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The Creation and Establishment of Moral Vocabularies

Why Moralizing and Moral Vocabularies Matter

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Handbook of the Sociology of Morality

Part of the book series: Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research ((HSSR))

Abstract

The moral vocabularies approach offers a way of examining and organizing the essential moral claims disseminated by a group of claimsmakers. Moral claims and understandings are organized internally (in claims and the actions of moral entrepreneurs) and externally (how internal moral vocabularies intersect with the larger societal dynamics). This framework seeks to strike a theoretical balance between recognizing the essential agency of morally-relevant activity and the structured nature of moral systems. The moral vocabularies approach is compared to the memetic account of culture and to Lakoff’s metaphor-based framework and is shown to possess more explanatory potential due to its greater analytical flexibility. The study of moral vocabularies is compatible with both micro-level or macro-level empirical research and has particular relevance for understanding how discourses become attached to specific social controversies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, State University of New York College at Oneonta, 14E Schumacher Hall, Oneonta, New York, USA

    Brian M. Lowe

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  1. Brian M. Lowe
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Correspondence to Brian M. Lowe .

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  1. Dept. Sociology, University of Iowa, Seashore Hall W. 124, Iowa City, 52242-1401, Iowa, USA

    Steven Hitlin

  2. , Department of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley, Barrows Hall #1980 410, Berkeley, 94720, USA

    Stephen Vaisey

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Lowe, B.M. (2010). The Creation and Establishment of Moral Vocabularies. In: Hitlin, S., Vaisey, S. (eds) Handbook of the Sociology of Morality. Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6896-8_16

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