This assessment aims to show how ideas in cultural sociology can help us to
notice the cultural significance of even the most ordinary social practices. It
requires you to apply the theory of either Douglas, Bourdieu, or Elias (choose
only one) to a specific case of an everyday ‘etiquette’ you learnt as a child.
Be sure to keep the description of your example/data very brief and devote most
of the essay to application and analysis. For a short essay, it is best to be specific
with both the concept and the case. Rather than try to capture Bourdieu or
Douglas overall, you should choose one key passage that is relevant to your case
and cover this in depth. Similarly for your case, choose something specific.
“Manners” is too broad, but instead you might discuss how you were taught to
use cutlery at the dinner table, or to react when receiving a present, or to answer
the telephone. For this assessment, you are only required to cite the
primary theorist and therefore we expect a close engagement with their work.
Chosen etiquette: Let elders/guests eat first before we do to show respect and politeness when having a meal with them. E.g., offer them food/put food onto their plate/simply say “(name), eat”. Context: I’m from Indonesia, ethnicity: Indonesian Chinese. In Chinese culture, respect for elders/those that are older than us is considered a very serious thing.
Please ask any questions regarding the etiquette if you need further personal information.
Strictly use the articles (choose one theorist) I’ve attached to this order as the theory. (the two articles by Douglas are considered as 1)
Marking criteria:
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Choice of an appropriate and specific etiquette
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Choice of an appropriate and specific passage from one of the three theorists,
Douglas, Bourdieu, or Elias
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Level of application of theory to example
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Level of sociological analysis
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Use of appropriate language, grammar, paragraph structure, and so on
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Correct referencing