scholarly journals Social Mobility in James Kelman’s A Disaffection

2020 ◽  
pp. 43-56
Author(s):  
Fadi Mumtaz Alrayes ◽  
Anan J Lewis Alkass Yousif

Though social mobility in the post-industrial society of Scotland has helped changing social class structure, Scottish working class still suffers from cultural devaluation. That is to say, in a post-industrial society, knowledge is not really the main human capital. The purpose of this study is to explore Kelman’s untraditional cultural and social representation of the Scottish working class individual and his everyday experiences. Based on the novelist’s individualization of the Scottish working class characters, the study argues that in the post-industrial times in which social mobility can be achieved, contemporary societies like Glasgow still suffers from class division and cultural fragmentation. This article discusses Kelman’s novel A Disaffection (1989), exploring the character of Patrick Doyle, a bitter and alienated schoolteacher whose portrayal raises  questions about the role of education in social mobility, issues of cultural and class estrangement, which form a major factor in reconstructing or deconstructing the working class identity.

2004 ◽  
pp. 85-96
Author(s):  
S. Egorov

The increase of the role of human factor in post-industrial society and influence of that shift on the theory of economic growth are examined in the article. Special attention is paid to transformation of labor and capital. The influence of the size of the state, technical progress, educational system and wage level on rates of economic development is considered. The author examines the basic opportunities of increasing the value of human capital as the base of sustainable economic development of Russia.


Author(s):  
Andrei N. Komarov ◽  

The article reveals an evolution of political ideologies in Canada in 1993–2019. Following the Russian and foreign historiography, as well as the election programs of Conservatives and Liberals, the author analyzes the influence of political ideologies on the voting of Canadian voters in parliamentary elections in the late 20th – early 21st centuries. The author of the article comes to the conclusion that Canada is still a country committed to political ideologies. He also considers as unacceptable the thesis about an absence of ideologies in Canada within the existing post-industrial society. The author believes that the model for political development of Canada, laid down in the second half of the 19th century by the founders of the state, is still effective at the present time. In a post-industrial society, Canada clearly follows national traditions based on previously developed political ideologies. That is what constitutes the foundation for the rule-of-law state and civil society in Canada. The author emphasizes that, despite the activities of other political movements, conservative and liberal ideologies represent the leading directions of the state development in Canada. Other political ideologies, like social democracy, are largely secondary and do not determine the present and future of the Canadian state.


2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 18-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elias Le Grand

This paper aims to link two fields of research which have come to form separate lines of inquiry: the sociology of moralisation and studies on class identity. Expanding on recent papers by Young (2009 , 2011 ) and others, the paper argues that the concepts of ressentiment and respectability can be used to connect moralisation processes and the formation of class identities. This is explored through a case study of the social reaction in Britain to white working-class youths labelled ‘chavs’. It is demonstrated that chavs are constructed through moralising discourses and practices, which have some elements of a moral panic. Moreover, moralisation is performative in constructing class identities: chavs have been cast as a ‘non-respectable’ white working-class ‘folk devil’ against whom ‘respectable’ middle-class and working-class people distinguish and identify themselves as morally righteous. Moralising social reactions are here to an important extent triggered by feelings of ressentiment. This is a dialectical process where respectability and ressentiment are tied, not only to the social control of certain non-respectable working-class others, but also to the moral self-governance of the moralisers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anis Ahmad

In the post-industrial revolution world, social change is often studied and understood in the context of change in means of production, mobility, urbanization and change in the constitution of workforce. Role of ethical values is generally confined to personal conduct and manners. Industrial society is supposed to have its own work ethics which may or may not agree with personal ethics and morality. Ethics and morality are generally considered, in the Western thought, as a social construct. Therefore, with the change in means of production or political system, values and morality are also expected to be re-adjusted in order to cope with the changed environment. Sometimes a totally new set of values emerges as a consequence of the change in economic, political, or legal set up. The present research tries to understand the meaning and place of these values in a global socio-cultural framework. Relying essentially on the divine principles of the Qur'ān it makes an effort to understand relevance of these universal and ultimate principles with human conduct and behavior in society.  It indicates that essentially it is the core values, principles, or norms which guide human beings in their interpersonal, social, economic and political matters. Islam being a major civilizing force, culture, and the way of life, provides values which guide both in individual and social matters. The values given by the Qur’ān and the Sunnah are not monopoly of the Muslim. These values are universal and are relevant in a technological society.


2021 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 135-144
Author(s):  
Evgeny G. Vodichev ◽  
◽  

The paper is devoted to the problems of the USSR scientific and technology (S&T) policy during the “Khrushchev’s decade”, presented as part of the macroeconomic policy. The analysis is carried out in the context of economic reforms and experiments implemented in the country. The main components of S&T policy are revealed, the evolution of its structure and content in comparison with the first post-war decade is shown. In the analysis of S&T policy, the main attention is paid to the reflection of the status of science as a driver of economic development in the context of global challenges and the formation of new techno-economic paradigms. The emphasis on the applied function of research and development (R&D) proclaimed in the framework of S&T policy is presented as a reflection of the traditional for the USSR interpretations of the place and role of science in society under new conditions of scientific and technological revolution as a Soviet counter-thesis to the concepts of post-industrial society. The connection of decision-making mechanisms in the field of S&T policy with general line of Khrushchev’s populism, and the emerging practice of “bureaucratic bargaining” is outlined. The basic trends of approaches to planning in science and coordination in the field of R&D are identified, the directions of organisational restructuring in the governing of the scientific and technical complex are shown. It is concluded that S&T policy in the mid-1950s — 1960s remained a function of economic policy, that a unified S&T policy in the country under N. S. Khrushchev had not been formed. At the same time, the return on innovation remained at a low level.


2006 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 600-617 ◽  
Author(s):  
Odalia Wong ◽  
Beatrice Chau

AbstractIn our study, we examine how prevalent the notion of filial piety remains in a modern Chinese society like Hong Kong as an initiative for individuals to become caregivers for their parents, and how it is practiced in actual caregiving scenarios. From the experiences of the caregivers analyzed in our paper, it can be seen that the Confucian notion of filial piety as a cultural norm still runs deep even in a post-industrial society like Hong Kong. However, the respondents in our study have adopted aspects of this filial norm to suit their own experiences and actual circumstances in their everyday caregiving practices. We also found that a relational approach to filial behavior with its emphasis on 'felt obligation' seemed to offer an apt interpretation of the respondents' motivations while engaging in caregiving for their parents. Specifically, caregiver obligations are negotiated commitments that can perhaps only be accurately interpreted in their highly personal family contexts. In addition, the notion of reciprocity, or giving back to one's parents, was also a prevalent factor, which reflected that emotional bonds binding the parents and children remained important, as was the empathy for elderly parents.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document