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| Robert Putnam argues that a healthy civil in which citizens are active in public affairs society is of vital importance. But the associations that people form do not necessarily have to be political: they can work for a political cause or join a bowling league. It is cooperation and interaction that count. According to Putnam this interaction leads to the development of “horizontal bonds of fellowship”. But Putnam specifically excludes familial ties and religion from his definition of civil society, believing that these “vertical bonds of authority” cause people to look inward toward rather than outward toward society as a whole. He fears that society becomes stagnant if its different groups do not interact with each other. |
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| The term ‘third sector’ refers to a third sector between the private sector (markets) and the public sector (governments). It is also called by a lot of other names: the nonprofit sector, the social sector, civil society, NGOs, the voluntary sector…The third sector combines the advantages of big business with the coordination style of states to great success. That’s why many argue any government intervention would just cause problems (same argument that’s voiced with regard to the economy). However, the government could strengthen the third sector by asking NGOs to provide specific services. |
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| Robert Putnam first introduced the term ‘social capital’ into the mainstream in his 1995 book Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community (and the essay that preceded the book’s publication). He defined social capital as the “features of social life – networks, norms, and trust – that enable participants to act more effectively to pursue shared objectives”. The concept of social capital is also based on reciprocity (the mutuality of giving and taking). Different forms of social capital are bonding, which happens in exclusive groups, and bridging which binds people from different groups together. |
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| the Long Civic Generation |
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| The generations of Americans born between 1910 and 1940 are often hailed as the ‘long civic generation’. Having come off age during the Great Depression, these Americans were much more active in their communities than the generations after them because they were heavily influenced by the collective experience of a crisis of the magnitude of the Great Depression. Putnam uses the long civic generation to prove his theory that social capital in the US has been eroding dramatically since the 1960s. However, he is often criticized for this, as many other scholars believe the long civic generation to be an exception rather than the norm by which to measure every other generation. |
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Conspicuous consumption:
Thorstein Veblen analyzed American spending and leisure habits in his 1899 book The Theory of the Leisure Class and made some interesting observations: |
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| there is a perceived correlation between property and power that leads people to display consumption as openly as possible in order to gain prestige. Consumption no longer serves the purpose of satisfying material desires but is seen as a way to win the ‘race for reputability’ within the leisure class. This need for prestige is only aggravated by a lack of the clear hierarchical structures of a class-based society. Furthermore, conspicuous consumption can be seen as a sign that one has achieved the American dream and is generally met with the admiration of others. |
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Conspicuous leisure:
Thorstein Veblen analyzed American spending and leisure habits in his 1899 book The Theory of the Leisure Class and made some interesting observations: |
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| much like conspicuous consumption, conspicuous leisure is also aimed at gaining a certain amount of prestige. Engaging in time consuming and unproductive cultural activities like art, music, or the learning of ancient languages signals that one can afford to spend time far away from the workplace. |
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Historians identify three or four waves of religious revivals in American history. They are characterized by an increase in membership for existing religions and the formation of new religious movements.
1. Great Awakening: 1730-1760 → (independence from Great Britain)
2. Great Awakening: 1800-1830 → Methodists, Baptists
3. Great Awakening: 1890-1920 → progressivism, temperance movement (?: 1850-1900 ?)
4. Great Awakening: 1960-now → mobilization of the Christian right |
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Who(communicator)
says what (message)
in which channel(medium)
to whom (receiver)
with what effect? (effect) |
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| solidarisches System von Überzeugungen und Praktiken, die in einer moralischen Gemeinschaft (Kirche) vereint werden - Kollektiverlebnis |
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| sozialer Bedeutungsverlust von Religion, „Entchristlichung“ |
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| hineingeboren, wenig emotionale Bindung |
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| freiwilliger Beitritt qualifizierter Mitglieder – individuelle Wahl |
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| MARKTMODELL DER RELIGIONEN |
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| es gibt für Jeden ein genau zugeschnittenes Religiöses Angebot |
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– Entzauberung – Wissenschaft, Wirtschaft, Politik schränken die Rolle (Bedeutung für Verstehen des Alltags) der Religionen ein
Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, Jose Casanova |
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| Konsum ist notwendig – Nahrung, Wohnung etc. – identitätsstiftend – Autonomie vs. Determination |
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| Bedürfniserweckung durch Werbung – Name-ing – Branding |
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| – eingeplanter Verfall des Gebrauchswerts – nur neu ist gut |
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| intermediäre Handlungsebene zwischen Individuen und Staat, freiwilliges Zusammenhandeln der Bürger (z.B. in Vereinen) |
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ermöglicht Handlungskoordination, kann Kooperationsbereitschaft generieren – Vertrauen stärken
(Putnam) |
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| 1910-1940 von Krisen geprägt und ‚geeint‘ – sozial aktiver als frühere/spätere Generationen |
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| UTILITARISTISCHER INDIVIDUALISMUS |
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ökonomische Dimension, effektive individuelle Lebensplanung, Aufstieg durch Eigeninitiative, Benjamin Franklin, Manager
-selfmade man |
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| EXPRESSIVER INDIVIDUALISMUS |
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| Sinnlichkeit, Intellektualität, republikanische Ideale, das Selbst kultivieren und ausdrücken – Walt Whitman, Counter Culture der 60er, Therapeut |
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säkularer Protestantismus – materieller Erfolg als Zeichen der Erlösung durch Gott -> religiöses Fundament des Kapitalismus -> rationale Lebensführung und Berufsmenschentum -> Verlust der religiösen Motivation, Wertentleerung des Korsetts -> entfremdend und zwanghaft
Weber |
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