SOC 478 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Pierre Bourdieu, Social Capital, Cultural Capital

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 478
• Professor: Graeme Metcalf

Document Summary

Serious leisure contests the (cid:498)old school(cid:499) conception of leisure being rooted in hedonism: this confirms that leisure does not have to be fun; it(cid:495)s motive may be something more akin to the opposite. A basic distinguishing between serious and casual leisure may recognize class and access as playing a role. The colloquial high culture is good, valuable, critical, elite. Pieper: a) leisure is central to a fulfilled self b) high culture is recognized as congruent with civilized living, enlightenment, intellect, critical thought. Opera, classical, literature, academics are all canonical examples of high culture. Magazines, television, street art, rap music are low culture. Integral to the rise of the so-called (cid:498)good life(cid:499) was the emergence of the (cid:498)therapeutic ethos(cid:499) Societies shifted over time from valorizing work ethic and civic responsibility to legitimizing ideas of leisure, fun, spending and individual fulfillment. For example, the acquisition of goods has become a desirable pursuit producing a pleasurable, self-interested result.