflict
& therefore Dahrendorf loses the primacy of the economic base of conflict |
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In Dahrendorf's defense, he believes that the dominate ICAs in most
societies are the economy & religion |
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b. It is not clear where the middle class fits
in the two class system of superordinate & subordinate classes |
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Dahrendorf says the location of the middle class depends on the particular
interests of that ICA member, but this makes his analysis very complicated,
but the world is complicated! |
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c. ICAs obviously must be seen in a
hierarchy of
importance / influence in society but Dahrendorf gives no logic for comparing
them |
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However, other analysts & Dahrendorf have noted that most nations
today are dominated by economic, religious, & political ICAs, indicating
that these are the most influential ICAs today |
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Ralf Dahrendorf 1929
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He was born in Hamburg, the son of Lina Dahrendorf and the late Gustav
Dahrendorf a social democrat member of the German Parliament. He studied
philosophy, classical philology and sociology in Hamburg University between
1947 and 1952, became a doctor of philosophy and classics (Dr. phil.) in
1952. He continued his academic research at London School of Economics
as a Leverhulme Research Scholar 1953-54, gaining a PhD in 1956. He was
a professor of sociology in Hamburg (1957-60), Tübingen (1960-64)
and Konstanz (1966-69).
From 1969 to 1970 he was a member of the German parliament for the Freie
Demokratische Partei (Free Democratic Party), the German liberals, and
a Parliamentary Secretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In 1970 he became a Commissioner in the European Commission in Brussels.
From 1974 to 1984 he was director of the London School of Economics, when
he returned to Germany to become Professor of Social Science, Konstanz
University (1984-86).
He settled in the United Kingdom in 1986, becoming a Governor of the
London School of Economics, and also (from 1987 to 1997) Warden of St Anthony's
College at Oxford University.
Having adopted British citizenship in 1988, in 1993 Dahrendorf was granted
a life peerage and was created Baron Dahrendorf of Clare Market in the
City of Westminster by Queen Elizabeth II. He sits in the House of Lords
as a crossbencher.
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Major Works of
Dahrendorf
Class & Class Conflict in Industrial Society. 1959.
Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Europe's Economy in Crisis. 1982.
Society and Democracy in Germany. 1993.
Reflections on the Revolutions in Europe. 2004.
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Chart
1: Dahrendorf's Continuum from Structural - Functionalism
to Conflict Theory
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| This chart shows that many of the most important differences
btwn S - F & Conflict Theory actually represent poles on the end of
a continuum, rather than different realities |
| Structural Functionalism |
Conflict Theory |
| 1. Equilibrium |
1. Continual change |
| 2. All elements contribute to stability |
2. All elements contribute to conflict/change |
| 3. Common morality |
3. False consciousness / imposed morality |
| 4. Order |
4. Coercion / dominance |
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Neo Marxists vary on what they accept & reject from Marx |
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Summary: neo Marxism addresses SIX of the problems, unforeseen
circumstance, etc. in classical Marx:
1. No revolutions: There has been an absence of
socialist
revolutions
2. No class consciousness: There is a lack of working
class consciousness
3. No crises: Capitalist nations have not experienced
crises
4. No upper class: The upper class no longer
exists as it did in past
5. No working class: The working class no
longer exists as it did in past
6. No Soviet Block: The Soviet Block stagnated
in the 70s & 80s & failed in the 90s |
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neo Marxism addresses SIX of the problems, unforeseen circumstance,
etc. in classical Marx: |
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1. THERE HAS BEEN AN ABSENCE OF SOCIALIST REVOLUTIONS |
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Some theorists posit that society has already had a socialist revolution
in the form of the socialized, state capitalism which embodies FOUR
components of institutionalized govt intervention & regulation of labor
relations, corporate regulation, maintenance of the economy, & a social
safety net |
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Some theorists posit that a revolution could still be coming |
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Marx said revolution would happen in mature capitalist countries, not
in underdeveloped peripheral countries like Russia, China, Cuba, etc. |
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2. THERE IS A LACK OF WORKING CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS |
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Marx didn't foresee the strength of popular culture, the media, etc.
in legitimizing the capitalist system |
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The process & ability to legitimize the social relations in a social
system is called ideological hegemony or just hegemony |
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3. CAPITALIST NATIONS HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED CRISES |
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The govt. has been able to regulate the excesses of capitalism |
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From the 1890 to the 1910's there was a strong trust busting effort
under Teddy Roosevelt & others |
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The Great Depression created monetary policy, fiscal political,
unemployment, welfare, SSI and more under FDR |
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In 1935, the NLRA institutionalized labor management relations,
avoiding major Labor Conflict & thus avoiding the chances of a Labor
lead revolution |
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However, some theorists believe a world crisis of monopolization may
yet occur in next 50 to 100 yrs.:
Microsoft is the world software
maker
Auto, oil & many major industries
are globalizing: Amoco & BP |
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4. THE UPPER CLASS NO LONGER EXISTS AS IT DID IN THE
PAST |
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In the past, the Upper Class possessed land which was visible wealth |
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Wealth today is mostly not in land, it is in stock, bonds, etc. &
is therefore not visible |
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Today there is token ownership of "paper wealth" by the Middle Class |
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Because of ideological mystification, most people confuse the upper
middle class w/ the upper class |
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5. THE WORKING CLASS NO LONGER EXISTS AS IT DID IN THE PAST |
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The improved labor management relations which resulted from the NLRB
& institutionalization of the labor movement, & the human relations
movement created the sharing of the surplus value of the capitalist system |
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Big unions made gains for workers, but have never opted for worker
control |
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Because of a higher standard of living, workers support capitalism
in spite of alienating work conditions |
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The strength of the legitimation process of modern society convinces
people that the current system is the only logical alternative, and it
is the best that it can be |
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The expansion of the white collar class, which includes technology
workers, salespeople, clerical workers, service workers, bureaucrats, etc.,
was unforeseen by Marx |
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In one sense, a new sub-class of the working class, didn't change basics
of Marxism because any new class is part of the working class, but on the
other hand, each of the subclasses of the working class has it's own dynamics |
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The middle class is politically conservative, promoting the division
of the working class |
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The white collar class workers have a higher status |
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The white collar class workers frequently identify w/ owners |
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The white collar class workers generally have more social mobility |
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6. THE SOVIET BLOCK STAGNATED IN THE 70s & 80s
& FAILED IN THE 90s |
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The Soviet Union created authoritarian communism where the state,
not capitalists, exploited the working class |
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Marx believed that communism could only successfully develop in mature
capitalist nations, and thus the travesty of communism in Russia, China,
etc. would not have been a surprise to him |
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After the 1917 revolution, until the 1950s, Soviet communism was more
productive than capitalism, but the authoritarianism & oppression eventually
so alienated the people that they lost their competitive edge |
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The fall of communism in the late 1980s & early 1990s had both
big & little effects on theory / practice |
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E.O. Wright's empirical analysis is one theory that has tried
to account for the fall of the Soviet Union; Wright developed a theory
w/ four classes: capitalists, managers, petty bourgeoisie, workers |
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Education has not bought much for the working class, but it does help
the middle class, Petty Bourgeoisie, & managers |
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Wright's analysis fails to note that the education system for the working
class & the poor is at the least, flawed, & at the worst, non-existent |
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It is still an open question as to whether education for the working
class & the poor would would create social mobility or not |
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There are SEVEN common principles held by neo Marxists ( power
- conflict theories ) |
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I. CONFLICT IN SOCIETY TODAY IS NOT JUST BTWN THE BOURGEOISIE
& THE PROLETARIAT; IT IS BTWN INNUMERABLE INDIVIDUALS, GRPS, ORGS,
ETC. |
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Conflict, such as found in stratified societies, is grounded in differing
individual & group interests |
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II. INTERESTS ARE NOT JUST BASED ON CLASS /ECON; THEY
ARE ALSO BASED ON MANY FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN QUALS |
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Particular group interests are widely varied & based on individual
& group positions w/in imperatively coordinated associations (
ICAs ), as developed by Weber & Dahrendorf, which are organizations
centered around major tasks/ structures in society |
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See Also: Dahrendorf |
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See Also: Weber |
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III. INTERESTS ARE THE BASIS OF CONFLICT |
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The group interests as manifest in ICAs are the basis of class conflict |
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Interests are rooted in many different human quals, including econ,
sexuality, race, religion, occupation, etc. |
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IV. IMPERATIVELY COORDINATED ASSOCS ( ICAs ) ARE THE
LOCATION OF CONFLICT TODAY |
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Groups primarily come together w/in ICAs & thus
ICAs are the
location of conflict w/in modern society |
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Fundamental social conflict is occurring in the family, btwn races,
in the wkplace, places of worship, etc. |
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V. THE DIALECTIC CHARACTERIZES MANY FUNDAMENTAL SOCIAL
RELATIONS / CONFLICTS AS CONDITIONS DEVELOP, ARE RESOLVED, SEWING THE SEEDS
FOR THE NEXT STRUGGLE |
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Many neo Marxists accept Marx's idea of the dialectic |
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See Also: The dialectic |
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VI. THERE IS MUTUAL CAUSAL INTERACTION BTWN THE ECON
BASE & THE CULTURAL SUPERSTRUCTURE |
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Many neo Marxists reject
economic determinism & instead
examine the mutual causal interaction btwn the economic base & the
cultural superstructure |
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There is no econ primacy in soc relations |
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VII. UPPER CLASS POWER IS BASED AS MUCH ON THE CONTROL OF
IDEOLOGY
AS CONTROL OF THE ECON |
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The control of ideology may be a more fundamental form of power
than control of the economy |
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The control of ideology often allows the dominate grp to control the
econ |
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Internal
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Outline on Economic
Determinism
vs
Cultural Determinism
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- Project: Economic &
Cultural Deterministic Forces |
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SOCIAL THEORISTS TRY TO UNDERSTAND THE MAJOR FACTORS WHICH DETERMINE
THE NATURE OF SOCIAL LIFE & TWO OF THE PRIMARY DETERMINANTS ARE ECONOMIC
& CULTURAL RELATIONS |
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Since the beginning of org theory, social scientists have asked whether
org structure, social structure, society, & even humanity itself is
determined by technology, or some other factor |
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Other factors that are considered to be deterministic include human
nature, economics, particular drives such as sex or greed, psychological
determinism, genetics, the drive to leave minions, religion, culture, ideology,
& so on |
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Marx analyzed FOUR types of determinism, including:
A. Economic social relations
B. Cultural / ideological relations
C. Property relations
D. Technological determinism |
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A. & B. FOR MARX, ECONOMIC SOCIAL RELATIONS DETERMINED
CULTURAL / IDEOLOGICAL RELATIONS |
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Marx's determinism holds that economics relations which are
contained in the base, determine culture, ideology, etc. which are
contained in the superstructure |
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Marxism is often misunderstood as a one factor theory, reducing
society & history to technological economic determinism |
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But it is important to understand that most theorists today believe
that other sectors of society are relatively autonomous, i.e. are
not totally determined by economics |
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The debate over determinism for many theorists is whether the relationship
btwn economics & culture is unidirectional or multidirectional |
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Marx's Preface to Contribution to Critique of Political Econ,
1859, discusses the economic foundation, base, or substructure & a
superstructure in both political & legal realms |
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Many believe in the unidirectionality of this relationship btwn the
cultural realm & the economic realm |
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Cohen rejects any interactive relationship btwn the two realms of culture
& economics |
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Marx holds that the alienated condition of people is a fact |
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From the fact of widespread alienation, Marx builds the theoretical
proposition that the relations of production tend to determine the
character of people as existing in particular historical conditions such
as capitalism |
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Marx refuted Hegel by demonstrating that it is not our ideas that shape
the world, but our relationships with each other |
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For Marx, the relations of production are primarily responsible
for shaping human consciousness & history |
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A focus on the relations of production means that there is not a
strict economic determinism in Marx |
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The characteristics of the relations of production today include
that they are:
- structured w/in capitalism
- structured by private ownership, primarily by capitalists
- structured w/in a multi class based system
- exploitative
- alienated |
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Marx said that the prevailing association btwn consciousness &
social existence is a false one; i.e., we have false consciousness |
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See Also: Class & False Consciousness |
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Marx is considered to be a materialist because he believed that
all ideology was based on material or physical relations, i.e. the real,
lived daily relations of production |
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Our ideology, or world view, is based on our material relations of
production, i.e., 'we are what we do.' |
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To say that Marx is a materialist does not mean that he wanted a materialistic
society, nor is Marx's materialism at all similar to materialism as discussed
in Greek philosophy, which was the first development of the atomistic theory,
clock theory, etc. |
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Historicalism holds that the vagaries of history determine the
relations that are primarily responsible for shaping our future & our
social being |
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But Marx is known for his dialectical materialism, aka historical materialism,
which holds that historicalism is wrong |
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Dialectical materialism holds that the primacy of a given
set of relations of production is the outcome of dialectics playing
out in history |
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A given set of relations of production exists because it is, dialectically,
the solution, i.e. the synthesis, to problems or weaknesses of the
relations of production in the previous historical era |
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An understanding of historical materialism can be seen in Marx's quote,
'We
make history, but we do not make history under conditions of our own choosing' |
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To say that we are economically determined is to say that the primary
action that determines our social being is our economic life & because
of all of its effects on other institutions in history |
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Zeitlin believes Marx is not a strict economic determinist because
Marx's understanding of social evolution may be summed up as historical
materialism |
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But during Marx's period of history, & still today, capitalism
is major force because this institution dominates
- most of our hours
- family life
- religion
- education
- relations btwn men & women
- i.e., all spheres of life |
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C. PROPERTY RELATIONS ARE AN EPI PHENOMENON; I.E. THEY
APPEAR TO BE DETERMINANT BUT ARE NOT; THEY ARE DETERMINED BY OTHER ECON
FACTORS |
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Some social theorists focus on modes of ownership, i.e. property
relations as being determinant in society |
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For Marx, the mode of production determines property relations,
as shaped by historical property relations |
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For Marx, property relations are a function of the superstructure,
i.e. the culture of a society |
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Evidence for the superstructural nature of property relations can be
seen in that herds were once the property of the tribe, then they became
family property, & today they may be owned by individuals |
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Evidence for the superstructural nature of property relations can be
seen in that some firms in the US are owed by the public (e.g. electric
cos.), some are owned by a cooperative, & some are privately owned |
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Many people see property relations as determined by technology, &
some technology makes certain property relations possible |
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But nothing about technology absolutely determines property relations |
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Technology impacts, but interacts w/ other factors to influence
property relations |
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An example of technology impact & interact w/ other factors to
influence property relations, steam power allowed for large factories,
but it did not necessitate that one person own & control this factory |
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Social scientists see how particular technologies make particular ownership
capabilities possible when they examine utilities, which require one large,
unified system for a centralized power grid, or for a railroad system,
or for a telephone system |
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Some technologies make the concentration of ownership possible, but
not necessarily necessary |
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The property relations traditions were that each economic entity
would be owned by 1 person, hence the concentration of power |
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While bourgeoisie must revolutionize or develop new technology,
conservation of the old modes of production, & old forms of property
relations, is always the aim of earlier industrial classes & hence
they strive to preserve these old modes |
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Conclusion: |
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Marx wrote a tremendous amount & at times he was simplistically
deterministic & other times more multi causal |
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While we can find much in Marx to show the complexity & indeterminacy
of causality, we must admit that at times Marx wrote more simplistically
& implied a stricter determinism |
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Neo Marxists today view Marx's historical materialism w/ free
will as Marx's primary model |
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Parsons & functionalism holds that values determine behavior,
& thus society |
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Economic & cultural relationships are reified |
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Reify means to see an abstract thing as a thing, as real |
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The danger of the reification of society is that we see it as independent
of of our own power |
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Saint Simon & Comte discuss reification when they posit
the metaphysical period where we are governed by mere abstractions: exploitation
is structural & yet it is personal |
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One major criticism of class society is that an individual's entire
fate is determined by one's class position |
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Remember that all economic forces, whether they be relations of production,
forces of production, etc. or even whether the forces be cultural, religious
may be primary, or significantly interact w/ another social relation
in a particular historical period |
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Sociology holds that these immanent forces are everywhere & exert
considerable influence, but they are experienced as 1 on 1 relationships
btwn real people in real associations |
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But, the relationships become social / structural / reified because
we act in patterns |
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D. TECHNOLOGICAL DETERMINISM IS WIDELY ACCEPTED BY
MANY SOCIAL THEORISTS, BUT NOT CONFLICT THEORISTS OR FUNCTIONALISTS |
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Another type of determinism that Marx examines is technological
determinism which holds that society, relations of production, culture,
etc. are shaped by the current technology |
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See Also: Technological Determinism |
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CONCLUSION: TODAY MOST THEORISTS BELIEVE THERE IS MUTUAL INTERACTION
BTWN ECON & CULTURAL DETERMINISM |
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Ultimately the question of econ v. cul determinism must be answered
at both the individual micro level & the societal macro level |
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On the individual level, one can examine their own social existence
& judge, though this is difficult, whether their life is primarily
shaped by the social relations of their occupational life style, or whether
their life is primarily shaped by the social relations of some other sphere
of life whether that be the family, religion, education, leisure, etc. |
|
| |
In judging one's econ or cul determinism, one must take into acct that
even if one is alienated at their job, their lives may never the less be
shaped by the social relations of production if they have a calling outside
of their day job such as art, craftswork, or even mtn climbing since these
too are productive endeavors |
|
| |
One's occupational lifestyle may include a typical job, consuming the
majority of most people's waking hours, or by a calling which occurs after
work but never the less is the center of a person's life |
|
| |
On the societal level, one can examine the social existence of a class
of people or an entire society (though most are not very homogenous in
the Modern Era) & judge whether they are primarily influenced by the
relations of production or by some other sphere of life |
|
| |
The question of econ or cul determinism may ultimately be reduced to
the questions: "In a society, are people shaped by ...
- what they do for a living or by what they do after they earn
their living?
- what they do at work or by what they do after work?
- what is done to them at work, or by what is done to them after
work?
- the social relations of their creative life work, or by the
social relations of their creative activities outside of work?" |
|
| |
Econ determinists believe the nature of the people of a modern society
is the consequence of the social relations of production of the Industrial
Age & the Post Industrial Era, & less the result of the social
relations of the media, entertainment, family, religious practices, etc.,
which surround them |
|
| |
Cultural determinists hold that the nature of people in modern society
is shaped by culture, including the media, entertainment, family, religious
practices, etc., & not by the social relations which shape their productive
lives |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Outline on an
Intro to Class & False Consciousness
|
|
External
Links
|
| |
- Project: Class &
False Consciousness |
Link
|
| |
CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS OCCURS WHEN GROUPS ACCEPT THE IDEOLOGY RELEVANT
TO THEIR OWN INTERESTS |
|
| |
Class consciousness is when subordinate groups
do
not accept the ideology of the dominant group, but accept ideology
relevant to their own interests |
|
| |
Class consciousness is when a group of people embrace a culture / life-
style that represents their own interests |
|
| |
An example of class consciousness is that the rich believe in their
own superiority & the natural inferiority of the poor |
|
| |
An example of class consciousness is that the middle class believe
in equal opportunity for all & not in the superiority of the
rich & not in the natural inferiority of the poor |
|
| |
FALSE CONSCIOUSNESS OCCURS WHEN SUBORDINATE GROUPS ACCEPT THE IDEOLOGY
OF THE DOMINANT GROUP & BELIEVE THINGS THAT ARE NOT IN THEIR OWN INTEREST |
|
| |
False consciousness is when a group of people embrace a culture / life-style
that harms their own interests |
|
| |
For Marx, when non upper class people accept the world view of upper
class, they have false consciousness |
|
| |
An example of false consciousness is that the middle class indulging
in consumerism, believing the rich are deserving, the poor are not deserving |
|
| |
An example of false consciousness is that during the 1972 Presidential
race, McGovern, the Democratic candidate, proposed limiting inheritance
to .5 mm & this position was opposed by the vast majority of people
even though over 90% wouldn't be affected |
|
| |
Class consciousness occurs when a group of people w/ a common
self interest correctly perceive that interest & develop beliefs, values,
& norms consistent w/ advancing that interest |
|
| |
The concepts of class & false consciousness do not denote correct
& incorrect consciousness |
|
| |
Historically, the class & false consciousness Ideologies of some
groups have been accepted as wrong by most observers |
|
| |
Marx saw the workers, i.e. the proletariat, as the only group
capable of class consciousness |
|
| |
False consciousness is the beliefs, values, etc. that work against
a group's / class' self interest |
|
| |
Both workers & owners can experience false consciousness |
|
|
|
Many theorists believe this is the common condition today |
|
|
|
For Marx, we have either class or false consciousness |
|
|
|
For Marx, class consciousness develops out of working class experience/context |
|
| |
An important aspect of class is the extent to which a society has members
who are aware of, & identify w/ the social classes to which they belong |
|
| |
Americans are less class conscious than people in other societies |
|
| |
Nearly all Americans think of themselves as "middle class" or "working
class" |
|
| |
In many societies, the wealthy readily identify themselves as upper
class |
|
|
|
There are FIVE reasons the US has no class consciousness
1. The culture & ideology of the US is that
of equal opportunity
2. The media & all social structures support the Horatio
Alger Myth
3. The US has a relatively weak Labor Movement
& no Labor Party
4. Education is tied to social class in the US
5. The US once had more structural mobility |
|
|
|
1. THE CULTURE & IDEOLOGY OF THE
US IS THAT OF EQUAL OPPORTUNITY |
|
| |
As a result of the US's foundation on the counter value of rebellion
against title & monarchy, & the dissemination of the Horatio Alger
Myth, the US's ideology mystifies class status |
|
| |
American's prefer not to openly acknowledge their class status |
|
| |
Americans prefer to believe that people have similar statuses &
similar situations in life; that we are all pretty much alike |
|
|
|
2. THE MEDIA & ALL SOCIAL STRUCTURES
SUPPORT THE HORATIO ALGER MYTH |
|
| |
America's entertainment media, education system, all sectors of society,
support the belief that anyone who tries can succeed, & that love will
easily overcome social class differences btwn people |
|
| |
Examples of media support of false consciousness: |
|
| |
Pretty Woman |
|
| |
Dirty Dancing |
|
| |
White Palace |
|
| |
The Horatio Alger Myth supports false consciousness, preventing people
from acting in their own interests |
|
| |
See Also: The Horatio Alger Myth |
|
| |
The widespread presence of the Horatio Alger Myth, & similar ideological
components in Am culture illustrates that it is in the class interest of
the wealthy to promote the image of Am as a society where class doesn't
really matter & where anyone can "make it" |
|
|
|
When people perceive that there is not equal opportunity, they criticize
the system & support change |
|
| |
When people have false consciousness, when they believe that anyone
can succeed, they accept the system as fair & legitimate |
|
| |
As long as people have false consciousness, believe in the fairness
of the system, they will not demand changes that threaten the wealthy &
the powerful |
|
| |
It is in the interest of those w/ wealth, including ownership &
control of the media, to promote the Horatio Alger Myth, the ideology that
the system is open & fair |
|
|
|
3. THE US HAS A RELATIVELY WEAK LABOR
MOVEMENT & NO LABOR PARTY |
|
| |
There is evidence that people who question the ideology of fairness
are treated more harshly in the US than elsewhere |
|
| |
For example Sexton, 1991, demonstrates that Labor Unions & Labor
organizers were, & are, repressed more harshly in the US than in Europe |
|
| |
In the 1930s, the US used the military, police & private security
companies to interfere w/ strikes, often w/ the use of violence & the
hiring of strikebreakers was common |
|
| |
Today, the US has the most restrictive labor laws of any industrialized
country, & has the least amount of both physical & labor rights
protection |
|
| |
In Canada, all public employees have the right to organize, bargain,
& strike, while in the US they may not strike, taking much power away
from organization & bargaining |
|
| |
In the US, companies can refuse the contract of a newly certified union,
demanding a recertification |
|
| |
In Canada, to form a union, unions need only submit signed cards from
a majority of workers |
|
| |
While the process of using signature cards to obtain union certification
is legal in the US, in practice, signature cards & most certification
elections are contested |
|
| |
The lack of a Labor Movement means there has been no Labor Party in
the US, resulting in a general weakening of the political left |
|
| |
Canada & most European countries have a major labor or "social
democratic" party |
|
| |
In Canada & Europe income & vital services such as health care
are more equally distributed |
|
| |
4. EDUCATION IS TIED TO SOCIAL CLASS
IN THE US |
|
| |
Because most educational systems are funded by state & local taxes,
usually property taxes, educational systems are much more effective in
more wealthy regions, enhancing their class consciousness |
|
| |
The upper class sends their children to private school, enhancing their
class consciousness |
|
|
|
5. THE US ONCE HAD MORE STRUCTURAL MOBILITY,
WHICH MEANT THAT CLASS RELATIONSHIPS, & HENCE CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS,
WAS LESS APPARENT TO PEOPLE & ALSO LESS NECESSARY |
|
|
|
The US had a rapidly expanding economy through the 1950s, providing
ever more, higher paying jobs lessening the need for class consciousness |
|
| |
As the rest of the world has moved to a modern, industrial economic
base, the US faces more global competition, resulting in less economic
expansion increasing the need for class consciousness |
|
| |
Less economic expansion creates less jobs, which creates less structural
mobility making class consciousness more necessary |
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Outline on Critical
Theory
|
|
External
Links
|
| |
CULTURAL DOMINATION IS INCREASED UNDER CAPITALISM & ALLOWS THE
UP CLASS TO INCREASE PROFITS & EXPLOITATION, & ACT AT WILL |
|
| |
Critical theory is often accused of being criticalism w/o solutions |
|
| |
Critical theorists are noted for devastating critiques, but they rarely
offer solutions |
|
| |
Critical theorists critique both socialistic & mainstream systems
of knowledge (elites theories) |
|
| |
Critical theorists are critical of economic determinism |
|
| |
Critical theorists are Weberian in that they focus on other
sectors of society besides the economy |
|
| |
Review of positivism |
|
| |
Critical theorists critique positivism |
|
| |
Critical theorists believe that the positivists: |
|
| |
1. - use of one, universal, scientific method is
too constraining / impractical |
|
| |
2. - are wrong in their belief that knowledge is
neutral |
|
| |
3. - are wrong in their belief that knowledge is
research/science can be value free |
|
| |
4. - reify the world which makes culture seem like
an independent acting agent instead of a human created relationship |
|
| |
5. - lose sight of actors which makes them passive |
|
| |
6. - support the existing order |
|
| |
Sociology operates under many of the principles of positivism |
|
| |
Micro level sociology focuses on the individual to individual level
analysis while what is needed is individual to society level analysis |
|
|
|
In modern society the locus of domination has shifted from the
economic to the cultural sector |
|
|
|
In modern society, domination comes as much from cultural oppression
as from economic oppression |
|
| |
Rationality is an extremely effective tool of oppression |
|
| |
For critical theorists, repression by rationality is a major
problem for social theory |
|
| |
Review of rationality |
|
| |
Weber, who is not a critical theorist, developed concepts of
formal
&
substantive rationality |
|
| |
Formal rationality is technocratic thinking which deals primarily
w/ simple cause & effect |
|
| |
Substantive rationality is reason which views cause & effect
in light of human values |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Outline on an Introduction to
Herbert Marcuse 1898 - 1979
|
|
External
Links
|
|
Link
|
- Biography & Major Works |
|
| |
THERE ARE BOTH CULTURAL & ECONOMIC CONTRADICTIONS, & AS
A CRITICAL THEORIST, MARCUSE FOCUSES ON THE CULTURAL MORE THAN THE ECONOMIC
SPHERE OF SOCIETY |
|
| |
Critical theorists are pessimistic especially on such phenomenon as
Weber's iron cage of rationality through which rationality,
bureaucracy, etc. will come to dominate every facet of the world |
|
| |
The content of Western culture is such that for most people, Western
society appears to lack internal econ contradictions |
|
| |
The cultural belief that there are no econ contradictions parallels
the belief that the world has benefited from capitalism, ignoring the oppressiveness
of the system |
|
| |
Critical theory takes Marx in a subjective / non material direction |
|
| |
TECHNOLOGY IS NOT NEUTRAL & THEREBY MAY BE USED TO FOSTER TOTALITARIANISM,
OR FREEDOM |
|
| |
For Marcuse, technology is never neutral, it is either oppressing or
liberating |
|
| |
The utilization of technology today is leading to totalitarianism |
|
| |
Through technology, new, more pleasant but effective methods of control
are being developed such as TV, mass sports, sex-ploitation, the internet,
etc. |
|
|
|
Marcuse's understanding of technology, technical knowledge, tools,
the media, space travel, computers, cloning, etc. is imp for Habermas
in his understanding of instrumental knowledge & it's relationship
to humanistic knowledge & critical knowledge in that the former is
independent of the later |
|
|
|
Marcuse & Habermas are in agreement that technological knowledge,
which Habermas calls instrumental knowledge, can not be neutral, &
Habermas also notes that there is a particular area of knowledge concerning
the nature of & achievement of freedom, liberation, agency, etc. |
|
|
|
POPULAR CULTURE CAN CREATE A ONE-DIMENSIONAL SOCIETY WHERE-IN SOCIETAL
FACTORS ARE OVER-SIMPLIFIED / IGNORED |
|
| |
In his One-Dimensional Society, Marcuse critiques "pop
culture" & the "culture industry" |
|
| |
The culture industry is a relatively new sector of the economy which
produces mass or popular culture |
|
| |
Mass culture is administered, non spontaneous, reified, phony culture,
rather than the real thing |
|
| |
Marcuse's critique of pop culture holds that |
|
| |
a. pop culture is false, does not represent reality, is
"idealized" & is a constructed ideology |
|
| |
b. pop culture is pacifying, repressive, & stupefying |
|
| |
Kellner opposes Marcuse by noting that the media is not monolithic
because the media does critique society too |
|
| |
For Kellner, TV, the music industry, etc. may be a threat but it is
also an opportunity for those seeking social change |
|
| |
Mother Jones demonstrated the power of culture in her quote, 'If I
can't dance, I don't want your revolution!' |
|
| |
Demonstrating the indirect power of culture, in Sept., 1997, Ted Turner
gives $1b to UN because ‘It was just one of those things that popped into
my head.... & $1b is a nice round number.’ |
|
| |
Marcuse, like Gramsci & many other neo Marxists, notes that there
are both economic & cultural contradictions in modern capitalism |
|
| |
America appears to lack internal economic contradictions because the
world has benefited from capitalism |
|
| |
But yet the system is oppressive |
|
|
|
GLOBALIZED CORPS HAVE CREATED A GLOBALIZED POP CULTURE WHICH CREATES
A PLIABLE POPULACE & A BENIGN VIEW OF ECON DEVELOPMENT / EXPLOITATION |
|
|
|
Recall, ideology is part of culture & is therefore a system of
knowledge & beliefs which serve to justify / legitimize social arrangements |
|
| |
Marx gave ideology radical implications |
|
| |
Marcuse explores the content & process of how owners / controllers
of social institutions disseminate ideology |
|
| |
For Marcuse, the ultimate effect is that people dominate themselves
in the name of larger social structure, i.e. for the job, because everyone
else does it, etc. |
|
|
|
MARCUSE APPLIED FREUD'S IDEAS TO POP CULTURE, NOTING THAT EXPLOITATION
CREATES REPRESSED EMOTIONS & THUS PSYCL PROBLEMS ARE LINKED TO SOC
RELATIONSHIPS |
|
| |
Marcuse applied Freud's ideas to popular culture & the lack
of class consciousness or a social revolution |
|
| |
a. Marcuse believes that social theory needs a base of
psychological theory |
|
| |
Marx began w/ an analysis of "species being" which is an exploration
of humanities fundamental nature |
|
| |
Marx bases his theory on his 'labor' centered theory of human nature |
|
| |
Parsons theorizes that the basis of action is found in the behavioral
organism |
|
|
|
The attempts by these theorists, & others, to base or found social
theory in psychology is one model of reality which bridges both: |
|
| |
- the micro macro chasm, & |
|
| |
- the agency structure dichotomy |
|
| |
b. Marcuse notes that many psychopathologies originate
w/in society: depression / alienation; obesity & anorexia / consumerism;
etc. |
|
| |
c. A failure to develop revolutionary consciousness is
a failure to embrace our higher nature, as posited by humanistic psychology
& it conception of self actualization |
|
| |
d. For Marcuse, people can develop psychological liberation
even in the middle of an oppressive society, & these psychologically
liberated people can aid others |
|
| |
Marcuse applied Marx's dialectical materialism to culture & ideology |
|
| |
Dialectics: conditions sew the seeds of their own change:
- current situation has weaknesses & strengths
- new situation develops to overcome weaknesses
- new situation has weaknesses & strengths - etc.
Thesis: anti-thesis: synthesis |
|
|
|
Marcuse believes the social sciences should focus on the totality &
interdependence of social life |
|
| |
In this way, the current situation of the domination through ideology
& popular culture, which is the thesis, will become apparent to more
people |
|
| |
As a critical mass of people become aware of domination through ideology
& popular culture, they will forge an alternative, which is the antithesis,
which will become apparent & utilized to masses of people |
|
|
|
As the new, alternative ideology & popular culture becomes mainstream,
a new ideology & popular culture forms a class consciousness, which
is the synthesis |
|
Herbert Marcuse
1898 - 1979
American political philosopher;
b. Germany.
Founder Frankfurt Institute of Social Research
Fled from Nazis (1934) to US
Taught at Harvard & other universities before becoming (1965)
professor of philosophy at University of California
at San Diego
Known for his synthesis of Marxist & Freudian theory
He was a hero to American radicals of the 1960s |
|
Major Works of
Marcuse
Marcuse, Herbert: Negations (Boston: Beacon Press, 1968).
Marcuse, Herbert: Reason & Revolution (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1941; reprinted Boston: Beacon Press, 1960).
Marcuse, Herbert: Eros & Civilization (Boston: Beacon Press,
1955).
Marcuse, Herbert: Soviet Marxism (New York: Columbia University
Press 1958; second edition 1988).
Marcuse, Herbert: One Dimensional Man (Boston: Beacon Press,
1964; second edition, 1991).
Marcuse, Herbert: An Essay on Liberation (Boston: Beacon Press,
1969).
Marcuse, Herbert: Counterrevolution & Revolt (Boston: Beacon
Press, 1972).
Marcuse, Herbert: Studies in Critical Philosophy (Boston: Beacon Press,
1973).
Marcuse, Herbert: The Aesthetic Dimension (Boston: Beacon Press,
1978).
References & Further Reading
Alford, C. Fred: Science & the Revenge of Nature: Marcuse &
Habermas (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1985).
John Bokina & Timothy J. Lukes, editors, Marcuse: New Perspectives
(Lawrence, Kansas: University of Kansas Press, 1994).
Institut fÄr Sozialforschung: Kritik und Utopie im Werk von Herbert
Marcuse (Frankfurt: Suhrkamp, 1992).
Kellner, Douglas: Herbert Marcuse & the Crisis of Marxism (London
& Berkeley: Macmillan & University of California Press, 1984).
Lukes, Timothy J.: The Flight Into Inwardness: An Exposition &
Critique of Herbert Marcuse's Theory of Liberative Aesthetics (Cranbury,
N.J., London, & Toronto: Associated University Presses, 1986).
Robert Pippin, et al, editors, Marcuse. Critical Theory & the Promise
of Utopia (South Hadley, Mass.: Bergin & Garvey, 1988).
Kellner. Illuminations Website
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Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Outline on the System,
the Life World, & Rationalization
|
|
External
Links
|
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THE SYSTEM IS THE DOMAIN OF FORMAL RATIONALITY |
|
| |
The system includes those spheres of life that are dominated / organized
by rationality, which today is primarily the econ, but is expanding to
other spheres of life |
|
| |
With formal rationality, the dominance of objective ends impact
the rational choice of means |
|
| |
With formal rationality, organizational structures ( usually
bureaucracy ) constrain people to act in a rational manner in their choice
of means to ends |
|
| |
THE LIFE WORLD IS THE DOMAIN OF SUBSTANTIVE RATIONALITY |
|
|
|
The life world is the sphere where all types of being / organizing
function; where we interact on a human level |
|
| |
With substantive rationality the dominance of humanistic norms
& values impact the rational choice of means to ends |
|
| |
Both the concepts of formal & substantive rationality
were developed by Weber |
|
| |
See Also: Rationality |
|
| |
The system ultimately develops it's own structural characteristics |
|
| |
The system is similar to the Marxist conception of economic structure |
|
| |
The system is similar to the Parsonian structural functionalist
point of view of culture |
|
| |
The system is an
external perspective where action is taken,
decisions are made from a subject outside society |
|
| |
The world is conceived from perspective of the acted upon
object, or witnessing the system acting upon others |
|
| |
ALL SOCIAL STRUCTURES ARE CREATED BY MICRO LEVEL RELATIONSHIPS |
|
| |
Habermas, like the symbolic interactionists, believes the system
has roots in the life world: all structure is created by micro level relationships |
|
| |
The life world is an internal perspective where action is taken,
decisions are made from a subject inside society |
|
| |
The life world is the world as conceived from perspective of
acting subject |
|
| |
The life world is a micro world where people interact & communicate |
|
| |
Habermas derives this concept from the works of |
|
| |
- Schutz's Phenomenology |
|
| |
- Social Psychology of Mead |
|
| |
- Exchange Theory of Blau |
|
| |
The life world is where speakers & listeners meet &:
- make claims
- establish regular patterns of behavior
- construct culture & structure |
|
| |
In this way, the life world is dialectically related to the system,
in that the life world constitutes the system |
|
| |
The speaker & listener criticize & confirm each other's validity
claims |
|
| |
The speaker & listener settle disagreements & arrive at agreements |
|
| |
The life world is where context is formed which gives the life
world a taken for grantedness of the world |
|
| |
The life world involves a wide range of unspoken presuppositions
about mutual understanding that must exist & be mutually understood
for communication to take place |
|
| |
THE RATIONALIZATION OF THE SYSTEM IS EXPANDING INTO THE LIFE
WORLD |
|
| |
It is a well established conclusion of nearly all social sciences that
the system is becoming more rational as seen in the works of:
- Durkheim
- Marx
- Weber
- Parsons, etc. |
|
| |
Determining what is rational & what is not is a "philosophical
chestnut" in that w/ rationality, there is definitely more:
- differentiation
- complexity
- effectiveness |
|
| |
Post modernists, anti globalizationists, et al are witnesses
to the negative effects of expanding rationality |
|
| |
There is no consensus on the assessment of the rationalization of
the life world or the micro-structures of everyday life |
|
| |
Habermas believes we see some rationality emerging in the life world
&:
- we need more
- the life world should be as rationalized as the System |
|
| |
The more rational the life world becomes, the more likely interaction
will be controlled by
rationally motivated mutual understanding |
|
| |
Habermas is contending that even w/ psychology, social psychology,
& the other social sciences which deal w/ personal relationships, &
the humanities that examine life, we simply do not understand each other,
or ourselves, academically or pragmatically in everyday life |
|
| |
Rational communication is based on the authority of the better argument |
|
| |
Rational communication involves progressive differentiation of its
environments of
- personality
- culture
- society |
|
| |
Each environment of rational communication is a set of interpretive
patterns, or background assumptions |
|
| |
These environments are closely intertwined in archaic societies, the
rationality of the Life World means growing differentiation of these three
environments |
|
| |
The rationalization of the system & the life world is seen
in a society where both the system & the life world were permitted
to rationalize in their own way, following their own logic |
|
| |
The rationalization of the system leads to material abundance &
control over the physical & social environment |
|
| |
The rationalization of the life world leads to truth, goodness, beauty |
|
| |
The discussion of
agency & structure is the discussion of
how the individual & society interact |
|
| |
There is only one society & thus for Habermas the life world
& the system are two ways of looking at it |
|
| |
We engage in communicative action & achieve understanding in each
sphere |
|
| |
We produce & reproduce our life world through communicative action |
|
| |
Through communicative action, we reinforce
- culture
- society
- personality |
|
| |
The life world is where the speaker & hearer meet,
- & both make claims
- & both establish regular patterns of behavior
- make claims, establish patters which become culture & structure |
|
| |
Agency is created in the life world |
|
| |
Patterns of behavior, beliefs, values, etc. create the system |
|
| |
Patterns of behavior that create the System, influence or create the
life world & agency |
|
| |
The relationship btwn patterns of behavior, agency, the life world,
& the system is dialectical as well as one of mutual interaction |
|
| |
THE COLONIZATION OF THE LIFE WORLD IS THE DESCRIPTION OF
HOW TECHNICAL RATIONALITY IS EXPANDING INTO ALL SPHERES OF SOCIETY |
|
| |
The colonization of life world is a metaphor based on how imperialistic
capitalism establish colonies in primitive tribal societies |
|
| |
The "hallmark of modernity" is the colonization of the life world by
the system |
|
| |
As the system grows, it is exerting more power over the life world |
|
| |
Thus, the system "colonizes" the life world; i.e., controls it |
|
| |
Formal rationality is triumphing over substantive rationality |
|
| |
Formal rationality dominates areas that were formerly defined by substantive
rationality |
|
| |
Habermas' belief that formal rat is triumphing over substantive rat
is similar to
Marx who believed that economic relationships were
coming to dominate all social relationships |
|
| |
The system is currently dominated by capitalism |
|
| |
In essence our personal world is focused not on real relationships
of love, companionship, community or society |
|
| |
Instead of a focus on real relationships, life becomes increasing focused
on money, status, & power |
|
| |
Capitalism has its own rat/logic of econ competition & bur power
structures |
|
| |
Capitalism is reified as an alien force intruding upon individual communicative
action |
|
| |
We feel increasingly unfree: pushed around by impersonal forces
of the economy, rules & regulations |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Outline on Habermas
on Discourse & Ideology
|
|
External
Links
|
| |
- Project: Establishing
Validity Claims |
Link
|
| |
FOR HABERMAS, DISCOURSE IS COMMUNICATION REMOVED FROM CONTEXTS |
|
| |
During discourse, the participants should bracket or suspend validity
claims, & thus have no restrictions upon the communications |
|
| |
For Habermas, the goal of communication is to test claims in an open
context so that a cooperative search for the truth may succeed |
|
| |
Discourse is communications free from domination |
|
| |
During discourse, all motives except that of the cooperative search
for the truth are excluded |
|
| |
DISCOURSE DECREASES REPRESSIVENESS & NORMATIVE REPRESSIVENESS |
|
| |
The rationalization of discourse should produce a nondistorted normative
system |
|
| |
For Habermas, w/ discourse ideas are openly presented & defended
against criticism |
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| |
In discourse, people are able to reach unconstrained agreement |
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| |
DISCOURSE IS AN EMANCIPATORY TOOL |
|
| |
Free & open discourse is the tool for highlighting the ambiguous
developmental tendencies in modern society & the colonization of
the
life world by the system |
|
| |
Habermas & Anthony Giddens speculate that society is in fact constituted
by language or any medium through which people communicate |
|
| |
The rules by which societies are constructed may simply be applications
of properties of language itself |
|
| |
Habermas believes that the world is developing toward emancipation |
|
| |
For Habermas, humans become emancipated by becoming self reflective |
|
| |
Habermas believes we have made great advances in the realm of self
reflectiveness |
|
| |
Hegel also felt world history was a trend to freedom through
self recognition |
|
| |
Consensus arises in discourse when four types of validity claims
are raised & recognized by interactants |
|
| |
TO ESTB VALIDITY CLAIMS, THE SPEAKER MUST BE UNDERSTOOD,
TELL THE TRUTH, VOICE AN OPINION, & HAVE AN INTEREST / RIGHT TO SPEAK |
|
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There are FOUR requirements to establish validity claims, including
that |
|
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1. the speaker is understood |
|
| |
2. the propositions offered are true |
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| |
3. the speaker is honestly voicing an opinion |
|
| |
4. the speaker has a right to offer propositions |
|
| |
Consensus arises when all validity claims are raised & accepted |
|
| |
Consensus breaks down when validity claims are questioned |
|
| |
In an ideal speech situation, force or power do not determine
which argument wins |
|
| |
In an ideal speech situation, the better argument emerges |
|
| |
Habermas adopts a consensus theory of truth rather than a copy/
reality theory of truth |
|
| |
Truth is found in open & free communications |
|
| |
In an ideal speech situation, force or power do not determine
which argument wins |
|
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The better argument emerges |
|
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HABERMAS ADOPTS A CONSENSUS THEORY OF TRUTH RATHER THAN A
COPY / REALITY THEORY OF TRUTH |
|
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Truth is found in open & free communications |
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There are two major blockages or restriction on discourse: |
|
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a. Ideology |
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b. Legitimations |
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For Habermas, the solution to the restriction on discourse is the rationalization
of discourse |
|
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IDEOLOGY MAY BLOCK DISCOURSE BECAUSE IT MAY MYSTIFY POLITICAL
RELATIONSHIPS |
|
| |
For Habermas, ideology is the knowledge systems at the political
level ( including values & norms ) generated by political systems to
support existence of the system |
|
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For Habermas, ideology, the knowledge system generated by political
systems mystifies political relationships |
|
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An example of the blockage of ideology is seen when blind allegiance
to a country or an economic system, business subsidies, etc. prevents discourse |
|
| |
LEGITIMATIONS MAY BLOCK DISCOURSE BECAUSE THEY MAY ONLY SUPPORT
THE STATUS QUO |
|
| |
Legitimations are knowledge systems at the cultural level (
including values & norms ) generated by society to support existence
of the system |
|
| |
For Habermas, legitimations, the knowledge system generated by cultural
systems, mystifies social relationships |
|
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An example of the blockage of ideology is seen when racism, religious
intolerance, etc. prevent discourse |
|
| |
There are parallels between what psychoanalysts do at individual
level & what Habermas believes should be done at societal level
via
critical theory |
|
| |
Psychoanalysis is an example of a theory that seeks to understand
distorted communications |
|
| |
Encounter groups & other forms of group therapy are an even
more social form of self reflection & insight than psychoanalysis |
|
| |
Psychology is preoccupied w/ finding individual undistorted communication |
|
| |
Psychology must find blocks to undistorted communication |
|
| |
Psychology attempts to uncover distorted communications in internal
dialogue or external dialogue |
|
| |
Critical theory must find blocks, i.e. social barriers, & help
oppressed groups overcome them |
|
| |
Psychology is to psychoanalysis as critical theory is therapeutic critique
or social therapy |
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Internal
Links
Top
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Outline on Baran
& Sweezy: Monopoly Capitalism 19
- 19
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External
Links
|
|
Link
|
- Biography on Baran |
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Link
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- Biography on Sweezy |
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IN MONOPOLY CAPITAL, BARAN & SWEEZY POSIT THAT
WE HAVE MOVED FROM A PURE CAPITALIST SOCIETY TO A MONOPOLY CAPITALIST SOCIETY |
|
| |
Baran & Sweezy examined effect of the transition from pure capitalism
to monopoly capitalism |
|
| |
In Monopoly Capital, Baran & Sweezy set forth the idea of
stagnation theory, also called secular stagnation |
|
| |
A monopoly is one large producer who, because of market domination,
experiences no price competition & no sales competition |
|
| |
Society must take account of the rise of giant corporation (When Baran
& Sweezy wrote, terms such as globalism & transnational corporations
had not been coined yet) |
|
| |
Baran & Sweezy focus on the fact that giant corporations have a
few large stockholders who dominate the operation of the corporation |
|
| |
In large corporations, managers become as important, or even more important,
than the owners |
|
| |
Managers of large corporations often take less risk, and focus on a
long term view, while entrepreneurs take more risk |
|
| |
UNDER MONOPOLY CAP, THE CHALLENGE IS TO DISPOSE OF / SELL ALL OF
THE PRODUCTION |
|
| |
The problem in monopoly capitalism is how to dispose of the economic
surplus, which comes to the owners & managers in the form of profits |
|
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|
Because monopolies have little or no competition, they have no incentive
to take risk, or to improve productivity |
|
| |
The failure to pursue increases in productivity ultimately results
in secular stagnation, i.e. stagnation in the monopolized industry |
|
| |
Evidence for monopoly capitalism existed in the 1960s & later in
such industries as the communications (telephones), airlines, steel, autos
& others |
|
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|
By their very nature, monopolies have saturated their market, &
so can only expand marginally |
|
| |
Profits can be consumed by the extravagance of the wealthy |
|
| |
Profits can be invested in other ventures, but this is riskier than
the monopolists are accustomed to |
|
| |
Profits can be used to boost consumption of the masses through marketing |
|
| |
Profits can be wasted through governmental programs, militarism, etc. |
|
| |
Increases in marketing, defense spending and various forms of debt
would tend to alleviate the falling rate of profit foreseen by Marx |
|
| |
The remedies of defense spending & deficit spending as solutions
to capital's difficulties were inherently limited and that monopoly capital
would tend toward economic stagnation |
|
| |
CRITIQUE: FOR THE WEST, THERE MAY BE A PROBLEM OF OVER PRODUCTION,
BUT FOR MOST OF THE WORLD, GOODS & SERVICES ARE SORELY NEEDED |
|
| |
Baran & Sweezy offer no solution to the problem of surplus capital,
but the obvious one would be to lower prices, & to return more of it
to the workers who created it |
|
| |
Contrary to Baran & Sweezy, Simon holds that mgrs don't maximize,
they merely satisfice |
|
| |
Contrary to Baran & Sweezy, Kerbo, et al hold that large stockholders,
not mgrs control the corporate world |
|
|
|
While Baran & Sweezy attack corporate malfeasance, large corps
today are not the robber barons of yore |
|
| |
THE FUTURE: MONOPOLY CAP HAS BEEN DERAILED IN THE WEST BY
GLOBALIZATION, BUT WILL PROBABLY DEVELOP ON A GLOBAL SCALE IN THE COMING
DECADES |
|
| |
There is evidence that the era of monopoly capitalism ended as globalization
brought competition back to monopolized industries |
|
| |
Communications, airlines, steel, autos & others have all had their
monopolies or oligopolies broken up & have had to return to a competitive
stance as the result of foreign competition |
|
| |
Despite globalization, the dynamics of monopoly capitalism still exist
& eventually globalized firms will eliminate competition & become
monopolies |
|
| |
Thus, the cycle of monopoly capitalism will repeat itself, but this
time on a global scale as opposed to the national scale on which it occurred
in the early & middle 1900s |
|
| |
Global monopoly capitalism raises new challenges including:
- how will global monopolies be regulated?
- who will regulate global monopolies?
- will the center of societal power reside in nations or global
monopolies?
- how will monopolistic economic stagnation be prevented / ameliorated? |
|
Paul A. Baran (1910 - 1964)
An American economist known for his Marxist views. He was born in Russia,
but had his academic career in the United States, teaching at Stanford
University from 1949 until his death of a heart attack in 1964. He is sometimes
associated with the neo Marxian school of thought.
Wikipedia
|
|
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|
Paul M. Sweezy, Paul Baran, Fidel Castro, and Leo Huberman, Cuba,
1960
|
|
|
Major Works of
Paul Baran
The Political Economy of Underdevelopment (1952)
The Political Economy of Growth (1957)
The Commitment of the Intellectual (1961)
Monopoly Capital: An essay on the American economic and social order
(1966), with Paul Sweezy
The Longer View: Essays toward a critique of political economy (1970)
The Political Economy of Neo-Colonialism (1975)
|
Paul Marlor Sweezy (1910 – 2004)
Paul Marlor Sweezy (April 10, 1910 – February 27, 2004) was a Marxian
economist and a founding editor of the magazine Monthly Review.
Sweezy was born in New York City, the son of a bank executive. He attended
Harvard and was editor of The Harvard Crimson, graduating in 1931. He then
spent a year at the London School of Economics, where he was first exposed
to Marxian economic ideas. Returning to Harvard, he received his doctorate
in 1937, after which he began teaching economics there. In 1942, he published
The Theory of Capitalist Development (ISBN 085345079X), a book which summarized
economic ideas of Marx and his followers. It was the first book in English
that dealt with certain questions thoroughly such as the transformation
problem. From 1942 to 1945, he worked for the research and analysis division
of the Office of Strategic Services.
In 1949, he founded Monthly Review with Leo Huberman, with money from
Skull and Bones member F. O. Matthiessen. It was a socialist magazine founded
in the midst of the American Red Scare. In 1954, the New Hampshire Attorney
General subpoenaed Sweezy and made inquiries into his political beliefs
and associations, demanding to know the names of his political associates.
Sweezy refused to comply, citing his First Amendment right of freedom of
expression. He was cited for contempt of court, but the US Supreme Court
overturned that citation in 1957.
Wikipedia
|
|
|
Major Works of
Sweezy
Sweezy, Paul M. Monopoly and competition in the English coal trade,
1550-1850 (Greenwood Press, Westport, Conn., 1972, circa 1938).
Sweezy, Paul M. The theory of capitalist development (D. Dobson, London,
1946.)
Sweezy, Paul M. Socialism (McGraw Hill Company, NY, 1949).
Sweezy, Paul M. The present as history: Reviews on capitalism &
socialism. (1953, 1962).
Sweezy, Paul M. Modern capitalism and other essays (Monthly Review
Press, 1972).
Sweezy, Paul M., et al. The transition from feudalism to capitalism
(NLB, 1976).
Sweezy, Paul M. Post revolutionary society: Essays (Monthly Review
Press, 1980).
Sweezy, Paul M. Four lectures on Marxism (Monthly Review Press, 1981).
Paul M. Sweezy, "The Limits of Imperialism." Printed in Chilcote, Ronald
H. (ed.) Imperialism: Theoretical directions (Humanity Books, NY, 2000).
Baran, Paul A. & Sweezy, Paul M. Monopoly capital: An essay on
the American economic and social order (Monthly Review Press, 1966).
Sweezy, Paul M. & Bettelheim, Charles. On the transition to socialism
(MRP, 1971).
Braverman, Harry (fwd. by Paul Sweezy). Labor and Monopoly Capital:
The degradation of work in the Twentieth Century. (Monthly Review Press,
1974).
Sweezy, Paul & Huberman, L. (ed.) F.O. Matthiessen, 1902-1950 (S.N.,
NY, 1950).
Huberman, Leo & Sweezy, Paul M. Cuba: Anatomy of a Revolution (MRP,
1960).
Huberman, L. & Sweezy, Paul (ed.) Regis Debray & Latin Am.
Revolution. (MRP, 1968).
Huberman, Leo, Sweezy, Paul M. Socialism in Cuba (Monthly Review Press,
1969).
Sweezy, Paul M. and Huberman, Leo. The Communist manifesto after 100
years — new translation by Paul M. Sweezy of Karl Marx's The Communist
Manifesto and Friedrich Engels' Principles of Communism (Modern Reader,
NY, 1964).
Sweezy, Paul M. and Huberman, Leo. Vietnam: the endless war: from Monthly
Review, 1954-1970 (Monthly Review Press, 1970).
Sweezy, Paul M. & Magdoff, Harry. The dynamics of U.S. capitalism:
Corporate structure, inflation, credit, gold, and the dollar (Monthly Review
Press, 1972).
Sweezy, Paul M. & Magdoff, H. (ed.) Revolution. & counter revolution.
in Chile. (MRP, 1974)
Magdoff, H. & Sweezy, Paul M. The end of prosperity (Monthly Review
Press, 1977).
Magdoff, H. & Sweezy, Paul M. Deepening crisis of U.S. Capitalism
(MRP, 1981.)
Magdoff, H. & Sweezy, Paul M. Stagnation and the financial explosion
(MRP, 1987).
Magdoff, H. & Sweezy, Paul M. The irreversible crisis: Five essays
(MRP, 1988).
|
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Top
External
Links
|
An Outline on
Ritzer's
McDonaldization of Society (1993), Expressing
America (1995)
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|
External
Links
|
|
|
In The McDonaldization of Society. (1993) & Expressing
America: A Critique of the Global Credit Card Society.
(1995) Ritzer examines the operation & impact of hyperrationality in
Modernity |
|
| |
The McDonaldization of society involves three basic organizational
principles, including:
a. efficiency
b. uniformity
c. control |
|
| |
The organizational principles that underlie the McDonald's restaurant
chain are coming to dominate our entire society |
|
| |
HYPERRATIONALITY IS THE COMBINATION OF ALL FORMS OF RATIONALITY
WHICH CREATES A SYSTEM WHICH DOMINATES / IGNORES OTHER FACTORS SUCH AS
LARGER COMMUNITY INTERESTS |
|
|
|
A primary characteristic of advanced Modernity is hyperrationality |
|
|
|
Hyperrationality is a process that combines all of Weber's
forms of rationality |
|
| |
Review: Rationality |
|
|
|
Review: Weber on Rationality |
|
|
|
Review: Weber on Bureaucracy |
|
|
|
Example: the US & Japanese global auto industries |
|
| |
MCDONALDIZATION IS A FORM OF HYPERRATIONALITY WHICH EXPANDS
STANDARDIZED RATIONAL SYSTEMS INTO NEW ARENAS, USUALLY ELIMINATING TRADITIONAL
SYSTEMS IN THE PROCESS |
|
|
|
McDonaldization is an example of the application of formal
rationality in the "High Modern Era" |
|
|
|
McDonaldization is the further development of bureaucracy &
the application of formal rationality but not the three other forms
of rationality |
|
|
|
McDonaldization applies four dimensions of formal rationality including
efficiency, predictability, production of mass quantities, and the use
of nonhuman technologies |
|
| |
The McDonaldization method of organization is Fordist in various
ways including the use of assembly line principles & technologies and
the utilization of industrial principles |
|
|
|
The existence of McDonaldization negates the view that we have entered
a post industrial society |
|
| |
While heavy industry has declined, McDonaldization is the application
of industrial principles to a service industry |
|
| |
McDonaldization includes the process of making a generic, successful
model, & then developing it for all it is worth |
|
| |
Many other sectors are emulating the McDonalds' plan |
|
| |
McDonalds actually fully developed the franchise which is the basis
for many other businesses from fast food to real estate to even medicine |
|
| |
Will it succeed in education? |
|
| |
HYPERRATIONALIZATION OF THE CREDIT INDUSTRY HAS STANDARDIZED
IT & DRAMATICALLY EXPANDED CREDIT INTO NEW ARENAS |
|
| |
Credit cards have McDonaldized the receipt & expenditure
of credit |
|
| |
Modern banks are dispensing "fast money" like fast food |
|
| |
a. Efficiency in banking has been increased so that the entire
process of obtaining a loan has been made more efficient |
|
| |
b. Predictability in banking makes consumption more predictable |
|
| |
Banks know their bad debt rate they know how much consumers will spend
on average in a given situation |
|
| |
Banks want the right to collect & share data on spending habits
to increase predictability |
|
| |
c. Quantity: Credit card companies mass market to
gain market share |
|
| |
Is the credit card market saturated? |
|
| |
The credit card market may be saturated in the core, but globalization
is in its infancy, as is cigarette globalization |
|
| |
Each credit card companies markets to try & get people to accept
as much credit as possible |
|
| |
d. Nonhuman technologies i.e., computerization & other
technologies, now make many credit decisions |
|
| |
Banking was considered a very personalized profession as was medicine,
& lawyering & education |
|
| |
In High Modernity, sophisticated computer programs w/ little or no
input from humans decide the consumer's credit on a day to day basis |
|
| |
The credit / financial industry has been globalized |
|
|
|
GLOBALIZATION & AMERICANIZATION HAVE SPREAD HYPERRATIONALITY,
AS A PRACTICE, TO OTHER NATIONS |
|
| |
Visa, MasterCard & American Express are all rapidly seeking foreign
markets
Other nations cards:
Japans JCB
Great Britain's Barclay Card |
|
| |
Hyperrationalization & McDonaldization all indicate
an advancement in modernization |
|
| |
The hyperrationalization of the auto industry, the formal
rationalization of fast food (McDonaldization) and the formal rationalization
of the credit card industry all indicate advancement in rationality
& therefore modernization over their predecessors: the
American auto, the local diner, the personal loan, etc. |
|
| |
The hyperrationalization of industries supports the belief that we
are in the High Modern Age, not the Post Modern Age |
|
| |
If McDonaldization has occurred, the question becomes whether there
is any hope for ameliorating the ills of the modern era |
|
|
|
The Japanese industrial system is very stressful to workers where their
level of speed-up has created the highest level of work related suicides
known |
|
|
|
McDonaldization is mgt. by stress: "The goal is to stretch the
system like a rubber band on the point of breaking." |
|
| |
McDonaldization & hyperrationality raise the question, 'Can rationality
be irrational?' & the answer appears to be yes |
|
| |
Rationality, although efficient, may also be highly dehumanizing |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
Topics on Immanuel Wallerstein's World
Systems Theory
|
|
External
Links
|
| |
- Project: World Systems
Theory |
Link
|
| |
INTRO: WORLD SYSTEM THEORY HOLDS THAT GLOBAL CAPITALISM HAS
BEEN DEVELOPING W/IN & BTWN NATIONS SINCE THE MID AGES |
|
| |
World systems theory ( WST ) holds that the world is made up
of Interdependent systems of countries linked by political & economic
competition |
|
| |
Rich nations are the core of the world econ & low income nations
are at the periphery of the world econ |
|
| |
WST is similar to dependency theory in that both agree that the dependency
of the peripheral nations results from:
a. narrow, export oriented economies
b. lack of industrial capacity
c. foreign debt
d. rich nations' single minded pursuit of profit. |
|
| |
See Also: Dependency Theory |
|
| |
WST suggests that the prosperity or poverty of any country results
from the operation of the global econ system |
|
| |
The world economy:
a. benefits rich societies by generating profits
b. harms the rest of the world by causing poverty
c. makes poor nations dependent on rich ones |
|
| |
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WORLD SYSTEM INCLUDE GLOBAL DIV OF LABOR,
THE NATION STATE, CONFLICT, INTERDEPENDENCE |
|
| |
Throughout history, each World System has had FOUR Qualities:
a. A world system is a broad economic entity w/ a world
level division of labor
b. A world system is a self contained social system w/
set boundaries & a definite life span
c. A world system has systems held together by forces
in tension, not consensus
d. A world system is characterized by interdependence |
|
| |
Today the modern world system is characterized by the relatively strong
econ links btwn states, i.e. interdependence |
|
| |
THE WORLD SYSTEM IS ROUGHLY DIVIDED INTO THE:
- CORE (1st WORLD / DEVELOPED WORLD)
- SEMI PERIPHERY (2nd WORLD / DEVELOPING WORLD)
- PERIPHERY (3rd WORLD / UNDEVELOPED WORLD) |
|
| |
The most important current determinant of a state's classification
w/in the world system is its ability to ensure intl econ competitiveness
of its domestic companies |
|
|
|
The world is best understood by dividing the world into THREE major
sectors including the core, the semi periphery, & the periphery |
|
|
|
1. The core includes the major industrialized countries |
|
| |
The core is also known as the first world or the developed world |
|
| |
Core regions usually have a higher per capita income than do periphery
regions |
|
| |
The core is dominate trade, technology, highest productivity |
|
| |
Domination of trade, tech, & productivity allows the core to dominate
the world politically & militarily |
|
| |
The core's econ is based on services & mfr |
|
| |
The core exploits other regions via colonialism, imperialism, or hegemony |
|
|
|
2. The semi periphery is also known as the second
world or developing countries |
|
| |
The semi periphery's economy is based primarily on mfr |
|
| |
The semi periphery can exploit the periphery, but is often exploited
by core |
|
| |
Brazil is currently a semi periphery state |
|
|
|
3. The periphery is also known at the third world,
or the undeveloped countries |
|
| |
The periphery is exploited by other regions |
|
| |
The periphery's econ is primarily based on natural resource extraction,
exploitation of subsistence level labor in mfr |
|
| |
Historically, the location of the sectors of world systems have changed
as states compete for dominance |
|
| |
Thus, there have been different types of core states that have
dominated in different
stages of world development |
|
| |
THE TYPES OF WORLD SYSTEMS INCLUDE EMPIRES, CAPITALISM, GLOBALISM,
& SOCIALISM, ALL ON A WORLD SCALE |
|
| |
There are FOUR types of world systems |
|
| |
a. An empire world system is based on political
& / or military domination |
|
| |
b. The modern capitalist world system is based
on econ domination |
|
|
|
Compared to the empire world system, the modern capitalist world system
is more stable, has a broader base, encompasses many independent states,
& has a built in process of economic stability |
|
| |
Modern capitalism began development in late 1400s |
|
| |
c. The global capitalist world system is based
on the globalization of econ domination |
|
| |
Some facets of global capitalism developed w/ capitalism in the 1400s
but has come to dominate world events since the early 1900s |
|
| |
d. The socialist world govt world system is a future
possibility |
|
| |
SOCIO HISTORICAL PROCESSES OF THE WORLD SYSTEM |
|
| |
There are FIVE historical processes that span types &
stages
of world systems |
|
|
|
1. GEOGRAPHIC EXPANSION GENERALLY INCLUDES THE
EXPANSION OF EMPIRE, COLONIES, OR MKTS |
|
| |
The histl process of geographic expansion is a prerequisite for the
many stages |
|
| |
The histl process of geographic expansion is caused by people advancing
their own interests |
|
| |
During geographic expansion, the world must have enough trade to advance
the social systems |
|
| |
Geographic expansion is a sign in all of the stages mentioned above,
though in the later stage domination shifts forms |
|
|
|
2. THE DIVISION OF LABOR HAS STEADILY INCREASED THROUGHOUT
HIST |
|
| |
While the typical definition of the division of labor referred to the
subdivision of tasks, Wallerstein sees the division of labor developing
into types of labor |
|
| |
Wallerstein sees the division labor developing from the individual
in Hunter Gatherer Society, to a national division of labor, to a world
wide or global division of labor |
|
| |
The sociologist Emile Durkheim recognized the division labor as the
major foundation of modern society |
|
| |
See Also: Durkheim |
|
| |
See Also: The Division of Labor |
|
| |
See Also: The Intl Division of Labor |
|
|
|
An example of the development of the division of labor from the individual
to the national level, to the world wide or global level is that as the
nation state developed, various nations took different places in a globalized
division of labor |
|
| |
Even as far back as the 16th Century, |
|
| |
a. capitalism replaced statism as the major mode of domination |
|
| |
b. the solidarity of capitalism was based on unequal development |
|
| |
c. some nations could exploit & some would be exploited |
|
| |
d. the intl division of labor relegated different nations
to different roles |
|
| |
e. the roles included creating labor power, food production,
raw material production, & industry |
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In the past, different areas produced different types of labor, including
the:
- African supply of slaves
- Southern Europe supply of tenant farmers
- Western Europe supply of wage workers |
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The new intl division of labor is caused by the decentralization of
mfring from the core countries to semi peripheral & peripheral nations |
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Today, different areas around the globe produce different types of
labor |
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PRE INDL LABOR TYPES INCLUDED FREE LABOR, FORCED LABOR, & SHARECROPPING |
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Until the Industrial Age, there were THREE types of labor including
free labor, forced labor, & sharecropping |
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a. The core had free labor as its primary form
of labor |
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b. The semi periphery had sharecropping as its
primary form of labor |
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c. The periphery had forced labor as its primary
form of labor |
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Capitalism's strength lies in the core w/ free labor & the periphery
w/ unfree labor |
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Since the Pre Industrial Age, the amount of forced labor in use has
diminished |
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3. URBANIZATION IS A DEVELOPMENT OF THE MODERN INDL
WORLD |
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Urbanization is characterized by a continual movement to urban
areas |
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The histl trend toward urbanization has reversed itself only during
extraordinary circumstances such as war, plagues, famines, etc. |
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4. DOMINATION BY THE CORE HAS ALWAYS
EXISTED |
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Colonialism is domination of regions of the core,
the semi periphery, & the periphery through political/military power |
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Imperialism via neocolonialism is the domination of regions
of the core, the semi periphery, & the periphery through economic power |
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Hegemony is domination of regions of the core, the semi periphery,
& the periphery through a combination of economic, military, financial,
& especially cultural means |
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5. THE CYCLE OF LEADERSHIP CONSISTS OF THE INTERACTION
BTWN ECON, MILITARY, & POLITICAL POWER |
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The cycle of leadership has many stages, including:
| Competitive struggle --> |
economic power --> |
political power --> |
| military power --> |
expansion/hegemony --> |
imperial overreach --> |
| decline/defeat --> |
begin again w/ competitive
|
struggle --> |
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Britain maintained world domination in two successive cycles of leadership |
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The US is now considered to be the world's hegemonic power |
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The fact that the US is not militarily conquering the world brings
the cycle of leadership into question |
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Japan became a member of the world system core in the mid 20th century |
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A SOCIO HISTL ANALYSIS REFLECTS PERIODS OF STABILITY & CHANGE |
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Before the Modern Era, there was the sense that history was cyclical |
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At times in history, one nation may dominate by econ, political, &
military power |
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There are also periods of flux |
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This cycle first developed during Early Empire Era era & to a great
extent still exists today |
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WST holds that the world system is held together by forces in tension,
not consensus |
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WST sees the world in historical & developmental terms |
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Historically the world developed through these stages such as:
| Hunter Gatherer Society |
1.5 mm BP - 10 K BC |
| Pre Empire Era: Ancient Agricultural Society |
10 K BC - 3K BC |
| Early Empire Era |
3 K BC - 200 BC |
| Roman Empire Era |
200 BC - 500 AD |
| Pre Industrial Society (Middle Ages) |
500 - 1300 |
| Early Industrial Age |
1300 - 1700 |
| Industrial Age |
1700 - present |
| Global Capitalism |
1910 - present |
| Post Industrial Society |
1970 - present |
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Starting w/ ancient agricultural societies, hearth areas developed
which were early core areas |
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By the time of the Early Empire Era era, there is full
development of the core, semi periphery & periphery |
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Periods of stability include various centuries in the Egyptian Empire,
Chinese Empire, the Roman Empire, & Feudal Europe |
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While much of history is characterized by change, some of the most
studied eras of change include the collapse of the Roman Empire & the
transition from feudalism to capitalism |
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The modern world system began in the late 15th century |
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