—Amina Mehboob
We often find ourselves connecting with people with similar tastes in music, books and movies. Sometimes we may also change or hide our likings to fit in with friends or groups. It turns out that this is not just an adjustment mechanism to get along with our peers, because, at times, this mutual appreciation for certain kinds of art and culture tends to be exclusive and creates divisions. This was explained by the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu using his theory of social and cultural capital. Bourdieu was influenced by Marxist thinking though he was not entirely a Marxist sociologist. He extended the Marxist understanding of economic capitalism to the socio-cultural realm to argue that social and cultural capital forms the foundation of a person’s social position and is in direct relation to their position in the social order.
Cultural capital is in three forms: embodied, objectified and institutionalised. The best example of embodied cultural capital is the dialect a person speaks in. Someone who speaks English with a British accent would be more accepted in certain circles than one who has an accent influenced by her colloquial language. The dialect one speaks in has to do with the family one is born into. The second type—objectified cultural capital—includes luxury goods which serve as indicators of one’s position in the socio-economic strata. Finally, educational qualifications and titles, which symbolically indicate one’s cultural competence, are part of the third type—institutionalised cultural capital.
Cultural Capital In Education
Bourdieu says that cultural capital plays a key role when it comes to educational outcomes. Education, which fuels social mobility, depends on the strategic use of social and cultural capital. It comes easier for the dominant status groups who hold economic, political and social power. Social reproduction, for instance, the ability to understand and use ‘educated language’, depends on one’s familiarity with the dominant culture. Students whose parents do not possess the required cultural capital often falter at this, making it difficult for them to succeed in the education system. Thus, they are disadvantaged in the competition for educational credentials or intellect. However, the education system is still seen as meritocratic and legitimate. This serves to maintain the status quo that favours the dominant groups.
Property and advantage in an occupation are also passed on through family and social connections. For instance, one might think that one’s taste in music or books are of one’s own choosing. The theory of cultural capital reminds us that it is the other way around. A person is exposed to certain types of culture and art which later become their own ‘taste’. It is the embodied, objectified and institutionalised cultural capital that determines this exposure.
The possession of social and cultural capital—symbolized by mannerisms, behaviour and accents—helps predict a person’s status in the social order. Celebrating certain types of culture as “high culture” contributes to the maintenance of boundaries between different social classes. In conclusion, familiarity or non-familiarity with different forms of “popular” culture also serves as a basis for social exclusion. The cultural capital theory is an important contribution to social thought for focusing on the importance of culture in attaining educational credentials and extending material wealth.
To know more about cultural capital, check out the resources below:
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