Modernity and Late Modernity

What is modernity?

• Usually typified by the period following the Enlightenment but most evident in the period following the Industrial Revolution

• Extends to the 1970s, but some theorists suggest that we are still living in the modern era

• Structural approach to society, with the importance of social institutions, social structures and social processes most evident

Key features of modernity:

• Bell and Newby:

  • Industrialisation and urbanisation -growth of urban areas, movement from agriculture to manufacturing

  • The growth of capitalism and private industry developed additional social classes- such as the middle class

Key concepts of modernity:

• Max Weber:

  • Move towards scientific rationality- decide on aims and find the most efficient way to achieve those

  • Gradual secularisation- decline in religious beliefs, but beliefs in morality

  • Bureaucracy- Large organisations increasingly used to organise society, e.g. welfare state, NHS, education system

Evidence of modernity:

• Traditional forms of family, one-size-fits-all education, limited social mobility

• Relevance of metanarratives such as Marxism and Feminism- Highlighting conflicts in society

• Scientific approaches to society- Use of quantitative data in education, and welfare work -assumes there are no individual differences, but rather structures

Criticisms of modernist views today:

• Crises of Capitalism - Individual choices and reactions against capitalist ideologies

• Are social structures such as class, gender and ethnicity relevant in contemporary society? Does social solidarity exist?

• The decline of the metanarrative - Are individuals influenced by the advice of institutions influenced by the advice of institutions - education, politics, media, family

What is late modernity?

• The era of rapid change between modern and postmodern eras - Giddens

• ‘Risk society’ - The death of old certainties and the birth of insecurity and risk - Beck

• Liquid modernity - Era of fluidity, flexibility and change - Bauman

Key concepts of late modernity:

• Individualisation - Focus on individual goals, needs and aspirations at the expense of more collectivist ideas

• Increased insecurity - In relationships, employment, from the environment, science

• Reflexivity - Individuals reflect upon their place in society as a result of increasing changes

• Increased interconnectedness - Though often impersonal - and increased surveillance

Key thinkers in late modernity:

• Giddens:

  • Pure relationships and romantic love

  • Reflexivity and dis-embedding

• Beck:

  • Risk society

  • Negotiated family, redefining the role of fatherhood in the face of insecurity

• Bauman:

  • Identity, beliefs and crime

Evidence of late modernity:

• Individualism in society as a reaction to neo-liberal economics - reduction in collective actions

• Serial monogamy and changes to relationships

• Media usage - Impersonal interactions on social media

• Increased risk from science - COVID-19, climate change

• Insecurity of employment - zero-hour contracts, self-employment

Criticisms of late modernity:

• Has society become liquid? Definitions of class might have changed, but the polarisation of views demonstrates structural forces in society

• Is late modernity a global phenomenon? Have other societies rejected Western ideals?

• Elliot is critical of media usage outside of the West- Lack of technologies

• Is risk and insecurity due to capitalism rather than social change?