Power and Oppression from the Perspective of the Sociology of Engagements: A Comparison with Bourdieu's and Dewey's Critical Approaches to Practical Activities

This paper draws a parallel between the classical works of John Dewey and Pierre Bourdieu with regard to their critical analyses of power which, in both cases, are grounded in the examination of practical activities. The comparison includes a third approach developed by the author, the sociology of engagements, which crossed the paths of the previous two and specifies the points of comparison. 1 This latter approach deals with capacities, power and oppression through analysing kinds of practical engagement with the world that ensure such capacities, owing to mutually supporting dispositions of human beings and their environment.