Pre-modern epistemes inspiring a new Global Sociology of Education Imagination

Abstract

The ‘problems’ and ‘solutions’ of modern education are overwhelmingly produced and tailored by the modern episteme, institutions, truths, and powers of the Global North. To find new ways of thinking and doing sociology, this paper will explore the outlines of a new Global Sociology of Education Imagination (GSEI) inspired by pre-modern epistemes selected precisely because of their distance from modern European standpoints: the ancient lost matriarchal societies and commons-based societies organised around shared goods in pre-modern Europe. Using Foucault’s archaeological methodology, this paper finds inspiration in these epistemes to outline a new GSEI capable of questioning certain tenets of the modern sociological episteme regarding science, knowledge, truth and its order, roles, voices, commitments, and ‘places’. It concludes with an invitation to experiment with a new GSEI inspired by these pre-modern epistemes, as a tool to openly challenge modern (education) domination and make it intolerable.

ABSTRACT (Spanish)

Los “problemas” y las “soluciones” de la educación moderna son producidos y adaptados de forma abrumadora por la episteme, las instituciones, las verdades y los poderes del Norte Global. Para encontrar nuevas formas de pensar y practicar la sociología, este artículo explorará los contornos de una nueva Imaginación Sociológica Global en Educación (GSEI) inspirada en perspectivas y epistemes premodernas seleccionadas precisamente por su distancia con las modernas europeas: las antiguas sociedades matriarcales perdidas, y las sociedades de los comunes organizadas en torno a los bienes compartidos en la Europa premoderna. Utilizando la metodología arqueológica de Foucault, busco inspiración en esas epistemes para una nueva GSEI capaz de cuestionar algunos principios de la episteme sociológica moderna sobre la ciencia, el conocimiento, la verdad y su orden, los roles, las voces y los compromisos. La conclusión es una invitación a experimentar una nueva GSEI inspirada en las epistemes premodernas, como herramienta clave para afrontar y cuestionar abiertamente las dominaciones (educativas) modernas y hacerlas intolerables.

Keywords:

• Sociological imagination
• archaeology
• episteme
• education

Acknowledgments

I would like to deeply thank Prof. Carol Vincent and Prof. Stephen Ball both from the Institute of Education – University College London for their inestimable help and kindness. Also, to Paul Marshall (UVIC-UCC) for his support.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1 www.matriarcados.com

2 “Who is society? There is no such thing! There are individual men and women and there are families, and no government can do anything except through people and people look to themselves first”. M. Thatcher, 1987.