Theories of the South: Limits and perspectives of an emergent movement in social sciences

Abstract

The article critically reviews the recent publications in the field of social sciences regarding the themes of ‘Southern theories’, ‘theories from the South’ and ‘epistemologies of the South’ seeking to understand the limits and perspectives of this current wave of critique to the social sciences establishment. Analyzing the works of Boaventura Santos, Raewyn Connell and Jean and John Comaroff the article defines the use of the term ‘South’ as a circumstantial project under which different notions of theory are in a dispute for legitimacy. Such disputes are bringing to the center of the sociological debate the very notion of ‘theory’ and its production in a geopolitical context where Southern social scientists are actively participating in the international debates.

Seeing from the South: Discourse, gender and sexuality from southern perspectives

“…It goes beyond the scope of this introduction to offer an exegesis of the different approaches to what we call southern perspectives (see, however, Rosa for a useful critical intervention). As a starting point, however, one could usefully distinguish between what may be termed ‘inward looking’ and ‘outward looking’ southern viewpoints, although as we shall argue a plurifocal way of seeing is needed.…”

Querying heteronormativity among transnational Pasifika teenagers in New Zealand: An Oceanic approach to language and masculinity

“…Connell () has emphasised the need for South‐South dialogue as an essential part of a critical project aiming to integrate knowledge systems from the periphery in order to resist a hegemonic relationship in which general theories are formed in the global North and the global South is mainly a locale to test those theories and gather data. It is germane to consider how research on language and masculinity in New Zealand might appropriate the theories of the North whilst at the same time extending them in a symmetrical relationship (Rosa ). Specifically, as Jolly (: 6) suggests, I engage with Northern models of gender and sexuality while ‘bringing a particularly Oceanic inflection to the dialogue.’…”

A internacionalização dos periódicos brasileiros de educação: tensões de um processo em curso

“…In the realm of social science, several authors have already indicated the lack of power balance in the production of knowledge on the global level, with a great concentration in the core capitalist countries, metropolises or nations "of the North" -in a more political than geographical sense - (CONNELL, 2007;SANTOS;MENEZES, 2009;ROSA, 2014; to name only a few). We do not intend to go deeper in this complex debate, which leads to theories of dependency and to authors associated with post-colonial studies.…”