What Makes a Hero? Theorising the Social Structuring of Heroism

Sociology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristian Frisk

The article discusses four dominant perspectives in the sociology of heroism: the study of great men; hero stories; heroic actions; and hero institutions. The discussion ties together heroism and fundamental sociological debates about the relationship between the individual and the social order; it elucidates the socio-psychological, cultural/ideational and socio-political structuring of heroism, which challenges the tendency to understand people, actions and events as naturally, or intrinsically, heroic; and it points to a theoretical trajectory within the literature, which has moved from very exclusive to more inclusive conceptualisations of a hero. After this discussion, the article examines three problematic areas in the sociology of heroism: the underlying masculine character of heroism; the presumed disappearance of the hero with modernisation; and the principal idea of heroism as a pro-social phenomenon. The article calls for a more self-conscious engagement with this legacy, which could stimulate dialogue across different areas of sociological research.

Author(s):  
Joseph Mensah Onumah ◽  
Angelo Nicolaides

A discourse of human rights applies to the relations between individuals and relations between them and the state. However, from an Eastern Orthodox perspective, Biblical law diverges, and applies to even the responsibilities of entities towards themselves and their responsibilities towards God the Creator. There is a seemingly increasing declaration that human rights standards are being kept, but it is also apparent that the issue has been wavering globally for numerous years. It is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the destruction of the democratic fabric of the social order on which the defence of human rights is finally contingent. The question this article seeks to answer is what is the understanding of the Eastern Orthodox faith when it comes to human rights issues and what is the Church in general doing to assist in mitigating these? What is the relationship between Orthodoxy and human rights and what part does it play in the advancement of human rights? How can Orthodox teachings contribute to the protection of the dignity of the individual? The concept of ethics and human rights are positive formulations, the two seen as quality features of the Universal Creator, with ethics being the relevant catalyst to human rights and relations. Human rights are therefore expected to shape the living of man as ethics motivates human performance.


Author(s):  
G. Sh. Fayzullina ◽  
E. I. Kubasheva

The aim of the research presented in the article is to study the directions and mechanisms of action of museums in innovative practice. The modern museum as a cultural center is more focused on the individual, takes on the functions of organizing the leisure of citizens, responding to the social order, lifestyle. The study of the experience of museums in this context is focused on considering innovation at the local level - the museums of the city of Florence (center of Tuscany), which are a vivid example of the communicative model of the museum. This model of the museum is especially in demand today against the background of the problem of attracting (and retaining) visitors existing in museums around the world and in Kazakhstan. The study of valuable experience and innovative approaches in the communication activities of the best museums in the world can give impetus to the development of museums in Kazakhstan. The situation with the COVID–19 Pandemic has made its own adjustments in the relationship between visitors and museums. Both Florentine and Kazakhstani museums reacted to the situation with interesting projects. It is concluded that the introduction and development of information systems in museums in Italy made it possible to significantly optimize their work, and this, in turn, allowed them to reach a qualitatively new level of presentation of their services and collections. There are ample opportunities for the world museum community to access the Italian heritage.A great help in this study was the master's thesis by Irene di Pietro, which was written in the city of Bologna in 2017. An important source was the personal observations of E.I. Kubasheva in direct acquaintance with the museums of Florence. The research was carried out using narrative and historical-genetic methods.


2021 ◽  
pp. 194855062097802
Author(s):  
Todd K. Hartman ◽  
Thomas V. A. Stocks ◽  
Ryan McKay ◽  
Jilly Gibson-Miller ◽  
Liat Levita ◽  
...  

Research has demonstrated that situational factors such as perceived threats to the social order activate latent authoritarianism. The deadly COVID-19 pandemic presents a rare opportunity to test whether existential threat stemming from an indiscriminate virus moderates the relationship between authoritarianism and political attitudes toward the nation and out-groups. Using data from two large nationally representative samples of adults in the United Kingdom ( N = 2,025) and Republic of Ireland ( N = 1,041) collected during the initial phases of strict lockdown measures in both countries, we find that the associations between right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and (1) nationalism and (2) anti-immigrant attitudes are conditional on levels of perceived threat. As anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic increases, so too does the effect of RWA on those political outcomes. Thus, it appears that existential threats to humanity from the COVID-19 pandemic moderate expressions of authoritarianism in society.


Südosteuropa ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 386-407
Author(s):  
Mladen Lazić ◽  
Jelena Pešić

AbstractBased on research data from 2003, 2012, and 2018, the authors examine the extent to which capitalist social relations in Serbia have determined liberal value orientations. The change of the social order in Serbia after 1990 brought about a radical change of the basis upon which values are constituted. To interpret the relationship between structural and value changes, the authors employ the theory of normative-value dissonance. Special attention in the analysis is paid to the interpretation of value changes based on the distinction between intra- and inter-systemic normative-value dissonance. In the first part of their study, the authors examine changes in the acceptance of liberal values over the period of consolidation of capitalism in Serbia, while in the second part they focus on the 2018 data and specific predictors of political and economic liberalism.


2015 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 687-705 ◽  
Author(s):  
RACHAEL DOBSON

AbstractThis article argues that constructions of social phenomena in social policy and welfare scholarship think about the subjects and objects of welfare practice in essentialising ways, with negativistic effects for practitioners working in ‘regulatory’ contexts such as housing and homelessness practice. It builds into debates about power, agency, social policy and welfare by bringing psychosocial and feminist theorisations of relationality to practice research. It claims that relational approaches provide a starting point for the analysis of empirical practice data, by working through the relationship between the individual and the social via an ontological unpicking and revisioning of practitioners' social worlds.


2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-54
Author(s):  
P. Conrad Kotze ◽  
Jan K. Coetzee

Transformation has come to be a defining characteristic of contemporary societies, while it has rarely been studied in a way that gives acknowledgement to both its societal effects and the experience thereof by the individual. This article discusses a recent study that attempts to do just that. The everyday life of a South African is explored within the context of changes that can be linked, more or less directly, to those that have characterized South Africa as a state since the end of apartheid in 1994. The study strives to avoid the pitfalls associated with either an empirical or solely constructivist appreciation of this phenomenon, but rather represents an integral onto-epistemological framework for the practice of sociological research. The illustrated framework is argued to facilitate an analysis of social reality that encompasses all aspects thereof, from the objectively given to the intersubjectively constructed and subjectively constituted. While not requiring extensive development on the theoretical or methodological level, the possibility of carrying out such an integral study is highlighted as being comfortably within the capabilities of sociology as a discipline. While the article sheds light on the experience of transformation, it is also intended to contribute to the contemporary debate surrounding the current “ontological turn” within the social sciences.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 264-299
Author(s):  
Valerii P. CHICHKANOV ◽  
Aleksandra V. VASIL'EVA

Subject. This article analyzes the effectiveness of public administration in the social sphere. Objectives. The article aims to standardize the decision-making process for managing the region's social development through statistical analysis techniques. Methods. For the study, we used correlation and cluster analyses. Results. The article highlights weaknesses in the development of the social sphere and assesses the relationship between the individual areas of its development, and the effectiveness of its financing. It offers algorithms that take into account the patterns of social development and the specifics of certain types of economic activity. Conclusions. The results obtained were used to develop algorithms to optimize the development of the social sphere at the regional level. The socio-economic differentiation of the Russian Federation subjects in a number of regions requires an analysis of the specifics of the development of the social sphere of the region under consideration and adjustments to the proposed algorithms.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuri Andrea Arango-Bernal

Objetivo: analizar los significados que construyen las madres de personas en condición de hemofilia, sobre ser portadoras de la enfermedad. Materiales y Métodos: Estudio cualitativo con enfoque del interaccionismo simbólico que, a través de una etnografía particularista y el uso de entrevistas semiestructuradas, observaciones y revisión documental, rescató el punto de vista de 17 madres pertenecientes a la Liga Antioqueña de Hemofílicos que participaron de manera voluntaria y residen en diferentes municipios del departamento de Antioquia. Resultados: Las participantes se reconocen a sí mismas como seres potenciales, es decir, no sólo como trasmisoras o cuidadoras de la enfermedad de sus hijos, sino como sujetos cognoscentes de su realidad dispuestas a reflexionar sobre sus aprendizajes e incorporarlos a favor de la relación consigo mismas y con los demás. Los significados más relevantes son: empezar a vivir con hemofilia, asumir la enfermedad, la familia, el cuidado y la crianza, la relación con los servicios de salud, caminando con algo que no se puede desprender y darse cuenta. Conclusiones: La salud colectiva es la posibilidad de tener un acercamiento más comprensivo al proceso salud – enfermedad – atención de los colectivos humanos, tomando en cuenta las condiciones económicas, sociales y culturales en las que estos se inscriben. La pregunta por los significados de estas madres develó el tejido de lo individual y lo colectivo, como un asunto que trasciende el plano biológico de la enfermedad y da cuenta de la construcción social en la que confluyen prácticas, saberes, imaginarios y sentimientos.Palabras Clave: Cuidadores, enfermedad crónica, hemofilia A, madresSignifi cance of being a hemophilia carrierAbstractObjective: Analyzing the meanings that mothers of people with hemophilia, build about being carriers of the disease. Materials and methods: Study based on the qualitative method supported by the approach of symbolic interaction, which through a particularistic ethnography, and the use of semi-structured interviews, observations and document review, rescued the point of view of 17 mothers belonging to the Liga Antioqueña de Hemofílicos. They participated voluntarily and reside in different municipalities of Antioquia. Results: The participants recognize themselves as potential beings, that is, not only as disseminators or carers of the illness of their children, but as cognocentes subject of their reality willing to reflect on their learning and incorporate them in favor of the relationship with herself and others. The most important meanings are: start living with hemophilia, assuming the disease, the family, the care and upbringing, relationships with health services, walking with something that can not be detached and realize. Conclusions: Collective health is the ability to have a more comprehensive approach to process health - disease - care of human groups, taking into account the economic, social and cultural conditions in which they are registered. The question of the meaning of these mothers, unveiled the tissue of the individual and the collective, as a matter that transcends the biological level of the disease and accounts for the social construction that blends practices, knowledge, imaginary and feelings.Key Words: Hemophilia A, chronic disease, mothers, caregivers. Significado de ser portadora de hemofiliaResumo                                   Objetivo: Analisar os significados construídos pelas mães de pessoas com hemofilia, sobre ser portadores da doença. Materiais e Métodos: Estudo qualitativo com foco no interacionismo simbólico, que, através de uma etnografia individualista e o uso de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, observações e revisão documental, resgatou o ponto de vista de 17 mães pertencentes à Liga Antioquia de Hemófilos que participaram voluntariamente e residem em diferentes municípios do departamento de Antioquia. Resultados: Os participantes se reconhecem como seres potenciais, ou seja, não apenas como transmissores ou cuidadores da doença de seus filhos, mas como sujeitos cognitivos de sua realidade que estão dispostos a refletir sobre sua aprendizagem e a incorporá-los em favor do relacionamento com eles mesmos e com os outros. Os significados mais relevantes são: começar a viver com hemofilia, assumir a doença, família, cuidados e educação, relacionar-se com os serviços de saúde, caminhar com algo que você não pode separar e perceber. Conclusões: A saúde coletiva é a possibilidade de ter uma abordagem mais abrangente para o processo saúde-doença-cuidado de grupos humanos, levando em consideração as condições econômicas, sociais e culturais nas quais estão registradas. A questão dos significados dessas mães revela o tecido do indivíduo e o coletivo como um problema que transcende o plano biológico da doença e explica a construção social em que as práticas, o conhecimento, o imaginário e os sentimentos convergem.Palavras-Chave: Cuidadores, doenças crônicas, hemofilia A, mães  


2021 ◽  
pp. 168-180
Author(s):  
Lada Yakovytska

The article is devoted to the analysis and empirical study of the most promising developmental tasks of the modern educational environment for the development of new approaches to the organization and psychological support of the development of a person's productive activity. These tasks clearly demonstrate the relationship between the motivational sphere of the individual and the social environment, the effectiveness of the influence of social factors on the development of the individual, the importance of studying their hierarchization according to the degree of influence. The relevance of the research lies in the fact that the study of the possibility of a targeted impact through social factors, norms, requirements on the motivational-need sphere of a developing personality will allow to determine to a large extent, the direction of its development. Our research is based on the assumption that the analysis of the motivational profile will allow us to understand how student youth comes to the realization of the need to coordinate the goals, requirements, wishes of the external environment with their own motivation. The aim of the study was to study the influence of the individual's objective attitudes on the structure of professional activity motives. To solve the set tasks, the following methods were used: the motivational profile of S. Ritchie and P. Martin, the test "20 statements". The results obtained by the method of S. Ritchie and P. Martin confirmed our hypothetical assumption, the respondents predominantly chose the objective components of the motivational structure, which were substantively related to the social expectations of the subjects (from society to themselves). The results obtained confirmed the prospects of studying the influence of social factors on the development of the motivational-need-related sphere of the individual. The analysis of social factors makes it possible to study and model the conditions that contribute to the rethinking of the actual situation by the individual and the creation of new meanings of activity that provide for a wider non-utilitarian social context that goes beyond the current situation.


2022 ◽  
Vol 9 (17) ◽  
pp. 197-225
Author(s):  
Hernán Maltz

I propose a close reading on two critical interventions about crime fiction in Argentina: “Estado policial y novela negra argentina” (1991) by José Pablo Feinmann and “Para una reformulación del género policial argentino” (2006) by Carlos Gamerro. Beyond the time difference between the two, I observe aspects in common. Both texts elaborate a corpus of writers and fictions; propose an interpretative guide between the literary and the political-social series; maintain a specific interest in the relationship between crime fiction and police; and elaborate figures of enunciators who serve both as theorists of the genre and as writers of fiction. Among these four dimensions, the one that particularly interests me here is the third, since it allows me to investigate the link that is assumed between “detective fiction” and “police institution”. My conclusion is twofold: on the one hand, in both essays predominates a reductionist vision of the genre, since a kind of necessity is emphasized in the representation of the social order; on the other, its main objective seems to lie in intervening directly on the definitions of the detective fiction in Argentina (and, on this point, both texts acquire an undoubtedly prescriptive nuance).


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