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361.More information
The article analyzes the development of Jeffrey C. Alexander's theoretical work from the strong program in cultural sociology at the end of the 90's to its transformation in cultural pragmatics today. First, it proposes to look at the different ways by which Alexander promotes the autonomy of meaning and culture; namely through the concept of text and a reassessment of the semiotic and semantic traditions in sociology. Hence, Durkheim's influence is often underlined. The article goes on to suggest that the performative turn in Alexander's work adds to the strong program by offering new elements for a theory of action. Contemporary societies are «ritual-like», that is to say they are no longer fully ritualistic without being, for that reason, meaningless or wholly rationalized. In these conditions, social actors become engaged in the process of reconnecting the many parts of their performances: audience, collective representations, mise-en-scène, symbolic means, etc. Lastly, the article puts forward concrete examples of this particular logic under the form of the performances of social movements in a binary civil sphere, on the one hand, and the study of cultural traumas, on the other. These examples demonstrate that Alexander's theoretical frame allows for an interesting combination of culture and politics even if devoid of a complete critical theory.
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370.More information
SummaryAfter defining in depth the concepts of society, aging, and the aged, the author brings to our attention the decreasing value placed on the elderly, which seems to be linked to their status of dependence and pensioned inactivity that industrial society has assigned to them. There are, however, two functions which remain their distinguished vocation: the humanization of children, and the collective reorientation of history by reinterpreting it in the light of their lives. Although misunderstood or inhibited, the exercise of these two functions remains essential to the individual in growing old well, and their acknowledgement is indispensable to the survival of our species itself at this point in our history. Having become capable of its own auto-destruction, humanity can no longer consider the wisdom necessary to regulate the proper use of its increased knowledge and power as a useless luxury. Age does not confer wisdom, but the latter is not found without the former. We must look at the increasing numbers of old people around us not as a burden but as out last hope.