Re: middle-class models

Jay Lemke (JLLBC who-is-at CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU)
Mon, 18 Dec 95 23:20:55 EST

An important question, which in the spirit of Latour's WHNBM,
with which I generally agree on this point (at least regarding
the similarities between modern euroculture and other cultures,
but only partly on the differences), I would answer by saying
that the difference is mainly in the 'length' of the networks,
that is, in how wide and remote a body of experience of distant
parts of the network is distilled or processed into the theory
or narrative. How many people's experiences, of how many different
sorts, how different from one another's and those of the end-user,
how diversely mediated by various sorts of situations, tools,
etc. are 'black-boxed' into this guide for doing-now.

My original contrast of course was between social classes in
the context of our earlier discussion, not between cultures
or historical periods. Latour's model is more for the latter two,
and I am somewhat adapting it to replace the usual (e.g. Bernstein's)
argument about class differences. I think however that a more
careful analysis would perhaps show that it is not primarily these
various questions of length and diversity of mediations in some
quantitative sense, but at least as much and often more, a matter
of _which_ kinds of connections and mediations go into these
guiding discourses/artifacts. It is useful, I think, to _start_
with Latour's assumption of merely quantitative differences,
however, so that we are less tempted to re-instate the Great
Divide between Us and Them (with Our way better, of course).

JAY.

JAY LEMKE.
City University of New York.
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