An Introduction to Pierre Bourdieu's Key Theoretical Concepts

Abstract

At the heart of Pierre Bourdieu's sociological studies is an integrated theoretical framework of relevance to sociologists of food and nutrition. One of Bourdieu's primary concerns is to overcome dichotomies in social theory, such as micro/macro, material/symbolic, empirical/theoretical, objective/subjective, public/private, structure/agency. His other sociological concerns are to understand the practical logic of everyday life, to understand relations of power, and to develop a reflexive sociology. The primary objective of this paper is to introduce Bourdieu's key theoretical concepts habitus, practice, field, and different forms of capital, such as cultural, economic, social, and symbolic. While gender, class, ethnicity, culture, education, and the historical time period all shape an individual's habitus, practice_what one does in everyday life_is dynamic and fluid, like a jazz musician's improvisation on a theme. Practice is the result of the relationship between an individual's habitus, different forms of capital, and the field of action. I give an example of how Bourdieu's theoretical framework might be used to understand how single mothers on welfare feed their families in a small town, and suggest other areas in the sociology of food and nutrition to which it might usefully be applied.