G H Mead in Detail for UGC NET Sociology Notes and Study Material

George Herbert Mead is one of the crucial contributors to pragmatism and symbolic interactionism, and he bestrides hermeneutics with interpretative traditions. His work underlines how self and society are constructed through social interactions and symbolic communication. The ideas of Mead on the development of self and social behavior present a framework in which meaning is negotiated and interpreted in social contexts. Individual experiences are related to the greater structures in society and fertilize interpretation studies by their linkage.

• G H Mead Hermeneutic and Interpretative Traditions

G H Mead Hermeneutic and Interpretative Traditions

George Herbert Mead, a prominent American philosopher and sociologist, is best known for his contributions to the field of symbolic interactionism. His work emphasizes the role of social processes and communication in the development of self and society. Mead’s ideas intersect with hermeneutic and interpretative traditions in several significant ways.

Mead's Symbolic Interactionism

George Herbert Mead was an American foundational philosopher and sociologist who worked on laying the groundwork for the theory of symbolic interactionism in 1863–1931. His ideas focus on how individuals create and make sense of social reality through interaction and communication. At the heart of the theory is the idea that the self is a product of social interaction; thus, it is through the exchange of symbols and meanings that people begin to build their sense of identity and roles within society.

• Social Self: Mead's theory focuses on the concept of self. He argues that self emerges from social interactions and develops through socialization. It is then that the interpretative element enters: meaning and interpretation one attaches to his or her social experiences and interactions.
• Language Role: Mead holds that language is the principal or central tool of social interaction. It is through communication that meanings are shared and a self is developed. It echoes hermeneutic traditions underscoring the act of understanding what the texts and actions mean in their social milieu.
• The Generalized Other: Mead's "generalized other" refers to the internalization of society's norms and expectations within individuals. This ultimately supposes that people interpret and make sense of their own behavior in the light of societal expectations—a staple feature in interpretative traditions that focus on how people make sense of their social world.

Hermeneutic and Interpretative Traditions

It is interpretive traditions within sociology, most powerfully influenced by Max Weber and Alfred Schutz, that focus on the subjective dimensions of social life. These traditions intend to understand social actions through examination of meanings and intentions attached to behavior by participants. Attention turns, hence, to a better understanding of the ways in which people attempt to make sense of their social world from their own standpoint.

• Hermeneutics: This tradition, influenced by philosophers like Hans-Georg Gadamer and Wilhelm Dilthey, looks at the interpretation of texts and understanding of human experience in its proper historical and cultural perspective. Hermeneutics stresses how meaning is constructed as a result of dialogue and history, thus drawing lines to Mead's theory about communication and social interaction in the development of self and meaning.

Fig: Hermeneutics Circle

• Interpretative Sociology: Interpretative sociology takes its impetus from Max Weber and the interpretation it received from later scholars like Alfred Schutz, focusing on understanding social action through interpretation of the meanings which people attach to their actions. This perspective resonates with Mead's view that social interactions are laden with symbolic meanings and that individuals interpret their social environment through these meanings.

Conclusion

George Herbert Mead's contribution to the hermeneutics and interpretative traditions lies in the dialectical movement between individual selfhood and societal influence. His attention to symbolic interactionism and elaboration of self from social interactions gives further insight into how meanings have been constructed and communicated. His work keeps on influencing contemporary interpretations of social behavior and communication.

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