some words on functional scheme and correspondent theoretical
approach in treating ideologies and world-views
From: kokkinias@utoronto.ca
> Please, could you guide me to
> further information regarding your comment at the end of this (your)
> post on:
>
> >Malinowski-Stinchcombs' version of functionality of rituals,
> >religions, etc?
Arthur Stinchcombe in his
Constructing Social Theories. 1968,87 pp.87-101
applies a very elegant graphic functional scheme to various social
and cutural theries, including Marx's theory of revolution and
Malinowski's theory of functionality of rituals
the text is on a book shelf, i don't wish to reproduce it here, but
i guarantee all thereticilly thinking people a large
intellectual pleasure and challenge while reading this book
BTW, dear Chris and other materialistically intended researchers,
don't you wish to substitute the obsolete and primitive Leninist
thesis that ideology is a reflexion of material interests by not
less materialistic but much more reasonable and promising
Stinchcombe's scheme.
Now my version of such application: ideological activities are a
special Structure that supports some significant homeostatic variable
of social reality (f.e. Level of Legitimacy of Current Order).
More strong is ideology, more strong becomes legitimacy.
Less strong is legitimacy, more intensive become ideological
activities (in some conditions as an oppressive monoideology, in
other - as a search for new alternatives).
Compare this scheme with Legitimacy of Current Order of global
world-economy and both mainstream liberal and 'antisystemic'
ideological activities and you can get a fresh vision of the problem.
regards
Nikolai Rozov