14 May 2016 "Culture and Sociology in South Africa"
I wrote this piece for a sociology course I took while studying abroad at the University of Cape Town in Cape Town, South Africa. It examines the emergence of sociology as a study in South Africa and the question of what exactly can be defined by the term "cultural sociology".
As a discipline, sociology has typically been studied through
the lens of Marxism, and through more liberal explanations of social change.
These explanations include the ideas of thinkers such as Emile Durkheim and Max
Weber. The domination of sociology by these ideas has forced the field into a
realm of Eurocentric, white male thought. For example, the ideas of Emile
Durkheim—the sociologist often credited with the creation of sociology as a
discipline—though extremely revolutionary for their time, have been understood
recently to be extremely racist and Eurocentric. He can be found to often label
non-European, non-white nations as “underdeveloped” or “within the early stages
of civilization.”
In addition, Marxist ideas have created a
very specific understanding of society, focusing heavily on the influence of
the economy and a divided society that can be attributed specifically to the inequality
of the work force. A core part of Marxist theory focuses on the capitalist
system, describing the inequality faced by male, white, working-class
labourers. Though it certainly does cover some important aspects of society
that help provide a better understanding of the field of sociology as a whole,
this economics-based understanding does leave quite a bit of crucial
information out of the equation. Things such as culture and race are crucial to
recognize when attempting to understand the dynamics inherent in any society.
This brings up the question of cultural
sociology. Does this sociology that recognizes the importance of culture
present a fuller, more rounded understanding of society? In order to discern
this, it becomes necessary to develop an understanding of what exactly cultural
sociology is. Jeffrey Alexander, in his work “The Meanings of Social Life”, explains
the meaning behind the term. He explains that cultural sociology refers to an
understanding of actions as performed by social actors, and shaped by the
external environment. Culture, as understood by cultural sociology, can be
defined as an “independent variable”.[1]
To relate this concept to the typical sociological ideas such as those
presented by Marxism, Alexander claims that we must not look at divisions of
culture as having arisen out of economic structures (i.e. a “working-class
culture”) but instead we must understand the actions of human beings as having
arisen out of myths, beliefs, customs, etc. throughout history.[2]
In other words, Alexander presents a claim that sociologists have been looking
at society in the entirely wrong way for decades. Culture, he explains, is the
thing that does the shaping of society and its external forces, instead of the
other way around.
South Africa is a fascinating case to
observe when considering culture as the motivating factor behind social action.
In a place where sociology has taken so long to even be recognized as a
discipline in the first place, the emergence of cultural sociology has served as
a crucial component to the understanding of South African society as a whole.
Eddie Webster, in a paper concerning comments on Michael Buraway’s
understanding of sociology within South Africa, presents these inspiring words
of Buraway’s: “We are sociologists who identify with the resilience of civil
society. But in defending society against markets and states, we do not claim
that this is some harmonious communitarian terrain. To the contrary, racial
fissures, scattered hegemonies of sexuality and gender, cover it…Working with
the positive movement of civil society, sociology defends its own very
existence, but at the same time defends the interests of humanity.”[3]
In other words, the realm of sociology is complex. It is marked by humanity itself,
and by the implications of human existence. Race, gender, and social structures
that have become hegemonic become this way only because of how humanity chooses
to interact with them. Sociology as a discipline must be recognized, Buraway
claims, but in addition it must be recognized for what it is. And what it is
goes much deeper than a simple understanding of society through the lens of
economics, or political science.[4]
So what marks South Africa as such an
interesting case to study when considering cultural sociology? Certainly within
the realm of traditional sociology, South Africa is as traditional a case as
any—there has existed a working-class and an upper class, both with their own
distinct cultures and understandings of each other. It can certainly be marked
as a capitalist society that has emerged into the world market and made a niche
for itself.
What marks South Africa as so different
from the rest of the world is the heavy influence of race on its societal
dynamics. Though perhaps comparable to other instances of racially-charged
historical policies that pitted one race above the other, South Africa’s
experience is so unique because of how recently the nation has emerged from its
racist past, and also because of how prevalent racial dynamics still are in its
society. Not only has it taken until recently for sociology to be recognized as
a formal discipline in South Africa, but it has taken until even more recently
for racial dynamics in South Africa to be recognized as a core part of the
country’s cultural sociology. Xolela Mangcu, in a work entitled “Decolonizing
South African Sociology” describes the racist tendency in the University of
Cape Town to downplay racial dynamics within its institution. He describes a
specific instance in which the University wished to change the policy of
“race-based affirmative action in student admissions”.[5]
The enactment of this new policy would
result in race being a less important factor to consider when accepting
applicants to the University of Cape Town. In a place where racial inequality
is protested by students almost daily, the University of Cape Town wished to
enact a policy that would push racial inequality concerns even lower than it
already was on the list of priorities. Mangcu explains: “This paper argues that
the new emphasis on economic disadvantage is a reflection of a long-standing
tendency among left-liberal academics to downplay race and privilege economic
factors in their analysis of disadvantage in Africa.”[6]
In other words, Mangcu claims that though there has been a recent recognition
of cultural sociology, and race, as presenting an extreme importance on South
African society as a whole, there has still been a tendency to revert back to
the traditional methods of sociological thinking. Despite the recent
development of understanding South Africa as an extremely racially influenced
nation, academics (within and outside the realm of the University of Cape Town)
for some reason continue to seek a more traditional sociological explanation of
events. They seek to identify economic disadvantage as the mitigating factor
keeping South Africans from obtaining equal opportunities at the university
level.
As Mangcu continues to explore the
reasoning behind the recent development in the University of Cape Town, he
comes upon a fascinating factor: the reasoning behind the university’s argument
behind why it wished to change the policy of affirmative action. They are as
follows: “(1) race is an unscientific concept that takes South Africa back to apartheid-era
thinking and (2) that race should be replaced by class or economic
disadvantage.”[7]
It is interesting to consider this first
argument: that race must be considered an “unscientific” concept that takes
South Africa back to “apartheid-era” thinking. Arguably, yes, considering
people on a racial-basis when considering their acceptance into a university
could certainly be deemed as biased, especially during a time in which
affirmative action has presented such negative consequences within the political
sphere of the country. But to boil down race to what it was used for during
apartheid is to misunderstand the meaning of race altogether. Certainly to
reduce race to its apartheid-era definition is to make it unscientific. But the
fact of the matter is that the apartheid-era occurred in South Africa, and it
brought race to the forefront of cultural sociology. To forget it now, still so
soon after the end of apartheid law, is to neglect decades of culture—created
almost solely by the racially charged society—and to forget what those who
opposed apartheid tried so hard to fight for.
Steve Biko’s piece on black consciousness
is an excellent contradiction to this idea that race (in regards to being
black) is an unscientific concept. The importance of race in a South African
context can be summed up beautifully in this way: “Being black is not a matter
of pigmentation – being black is a reflection of a mental attitude.”[8]
There are so many other factors that make race all that it is, that have
nothing at all to do with pigmentation of the skin. In South Africa especially,
race represents social structure, class and economic inequality, and a history
of inequality between colonizer and colonized.
Even amoung the most economically
downtrodden whites in South Africa, there can be perceived a significant
advantage over the economically downtrodden blacks. As Biko explains, it is
amoung these whites that there may be found the strongest feelings of
anti-black thought. The “poor whites”, though they are economically close to
the “poor blacks”, because of the immense stigma attached to being black, seek
to in any way they can distinguish themselves from the “poor blacks”. This is
often accomplished by a reinforced attitude of racism and inferiority that is
forcibly attached to “blackness”. In
South Africa (and all over the world) there has been a system of attaching
“blackness” to “badness”.[9]
Perhaps the mindset behind those at the
University of Cape Town who chose to downplay the influence of race in
university admissions was that to eliminate race from the equation would also
eliminate the structure of racial inequality as a whole from the process of
university admissions. Perhaps they operated under the assumption that the best
way to “undo” the damage done to South Africa during its racist apartheid
period would be to ignore the influence of race completely—to ignore race would
force all people to operate on the same playing field. Perhaps they believed
that the mere recognition of people as having different races reduced them to
the mindset of apartheid-era thinkers—that any recognition of racial difference
must be recognized as racism.
Or perhaps these academics at the
University of Cape Town, frustrated by the negative outcomes of the ANC and the
negative influence of affirmative action on South African politics, wished to
avoid additional inequality by allowing students admission to university based
more heavily on their race than on their merit. After all, as Xolela Mangcu
describes in an article chronicling the lineage of black political thought, the
ANC is imperfect, and often fails to recognize even its own founders. Often
caught up in an agenda that no longer aligns with the ideas of its founders,
the ANC surely leaves something to be desired.[10]
Whatever their reasoning, the academics
at UCT surely did not realize the importance of cultural sociology. Had they
understood sociology in a less traditional sense, recognizing the influence of
certain sociological constructs on institutions such as the University of Cape
Town, or during periods such as apartheid, they would have had a more
well-rounded understanding of why affirmative action, at least at this stage in
South Africa, is extremely necessary.
In history, it has been the ignorance
and/or labeling of things like race as “unscientific” that has reinforced
racial inequality. It certainly is uncomfortable to consider the extent to
which non-whites have been exploited, and the process of rectifying this
inequality certainly seems daunting. But this discomfort presents no room for
ignoring the influence of things like racism and racial inequality. It has
often been the fault of traditional sociology that these things get pushed
behind the forefront of societal influence. Traditional sociology has often
come from the mouth of the colonizer, recognizing him as a central figure in
history and recognizing all those different from him as “less than”. What
cultural sociology seeks to do is to reverse this mode of thinking—to give
power of defining history into the hands of more than just those who have been
in the privileged positions. It recognizes that there is more to society than
the dominant modes of thinking, and to recognize that there can indeed exist a
culture whose main focus is not to transcend borders. Cultural sociology seeks
to reinforce the idea that there is more to the black man than the ways in
which he has been dominated.
References:
Alexander Jeffrey.
The Strong Program in Cultural Sociology. In The Meaning of Social
Life: A Cultural Sociology.
New York: Oxford University Press. 15-26
Biko, S. 1978. Some
African Cultural Concepts. In I write
what I like. Johannesburg:
Picadr
Africa. 44-57.
Mangcu, X. 2013.
Retracing Nelson Mandela through the Lineage of Black Political
Thought.
In Transition Magazine. 112-117.
Mangcu, X. 2016. Decolonizing South African Sociology:
Building on A Shared Text of
Blackness.
In Du Bois Review 13 (1), 1-15. Harvard
University, Hutchins Center
for
African and African American Research
Webster, E. 2004. Sociology in South Africa: Its Past
Present and Future. Society in
Transition,
35(1)
[1] Alexander Jeffrey. The Strong Program
in Cultural Sociology. In The Meaning of
Social Life: A Cultural Sociology. New York: Oxford University Press. 15-26
[3] Webster, E. 2004. Sociology in South Africa: Its Past
Present and Future. Society in Transition, 35(1)
[5] Mangcu, X. 2016. Decolonizing South African Sociology:
Building on A Shared Text of Blackness. In Du Bois Review 13 (1), 1-15. Harvard University, Hutchins Center for
African and African American Research
[8] Biko, S. 1978. Some African Cultural
Concepts. In I write what I like. Johannesburg: Picadr Africa. 44-57.
[10] Mangcu, X. 2013. Retracing Nelson
Mandela through the Lineage of Black Political Thought. In Transition Magazine. 112-117.
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