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4217 - Canonization

Tue, August 11, 10:30am to 12:10pm PDT (10:30am to 12:10pm PDT), Hilton San Francisco Union Square, Floor: Ballroom Level, Continental 3

Session Submission Type: Invited Session

Description

In a moment in which the sociological theory canon is subject to challenges on various fronts, this panel attempts to move toward a systematic understanding of the social processes by which some texts and authors are elevated to – and others excluded from – canonical status. Questions to be considered include: What purposes does the canon serve in the discipline of sociology? What are the principle mechanisms of inclusion in and exclusion from the canon? What gives rise to challenges to the canon at particular historical moments and how do these challenges generally unfold? When are challenges to the canon likely to result in incremental adjustments versus a wholesale restructuring of a field of knowledge? Is exclusion inherent to the process of canonization or is it possible to construct a canon that is permeable and fluid? Considering the past, present, and future of sociological knowledge, how does an analysis of canonization help us to understand who we are – and who we might become – as a scholarly community?

Description

In a moment in which the sociological theory canon is subject to challenges on various fronts, this panel attempts to move toward a systematic understanding of the social processes by which some texts and authors are elevated to – and others excluded from – canonical status. Questions to be considered include: What purposes does the canon serve in the discipline of sociology? What are the principal mechanisms of inclusion in and exclusion from the canon? What gives rise to challenges to the canon at particular historical moments and how do these challenges generally unfold? When are challenges to the canon likely to result in incremental adjustments versus a wholesale restructuring of a field of knowledge? Is exclusion inherent to the process of canonization or is it possible to construct a canon that is permeable and fluid? Considering the past, present, and future of sociological knowledge, how does an analysis of canonization help us to understand who we are – and who we might become – as a scholarly community?

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