Folklore, Power and Class

Sociology of food

Sociology of food

the study of food as it relates to the history, progression and future

development of society.

Folklore

consists of legends, music, art, spoken history, popular beliefs, fairy tales, stories, tall

tales, customs, and superstitions that are traditions of a culture or group

American Folklore

encompasses folk traditions that have evolved since Europeans arrived in

the 16th Century as well as Native American myths and legends

Superstitions

~Beliefs in supernatural forces, such as fate

~The desire to influence unpredictable factors and a need to resolve uncertainty

~Irrational

~Often passed down from generation to generation

~Provides a sense of control and reduces anxiety

~Superstitions are part of folklore

Legends

traditional story popular by history but not authentic

Power

the ability to bring about an intended outcome, even when it is opposed by

others

Empowerment

increases the capacity to bring about an intended outcome

Persuade

get people’s compliance by convincing them of the correctness of your

position and goals

Reward

encourage compliance in people by offering incentives

Coerce

force compliance by threatening, intimidating, pressuring or harming them

Reward Power

the control one group has over valued resources that can be used to

provide positive incentives

Coercive Power

the ability to punish, withholding valued resources or by inflicting

verbal or physical harm

Legitimate Power

exercised by those who invoke a feeling of obligation, one should obey

Referent Power

based on feelings or identification, affection and respect for another

person, even if that person does not seek influence over others

Expert Power

arises from the perception that a person has superior knowledge in a particular area

Informational Power

based on a person’s use of facts

Power Tactics

the specific strategies people use to influence others in everyday life

Hard

forceful, direct, and hars

Soft

focus on relationships and relationship building

Rational

appeal to logic and include bargaining and reasonable persuasion

Non-rational

emotional appeal that does not make sense

Unilateral

do not require cooperation to initiate, they include demands, orders or

disengagement

Bilateral

involves give and take, negotiation and discussion

Economic Power

allocating resources

Political Power

making decision and rules for society

Cultural Power

defining reality

Traditional Authority

typically legitimate power because of compliance with

well-established cultural practices

Rational-Legal Authority

typically legitimate power because it is based in established

laws, rules and procedures

Charismatic Authority

typically legitimate power that is derived from the extraordinary personal characteristics of an individual leader, which inspire loyalty and devotion

Standpoint Theory

questions the idea of taken for granted assumptions about society by looking at it from multiple viewpoints, especially from the perspective of people in subordinate positions

Standpoint

the place from which a person views the world

Class

a group of people who share a roughly similar economic position and lifestyle

Class Mobility

the ability to move from one social class to another

Structural Mobility

a shift in the available occupation changes the class system as a whole

Individual Mobility

when a person’s class position changes with any change in the larger class structure

Life Chances

the opportunities offered by a person’s economic position

Social Closure

the process in which a status group maximizes its own advantages by restricting access to reward only to members of the group.

Discrimination

social closure involves discrimination, treating others unequally based on their background or other personal characteristics