Abstract
Pierre Bourdieu’s primary intellectual concern was the role of culture in the production and reproduction of power and inequality. As Atkinson (2009) suggests, Bourdieu’s analysis of cultural life has been widely influential and has inspired a ‘cultural turn’ in the theorisation of class. In particular, he moved beyond economic determinism to explore alternative forms of social and cultural wealth. In doing so he provided an understanding of class that progressed beyond stratification and focussed on practice; his approach allows an analysis of the individual and their unique, yet structured, class experiences. And while his primary intellectual concern was class, his conceptual toolkit has proven to be adaptable — making it suitable for the analysis of gender, class and occupation.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2012 Kate Huppatz
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Huppatz, K. (2012). Why Use Bourdieusian Theory to Study Gender, Class and Work? The Case for ‘Gender Capital’. In: Gender Capital at Work. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137284211_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137284211_2
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-32164-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-28421-1
eBook Packages: Palgrave Social Sciences CollectionSocial Sciences (R0)