This book explains different meanings related to the self in the social sciences and popular and political discourse. It looks at ideas, concepts, and theories of the self used in social analysis, as well as key areas in which approaches have addressed self-identity, selfhood, and personal identity. It discusses sociological approaches to understanding how the self is constructed in the social world, particularly how people use symbols and symbolic material to create a sense of self and theories by George Herbert Mead, Erving Goffman, and Anthony Giddens; psychoanalytic concepts of the self, particularly theories by Sigmund Freud; the contribution of philosopher and historian Michel Foucault to the analysis of the self, power, and language or discourse; the nature of gender and its relation to the self, including writings by Nancy Chodorow, Julia Kristeva, and Judith Butler; the self in the context of postmodernism; and recent debates in social theory over reinvention and mobilities, as well as recreating the self through new mobility processes and regimes associated with globalization. Updated, this edition has a new chapter on the digital revolution and the self in the context of artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, and accelerating automation. Annotation ©2021 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
This new, updated edition provides a lively, lucid and compelling introduction to contemporary controversies over the self and self-identity in the social sciences and humanities. In an accessible and concise format, the book ranges from classical intellectual traditions of symbolic interactionism, psychoanalysis and Foucauldian theory, through feminism and postfeminism, to postmodernism and the mobilities paradigm.
With characteristic verve and clarity, Anthony Elliott explores the relationship between power, identity and personhood, connecting varied theoretical debates directly to matters of contemporary relevance and urgency, such as identity politics, the sociology of personal relationships and intimacy, and the politics of sexuality. This edition also includes a new chapter on the digital revolution, which situates the self and work/life transformations within the context of AI, Industry 4.0, advanced robotics and accelerating automation.
Offering thoughtful entry points to a rich and complex literature, along with robust critical responses to each theory, Concepts of the Self will continue to be an invaluable text for students of social and political theory, sociology, social psychology, cultural studies, and gender studies.
