Class, Self, CultureClass, Self, Culture puts class back on the map in a novel way by taking a new look at how class is made and given value through culture. It shows how different classes become attributed with value, enabling culture to be deployed as a resource and as a form of property, which has both use-value to the person and exchange-value in systems of symbolic and economic exchange. The book shows how class has not disappeared, but is known and spoken in a myriad of different ways, always working through other categorisations of nation, race, gender and sexuality and across different sites: through popular culture, political rhetoric and academic theory. In particular attention is given to how new forms of personhood are being generated through mechanisms of giving value to culture, and how what we come to know and assume to be a 'self' is always a classed formation. Analysing four processes: of inscription, institutionalisation, perspective-taking and exchange relationships, it challenges recent debates on reflexivity, risk, rational-action theory, individualisation and mobility, by showing how these are all reliant on fixing some people in place so that others can move. |
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analysis appearance appropriation argues assets associated attention attributed authentic authority become body Bourdieu capital central chapter claims classification concept constitutive contemporary continually cosmopolitan cultural defined demonstrates describes desire discourse distinction documents draws economic effect enables entitlement established excess exchange exchange-value exclusion existence experience exploitation explores femininity figure fixed formation forms gender global governance groups historical identified identity individual inscription instance institutionalized interests knowledge known labour legitimate limits maintains marked Marxism means middle-class mobility moral move nature notes object particular person perspective political position possible potential practices problem produced race reflexivity relations relationships representations represented responsibility rhetoric seen sense sexuality shift shows significant social society space specific structure struggle suggests symbolic taste telling theory things understanding University whilst women working-class