The same democratic ideal does different interactional work in different groups
Evidence
The problem is, volunteers, activists, and even cynics all wanted to believe in the possibility of the responsible, informed, concerned citizen, active in his or her community ^ Tocqueville’s good citizen of a democratic republic. But that belief ^ or more exactly, the desire to believe the belief ^ meant very di¡erent things in these di¡erent groups; it even meant di¡erent things in any one group or for any individual from one moment to the next. — Nina Eliasoph, “Close to home”, 136
Categorization
- DEFINE: Establishes the analytic move: treating beliefs as interactional ‘cultural work’ rather than static inner convictions.
- XREF: connects to: Identical interaction forms recur across radically different social groups — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 198; Sociability’s democratic reciprocity fails across different social classes — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 377; Political expression is switched on and off by group context rather than individual belief — Nina Eliasoph, “Close to home”: The work of avoiding…, 97 (+1 more)
Broader Connections
- Identical interaction forms recur across radically different social groups
#corroborates(0.82) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 198 - Each group’s creative response to powerlessness retained part of the democratic ideal
#exemplifies(0.80) — Nina Eliasoph, “Close to home”, 173 - Political expression is switched on and off by group context rather than individual belief
#expands(0.78) — Nina Eliasoph, “Close to home”, 97 - Sociability’s democratic reciprocity fails across different social classes
#qualifies(0.75) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 377