Homework answers / question archive / Discuss the COVID-19 pandemic with reference to the sociological theories we have covered : poststructuralism & postmodernism (Foucault and Beaudrillard), contemporary theoretical synthesis (Bourdieu and Habermas), global society (Appadurai, Wallerstein, Ritzer, Said), and environmental sociology (Pimentel et al, Myers, and Foster)

Discuss the COVID-19 pandemic with reference to the sociological theories we have covered : poststructuralism & postmodernism (Foucault and Beaudrillard), contemporary theoretical synthesis (Bourdieu and Habermas), global society (Appadurai, Wallerstein, Ritzer, Said), and environmental sociology (Pimentel et al, Myers, and Foster)

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Discuss the COVID-19 pandemic with reference to the sociological theories we have covered : poststructuralism & postmodernism (Foucault and Beaudrillard), contemporary theoretical synthesis (Bourdieu and Habermas), global society (Appadurai, Wallerstein, Ritzer, Said), and environmental sociology (Pimentel et al, Myers, and Foster). Read Everything On This Page Before You Begin.

Some questions to serve as prompts for your analysis:

How would Foucault analyze the shelter-in-place and lockdown rules with respect to his analysis of discipline and punishment?

What would Beaudrillard say we are dealing with in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic: simulacra or reality?

What fields are in play as sites of struggle in dealing with COVID-19, analyzed from Bourdieu’s perspective?

What forms of interference are preventing us from having an open debate and discussion of how to deal with the pandemic, according to Habermas?

Which of Appardurai’s ‘scapes’ are involved in the pandemic, and how?

Does the spread of COVID-19 abide by Wallerstein’s World Systems Theory in terms of how it is affecting core nation states versus peripheral states?

What would Ritzer say about the pandemic with reference to his concepts of ‘Grobalization’ and ‘Glocalization’?

How is orientalism being expressed with respect to the pandemic, according to Said?

What factors discussed by Pimentel do you think have played a part in the spread of the pandemic?

How does the pandemic factor into Foster’s analysis of the scale of our ecological crisis?

Throughout, you need to demonstrate an understanding of the sociological theories presented in this class. This means substantive responses to the question prompts – single sentence answers will not serve in showing you have internalized an understanding of these theories.