Читать книгу Sociology - Anthony Giddens - Страница 251

One of the main criticisms of Beck’s overall thesis is that there is not (yet) enough evidence to support his theory of the transition to a ‘risk society’, even though there is today more awareness of environmental risks (Hajer 1996). Similarly, the idea that older forms of class-based politics are losing out to a new politics of risk seems premature. In most countries, Green political parties have not broken through the conventional party system, and globally the issue of wealth creation and distribution still tends to dominate over environmental protection whenever these objectives clash. Finally, it has been argued that the thesis fails to take account of cultural variability in definitions of risk (Douglas 1994; Scott 2000). What is defined as ‘risk’ in some societies may not be so defined in others, in the same way that what is defined as pollution in wealthy industrial societies is often seen as a sign of healthy economic development in poorer developing countries.