0100494073

open access

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ピーター・L・バーガーの〈アメリカ〉 : 亡命者としての評価と葛藤

Berger’s View of “the United States”: Evaluation and Conflict He Had as an Exile

Japanese (日本語)

国際文化学研究 : 神戸大学大学院国際文化学研究科紀要

63

1*-38*

神戸大学大学院国際文化学研究科

2025-03

Peter L. Berger is known as one of the leading figures of American sociology in the 20th century. The purpose of this paper is to examine his view of the United States and to elucidate the criteria by which he evaluated American society. This is a key issue to clarify why Berger, who left behind theoretical writings of the 1960s commonly known by labels such as “phenomenological sociology” or “constructionism,” actively published papers on the United States from the 1970s onward from a conservative standpoint. To this end, this paper will first clarify Berger's personal historical experience as an exile. It will then use his two novels written in the 1960s as a clue to highlight his image of the United States and its vicissitude. Finally, based on this, we will examine his papers on the United States around 1970. Although Berger initially had an ardent admiration for the United States, especially before coming to the U.S., his enthusiasm gradually cooled as he experienced American society firsthand, and his trust in it began to waver. The reality of racial discrimination and the Vietnam War cast a dark shadow over his view of the United States. At the same time, however, they also made him reconsider the meaning of the United States. His religious belief was also closely involved in his contemplation of this issue. We can see his thought on this issue from his novels. Ultimately, Berger reaffirmed the significance of the United States, including its military power, based on his experience that the United States had accepted and saved him as an exile. This was his final decision on his attitude toward the United States, expressed in his 1970 paper. Thus, through the above discussion, the ambivalent and complicated relationship between Berger as an exile and the United States will become clear. It will not only be significant as a study of Berger, but will also be a contribution to the investigation into 20th century intellectuals in exile.

conservatism

紀要論文