Ability Theories of Practice and Turner’s Criticism of Bourdieu

TY - JOUR

T1 - Ability Theories of Practice and Turner’s Criticism of Bourdieu

AU - Zahle, Julie

PY - 2017/12/1

Y1 - 2017/12/1

N2 - The aim of this paper is to provide a characterization of ability theories of practice and, in this process, to defend Pierre Bourdieu’s ability theory against Stephen Turner’s objections. In part I, I outline ability theorists’ conception of practices together with their objections to claims about rule following and rule explanations. In part II, I turn to the question of what ability theorists take to be the alternative to rule following and rule explanations. Ability theorists have offered, and been ascribed, somewhat different answers to this question, just as their replies, or positive accounts, have been heavily criticized by Turner. Due to this state of the debate, I focus on the positive account advanced by a single—and highly famous—ability theorist of practice, Pierre Bourdieu. Moreover, I show that despite Turner’s claims to the contrary, his arguments do not refute Bourdieu’s positive account.

AB - The aim of this paper is to provide a characterization of ability theories of practice and, in this process, to defend Pierre Bourdieu’s ability theory against Stephen Turner’s objections. In part I, I outline ability theorists’ conception of practices together with their objections to claims about rule following and rule explanations. In part II, I turn to the question of what ability theorists take to be the alternative to rule following and rule explanations. Ability theorists have offered, and been ascribed, somewhat different answers to this question, just as their replies, or positive accounts, have been heavily criticized by Turner. Due to this state of the debate, I focus on the positive account advanced by a single—and highly famous—ability theorist of practice, Pierre Bourdieu. Moreover, I show that despite Turner’s claims to the contrary, his arguments do not refute Bourdieu’s positive account.

KW - Faculty of Humanities

KW - Abilities

KW - Bourdieu

KW - Rules

KW - Tacit knowledge

KW - Theories of practice

KW - Turner

UR - http://rdcu.be/nh8M

U2 - 10.1007/s10838-016-9355-7

DO - 10.1007/s10838-016-9355-7

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0925-4560

VL - 48

SP - 553

EP - 567

JO - Journal for General Philosophy of Science

JF - Journal for General Philosophy of Science

IS - 4

ER -