Frye Margaret
University of California, Berkeley.
AJS. 2012 May 1;117(6):1565-1624. doi: 10.1086/664542.
Imagined futures, once a vital topic of theoretical inquiry within the sociology of culture, have been sidelined in recent decades. Rational choice models cannot explain the seemingly irrational optimism of youth aspirations, pointing to the need to explore other alternatives. This article incorporates insights from pragmatist theory and cognitive sociology to examine the relationship between imagined futures and present actions and experiences in rural Malawi, where future optimism appears particularly unfounded. Drawing from in-depth interviews and archival sources documenting ideological campaigns promoting schooling, the author shows that four elements are understood to jointly produce educational success: ambitious career goals, sustained effort, unflagging optimism, and resistance to temptation. Aspirations should be interpreted not as rational calculations, but instead as assertions of a virtuous identity, claims to be "one who aspires."
想象中的未来，曾经是文化社会学理论探究的一个重要话题，在近几十年里却被边缘化了。理性选择模型无法解释年轻人抱负中看似不合理的乐观情绪，这表明有必要探索其他选择。本文结合实用主义理论和认知社会学的见解，来审视马拉维农村地区想象中的未来与当下行为及经历之间的关系，在那里，未来的乐观情绪似乎尤其缺乏依据。作者通过深入访谈和记录促进教育的意识形态运动的档案资料表明，人们认为有四个要素共同促成教育成功：远大的职业目标、持续的努力、不懈的乐观精神以及对诱惑的抵制。抱负不应被解释为理性计算，而应被视为一种美德身份的主张，即宣称自己是“有抱负的人”。
