Distinction by Pierre Bourdieu
Distinction is at once a vast ethnography of contemporary France and a dissection of the bourgeois mind. Bourdieus subject is the study of culture, and his objective is most ambitious: to provide an answer to the problems raised by Kants Critique of Judgment by showing why no judgment of taste is innocent.
A book of extraordinary intelligence-- Irving Louis Horowitz * Commonweal *
One of the more distinguished contributions to social theory and research in recent years… There is in this book an account of culture, and a methodology of its study, rich in implication for a diversity of fields of social research. The work in some ways redefines the whole scope of cultural studies. -- Anthony Giddens * Partisan Review *
Bourdieu’s analysis transcends the usual analysis of conspicuous consumption in two ways: by showing that specific judgments and chokes matter less than an esthetic outlook in general and by showing, moreover, that the acquisition of an esthetic outlook not only advertises upper-class prestige but helps to keep the lower orders in line. In other words, the esthetic world view serves as an instrument of domination. It serves the interests not merely of status but of power. It does this, according to Bourdieu, by emphasizing individuality, rivalry, and ‘distinction’ and by devaluing the well-being of society as a whole. -- Christopher Lasch * Vogue *
A complex, rich, intelligent book. It will provide the historian of the future with priceless materials and it will bring an essential contribution to sociological theory. -- Fernand Braudel
One of the more distinguished contributions to social theory and research in recent years… There is in this book an account of culture, and a methodology of its study, rich in implication for a diversity of fields of social research. The work in some ways redefines the whole scope of cultural studies. -- Anthony Giddens * Partisan Review *
Bourdieu’s analysis transcends the usual analysis of conspicuous consumption in two ways: by showing that specific judgments and chokes matter less than an esthetic outlook in general and by showing, moreover, that the acquisition of an esthetic outlook not only advertises upper-class prestige but helps to keep the lower orders in line. In other words, the esthetic world view serves as an instrument of domination. It serves the interests not merely of status but of power. It does this, according to Bourdieu, by emphasizing individuality, rivalry, and ‘distinction’ and by devaluing the well-being of society as a whole. -- Christopher Lasch * Vogue *
A complex, rich, intelligent book. It will provide the historian of the future with priceless materials and it will bring an essential contribution to sociological theory. -- Fernand Braudel
Pierre Bourdieu was a French sociologist, anthropologist, and philosopher.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780674212770 |
| ISBN 10 | 0674212770 |
| Title | Distinction |
| Author | Pierre Bourdieu |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Harvard University Press |
| Year published | 1987-10-15 |
| Number of pages | 640 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |