Pierre Bourdieu

Known for

Habitus, cultural and social capital, Distinction

Thought

Bourdieu argued that social class is reproduced across generations not just through money but through "cultural capital" — the tastes, manners, knowledge and credentials that the privileged acquire almost invisibly from upbringing and education, and which schools then reward as if they reflected pure merit. He called the deeply ingrained, often unconscious dispositions that shape how people act and judge "habitus".

Biography

French sociologist and public intellectual, one of the most widely cited social scientists of the late 20th century, who drew on both anthropology and philosophy.

Major works

• Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste