A pragmatic critique of the conception of everyday praxis within Jeffrey Alexander’s cultural sociology

Abstract

This paper tries to critically analyse Jeffrey Alexander’s cultural sociology. In the first part of the paper I will examine Alexander’s conception of hermeneutical structuralism which argues that conventional systemic sociology and richness of experience found in everyday praxis can be reconciled. In the next section I will provide a critique of this kind of approach to social theory and maintain that Alexander’s sociology is, in principle, reductionist regarding everyday life. In addition, I will also point out some of the comparative advantages that pragmatically oriented theory has in the attempt of integrating theoretical and practical knowledge. In the final section of the paper, I will try to illustrate some of the major shortcomings of Alexander’s sociology on the concrete example of advances in computer technology. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 43007: Istrаživаnje uticaja klimаtskih promenа nа životnu sredinu: prаćenje uticаjа, аdаptаcijа i ublаžаvаnje]

Keywords

• cultural sociology
• hermeneutical structuralism
• everyday life
• pragmatism
• computer technology