My first and initial thought in class, after our teacher asked us if we had a world view, was: ‘Of course I have a world view, I mean doesn’t everyone?’ But that was an instinctive feeling merely based on the idea of what my values and ideals are and how I as an individual look at the world based on that. This worldview would then, of course, be influenced by my socialization, cultural background, gender and many other factors. Even though that is not completely false there is a more specific definition from a sociological point of view. I looked into three different theories, including the consensus theory, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism. While the consensus theory can be found in models like structural fundamentalism, examples of conflict theories are marxism and feminism. The consensus theory agrees on the shared norms and values of society and conflict theories are based on conflict within society between two or more competing parties over access to power and resources. The two theories are very contrary but what they have in common is that they look at society from a macro level while symbolic interactionism focuses on the individual and how interactions and experiences shape one's life. While I personally completely disagree with the consensus theory, both conflict theories and symbolic interactionism felt closer to me. Feminism is critical towards the patriarch and Marxism questions capitalism. However, they both can sometimes feel hard to grasp since they look at society as a whole, which can sometimes feel very abstract for the individual. This I why symbolic interactionism is something I’d like to look in closer, especially when thinking about identity and how it is being shaped by our lived experiences and embodied knowledge. This in combination with the conflict theory of feminism is what I would like to focus on in the coming months.

WORLD VIEWS