The scriptural economy, the Forbes figuration and the racial order: Everyday life in South Africa 1850 – 1922

The scriptural economy, the Forbes figuration and the racial order: Everyday life in South Africa 1850 – 1922

Liz Stanley, University of Edinburgh, UK

Abstract: Social change and large-scale transformations are as important to everyday life sociology as to macro sociology approaches. South Africa has been a ‘hotspot’ of change with a number of such transitions occurring in a condensed time-period, in particular regarding ‘race’ matters. A large South African family collection, concerning the Forbes family, is used to explore how the processes of change regarding ‘race’ and the racial order can be analysed within an everyday sociology framework, focusing on the period 1850 to 1930. A range of sources throwing light on ‘the space of the day’, ‘the world and the word’ and a number of aspects of everyday experience are drawn on.

Keywords: racial order, social change, South Africa

Last updated: 20 December 2014


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