How To Talk Like A Sociologist

I love the ambiguities and pretentiousness to the language of Sociology. I really do. Half of the stuff I spit out during lectures don't really make sense, and the other half make sense, but it's all too common sensical, just dressed up for lectures. (Of course, I tend to not dress up my words enough, and use terms like, "whack," "what's up with," and "wicked awesome." Also have poor habit of addressing people in class, sometimes profs, as 'dude.') They say that the newer someone is to an area of expertise, the more they talk the talk, and that the people that are really established in their fields are the ones that know to tone it down and talk like normal people. I totally agree with that. But what's the fun of sounding like a normal person when you can be patronizing? Here are some handy terms, good for every day conversation, that could make you sound like an impressive sociologist. But remember, you can't use too many at once, or else people will see right through. The key is in moderation.

1. Discursive regime.
I forget what Foucault was talking about most of the time when I use this term. And have to look it up all the time. But it has such a nice ring to it. And you can pretty much accuse anything/anyone of controlling the discursive regime.

2. Hegemony. Especially moral or cultural hegemony.
Again, anyone can be accused of being hegemonic, which is fun, especially if the accused is a white male. Sociology hates them. But sociology is also full of them, especially since dead white guys created this field.

3. Anomie.
Good ol' Durkheim and his anomie. This term is awesome for critiquing modern society. Or critiquing anything that involves lots of people. Not to be confused with an anemone.

4. Grobalization/glocalization.
The term 'globalization' is entirely too common for sounding smart, and entirely overused in today's debates. Your best bets are in grobal and glocalization, the two ends of the spectrum of globalization. Homogeneity and heterogeneity often get tossed in there, too, but again, all too common terms. You don't want to use lingo that natural scientists can relate to, you want to talk down to them.

There are way more you can use, and it's always fun to throw in terms like modernization or neoliberalization and critique the heck out of them. And feel free to add your own. There are a lot of more specialized terms out there, depending on what you're talking about, and many terms that don't sound fancy, but are still fun, like 'backstage behavior,' 'broken window theory,' and 'second shift.' But those four are my favorites because they're so easy to slip into every day conversation without really committing to anything, and that, my friends, is what sociology is all about.

In other news: Weather in Edinburgh is absolutely psychotic.