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The Historical Logic of Logics of History

Language and Labor in William H. Sewell Jr.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 January 2016

Dylan Riley
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Abstract

How does the logic of language combine with the logic of labor to explain historical change? This article suggests that William H. Sewell Jr.'s work can be divided into three periods, each characterized by a different answer to this question. In the work of the early cultural turn, labor and language codetermine historical change; in that of the high cultural turn, the logic of language becomes dominant; and in that of the postcultural turn, labor returns to a more central position. The article argues that these shifts result from tensions in Sewell's account of historical change and suggests a comparison with Jürgen Habermas's account of work and interaction.

Type
Special Section: Logics of History
Information
Social Science History , Volume 32 , Issue 4 , winter 2008 , pp. 555 - 565
Copyright
Copyright © Social Science History Association 2008 

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References

Bourdieu, Pierre (1988) Homo Academicus. London: Polity.Google Scholar
Habermas, Jürgen (1971) “Technology and science as ‘ideology,’” in Toward a Rational Society: Student Protest, Science, and Politics, trans. Shapiro, Jeremy. London: Heinemann: 81–122.Google Scholar
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Sewell, William H. Jr. (1974) “Social change and the rise of working-class politics in nineteenth-century Marseille.” Past and Present no. 65: 75–109.Google Scholar
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