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Construction of Identity in the Emotional Culture
Prýmková, Karolína ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Holeček, Tomáš (referee)
Rigorous thesis Construstion of Identity in the Emotional Culture deals with possible changes in the construction of identity of man after the fall of the millenium. The thesis stems from Eva Illouz's description of society which states that our present society is unprecedently emotional and rational at the same time. The goal of this thesis is to advocate the intitial statement, that in this organization of society the main source for construction of identity is no longer the consumption of material goods as it put notable social theorists since the second half of the twentienth century. I do not state that this remarkable era is fully over now, but I would like to point out, that consumption of material goods is loosing its strength in the process of identity construction due to the overall increasing living standards and mainly due to the fragmentarization of lifestyles. Considering the unprecedently high level of penetration of our society with emotion I consider them to be the new source of identity creation.
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Multiculturalism and intercultural recognition in Czech context
Kňapová, Kateřina ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Šamánek, Jan (referee)
The work describes and interprets the thematization of the politics od recognition in the context of Czech academic debate. The particular subject of discussion is the concept of intercultural dialogue that develops some authors gathered around the Centre of Global Studies of the Czech Academy of Sciences. Intercultural dialogue is a concept that puts emphasis on creation of new communication levels at meetings of various cultural groups. This concept and the way how is it used in the Czech context is influenced by pre-understanding arising from the nature of Czech society and its relation to cultural minorities. The emphasis on assimilation of these groups and the apparent confirmation of cultural homogeneity of Czech society, which is reflected in the perception of these groups. Thematization of intercultural dialogue in the Czech debate may be a critical response to the relationship of the majority and minorities. Interpretation of intercultural dialogue precedes an explanation of key concepts - recognition and acknowledgment in the multiculturalist politics context. This explanation works mainly with the concepts of recognition by Charles Taylor, and Nancy Fraser.
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Social and cultural interpretations of photography
Makovcová, Hana ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Kotík, Michal (referee)
The bachelor's paper Social and Cultural Interpretation of Photography is concerned with social aspects of photography, primarily the way photographs are read, their relation to the social sciences, and the transformation of their functions, from their development to the present time, primarily in relation to the individual concept of the photograph. The text briefly outlines the definition of a photograph as a technical image and the related act of photography, and introduces us to the possibilities of its social examination through visual sociology via visual social facts. It shows photography to be a form of social ritual, a tool for preserving the present and a confirmation of an event, as well as a means of power. It presents the impact of technical reproduction on the mass dissemination of images and the related changes in the relationship to images. It shows the transformation of analogue photographs archived in family albums as a means of preserving family memory and biography, to digital photography that assumes a new role of self-presentation, primarily thanks to the new way of archiving in the virtual environment of social networks, thereby presenting a related theory of individualization.
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"Becoming a Facebook User": the mystery of (not) leaving
Dlouhá, Marie ; Hájek, Martin (advisor) ; Balon, Jan (referee)
Recently, facebook has become an important communication and intercation medium and social phenomenon. It attracts attention thanks to its broad audience, and it raises questions of safety and privacy, "addiction", identity and self-presentation. The study Becoming a Facebook User (the title is inspired by Howard Becker's article) is focused primarily on the question of (not) leaving - by using qualitative methods that explore "addiction" to facebook. Using methods of ethnographic interviews and interactionist analysis based on Erving Goffman's dramaturgical approach, broadened by the theory of Joshua Meyrowitz, this work shows that to be a facebook user is not a state but a career. An analysis of the individual stages of usership demonstrates the main reason for "addiction" - the "middle region" - i.e. the places where various audiences meet and there are many options for interacting with a large number of people from diverse environments. This text shows that "middle region" provides some advantages as long as there is effective management of the interactional regions that should prevent overloading, i.e. confusion. The management of regions and the study thereof in terms of a career means investment by a user in time and effort, which together with the advantages that such a management "middle...
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New services and emotional management in postindustrial society
Valentová, Barbora ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Kabele, Jiří (referee)
The diploma thesis New services and emotion management in postindustrial society concerns about the new kind of services, which started to occupy a very important position in the most intimate and personal spheres of human life (partner life, bringing up or even giving birth to children). With the development of these services the society finds itself on the border of "commodification", when more and more realms of human life is governed by market mechanisms and things, which used to belong to personal life, are becoming just goods for us. The borders between these two areas are more permeable and that reflects upon borrowing of rhetorics and discourses across these realms. With shifting of boarders our ways of thinking, feeling and acting change. Some kind of depersonalization arises and our relationship to our own personal life and to its meaning is becoming mediated by those services and those, who provide them. With these changes individuals deal through involvement of emotion labor. In the thesis these mechanisms and their influence on feeling and acting on the personal level and formation of self are explored. Explored are also the functioning of contradictory mechanisms of decommodification, which are being involved when the logic of market goes too far and individuum begins to feel too...
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Intimacy and technology: Smartphone as a best friend?
Černá, Kateřina ; Kotík, Michal (advisor) ; Balon, Jan (referee)
This paper focuses on intimacy and technology in the context of the modern society. A relationship of these two aspects of society is introduced as mutually influencing, since intimacy structures technology and on the other hand technology has wider impact on intimacy. Because technology is narrowly connected with commerce, it allows commerce to access the intimate and highly personal relationships. Discussing relevant authors, a picture of contemporary relationships is drawn, being presented as contradictory and full of paradoxes, and consequently more difficult to deal with. Tendencies towards relationships, which are sustained by technology, are presented as ideal and in the text are posted as an opposite to the real ones. An analysis of intimacy dimensions demonstrates that the contradictions continue to exist in the modern relationships even though they are experienced through technology. Further on discussions are interconnected in the example of smartphone, which commerce presents as the best friend of the human. In the end the role of commerce is highlighted, since it introduces the relationships being sustained by technology as the natural ones, and by this activity an effort is made to gain better control in intimate relationships. Keywords intimacy, technology, commerce, smartphone,...
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Body Art - Tattoo and Piercing in Their Functional and Symbolic Meaning.
Kroupová, Eva ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Šanderová, Jadwiga (referee)
The diploma thesis "Body art - the functional and symbolic meanings of tatoo and piercing" focuses on body modifications that are used as body art and which have become fashionable as a cultural and social phenomenon in the contemporary society. First part of the thesis introduces a basic theoretical framework and sets the subject into the context, which the author presents in such a way that even a laic can benefit from the paper. Theoretical part defines the terms and introduces first archeological findings connected with this cultural phenomenon. Further on the paper introduces examples of body art from selected traditional cultures and describes the way, which this phenomenon undertook to the contemporary western society. At the end of the theoretical part categories of functional and symbolic meaning, which the body art can acquire, are introduced. Second part presents qualitative research that focuses on functional and symbolic meanings, that the body art in contemporary society acquires. Statements of twenty-two people who talk about their body art can be found here. At the end of the paper you will find out which functional and symbolic meanings of body art are the same among the contemporary society and the primitve one, how do they differ or which functional and symbolic meanings have vanised...
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The Sociological Aspects of Theatre: Society on the Stage
Chalupová, Kristýna ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Čada, Karel (referee)
The aim of this bachelor work is to make a plea of a theatre as relevant sociological topic. Based on the referenced problems of sociology of art concerning its inhomogenity of the focused object, author deduces that sociology of theatre is needed discipline. Author also focuses on the reasons of the stand-still and marginalisation of sociology of theatre. The theatre as multivalued and transient had been very long time difficult to analyse, therefore she also names present systematic and critical approaches of the text and performance analysis. Also she devotes a part of the text to the issue of the interpretation of drama content and its communication to the audience, because theatre performance is primarily expressed message intended to the audience. In this context she opens speculation over a genesis of a dramatist's work and autonomy of an artistic production. With three sociological concepts of Michel Foucault, Karl Marx and Pierre Bourdieu author draws the possibility of sociological use of the drama content as a secondary social information. The summary is devoted to the findings of the social conditionality of the theatre and its sociological relevancy.
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Social problem of discrimination of African-Americans and its reflection in films
Genttnerová, Kristýna ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Kopecká, Anna (referee)
The topic of this thesis is a description of the social problem of discrimination of Afro- Americans in the USA with a focus on the reflection of racism in films. To introduce the social problem the thesis considers itself with such terms as race or ethnocentrism. It focuses on stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice and on their forms and their ways of formation and reproduction. It shows the impact of racism on Afro-Americans and on American society as a whole and it uses theories of secondary deviation, stigmatization and self-fulfilling prophecy to describe the impact. The thesis presents the main events of American racial history and it introduces the spheres of institutional racism - housing, education, employment, legal justice and media and political representation. The second part of this thesis focuses on specific area of media discrimination - on film. It describes historical development and changes of Afro-American characters and topics in film throughout the 20th century. It presents three films to illustrate particular historical film periods. It explores this evolution in relation to political, social, cultural, technological and especially economic changes. On one hand this thesis perceives film as a mirror of the society, on the other hand it presents film as a potential tool for...
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Books ve have to know and how we have to know them
Čepelová, Hedvika ; Balon, Jan (advisor) ; Martinová, Marta (referee)
The thesis explains the "books we have to know" using terms and theoretical views of Pierre Bourdieu. It concentrates on "books we have to know" according to studying and study field. It analyzes the conditions of higher education as a field, the role of "books to be known" within it. It explains how these books are set up and how to treat them, and also how this all reciprocal links. It describes the importance of these books outside the academic field and setting up them by the public oppinion and specific kontext. The explanation involves describing factors which determinates "how" subject "decides" to "know" these books. The empirical basis of these work correspond to the contemporary conditions of higher education in Czech Republic usnig laws, analyzes and research reports, strategies and policy papers to its descripton.
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