CRITICAL SOCIOLOGY IN THE PERIPHERIES (Socjologia krytyczna na peryferiach)

The paper proposes a redefinition of the rules of critical sociology in the context of peripheral countries, among them Poland and also Russia and other countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The proposed theoretical model refers to the notions of cultural and political capital as understood and defined by Pierre Bourdieu. The cultural capital in particular is believed to be the key and most stable dimension of inequality in Poland, as well as an important source of inequalities in other dimensions. It has been suggested that critical sociology of the Polish periphery should focus its interests precisely on this issue. At the same time the position that overlooks the cultural dimension of inequalities and treats interests defined in terms of culture as 'irrational' is considered to be a manifestation of 'Orientalism' and lack of respect for the important social resources of the population.