Criticizing ‘the canon:’ A challenge for cultural sociology

What makes a body of work ‘canonical’? In his writings over the years Jeffrey C. Alexander offers some phenomenologically convincing answers, each suggesting that the power of canonical texts is simultaneously context-immanent and context-transcending. However, a critical theory of ‘the canon’ cannot confine itself to phenomenological description. A critical theory is necessary due to the social constitution of the meanings of canonical texts. This gives rise to an endemic risk of ideological biases and the danger that canonization will reproduce and reinforce dominant perceptions of intellectual value, excluding or marginalizing authors and works who do not fit well with these perceptions. Accordingly, theories cognizant of this risk must explain the context-transcending component of the normativity of canonical works in a non-reductive way. This is a challenge for critical sociology.