This thesis seeks to uncover some of the cultural practices central to youth activist subcultures across three urban centres in Canada: Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. I undertake this work within the context of rising moral and state claims about the apparent need for ‘good citizenship’ to be exercised by young people, alongside a late modern relationship between liberalism, neoliberalism, and Canada’s history of class- and race-based exclusions. The theoretical framework bridges cultural and political sociology with youth cultural theory. It also draws heavily upon the work of feminist philosophers of agency and the state. The main methodology is ethnographic, and was carried out within a phenomenological and hermeneutic framework. In total, 41 young people, ages 13-29, were involved in this research. Participants self-identified as being involved in activist work addressing issues such as globalization, war, poverty and/or colonialism. The findings of this study suggest that the effects of the historical and contemporary symbol of the ‘good citizen’ are experienced within youth activist subcultures through a variety of cultural means, including: expectations from self and schooling to be ‘responsible,’ with its associated burdens of guilt; policing practices that appear to rely on cultural ideas about the ‘good citizen’ and the ‘bad activist’; and representations of youth activism (e.g. within media) as replete with out-of-control young people being punished for their wrong-doings. Wider effects include the entrenched impacts of class- and race-based exclusions, which manifest within youth activist subcultures through stylistic regimes of ‘symbolic authorization’ that incorporate attire, beliefs, and practices. Although findings suggest that many young people come to activism via a predisposition created within an activist or Left-leaning family, this research also highlights the relational means by which people from outside of this familial habitus can come to activist practices. Taken together, findings suggest that youth activism must be understood as a cultural and social phenomenon, with requisite preconditions, influences, and effects; that such practices cannot be disassociated from wider social inequalities; and that such effects and influences demand scrutiny if we are to reconsider the role of activism and its part in expanding the political boundaries of the nation-state.

This thesis seeks to uncover some of the cultural practices central to youth activist subcultures across three urban centres in Canada: Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. I undertake this work within the context of rising moral and state claims about the apparent need for ‘good citizenship’ to be exercised by young people, alongside a late modern relationship between liberalism, neoliberalism, and Canada’s history of class- and race-based exclusions. The theoretical framework bridges cultural and political sociology with youth cultural theory. It also draws heavily upon the work of feminist philosophers of agency and the state. The main methodology is ethnographic, and was carried out within a phenomenological and hermeneutic framework. In total, 41 young people, ages 13-29, were involved in this research. Participants self-identified as being involved in activist work addressing issues such as globalization, war, poverty and/or colonialism. The findings of this study suggest that the effects of the historical and contemporary symbol of the ‘good citizen’ are experienced within youth activist subcultures through a variety of cultural means, including: expectations from self and schooling to be ‘responsible,’ with its associated burdens of guilt; policing practices that appear to rely on cultural ideas about the ‘good citizen’ and the ‘bad activist’; and representations of youth activism (e.g. within media) as replete with out-of-control young people being punished for their wrong-doings. Wider effects include the entrenched impacts of class- and race-based exclusions, which manifest within youth activist subcultures through stylistic regimes of ‘symbolic authorization’ that incorporate attire, beliefs, and practices. Although findings suggest that many young people come to activism via a predisposition created within an activist or Left-leaning family, this research also highlights the relational means by which people from outside of this familial habitus can come to activist practices. Taken together, findings suggest that youth activism must be understood as a cultural and social phenomenon, with requisite preconditions, influences, and effects; that such practices cannot be disassociated from wider social inequalities; and that such effects and influences demand scrutiny if we are to reconsider the role of activism and its part in expanding the political boundaries of the nation-state.

This thesis seeks to uncover some of the cultural practices central to youth activist subcultures across three urban centres in Canada: Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. I undertake this work within the context of rising moral and state claims about the apparent need for ‘good citizenship’ to be exercised by young people, alongside a late modern relationship between liberalism, neoliberalism, and Canada’s history of class- and race-based exclusions. The theoretical framework bridges cultural and political sociology with youth cultural theory. It also draws heavily upon the work of feminist philosophers of agency and the state. The main methodology is ethnographic, and was carried out within a phenomenological and hermeneutic framework. In total, 41 young people, ages 13-29, were involved in this research. Participants self-identified as being involved in activist work addressing issues such as globalization, war, poverty and/or colonialism. The findings of this study suggest that the effects of the historical and contemporary symbol of the ‘good citizen’ are experienced within youth activist subcultures through a variety of cultural means, including: expectations from self and schooling to be ‘responsible,’ with its associated burdens of guilt; policing practices that appear to rely on cultural ideas about the ‘good citizen’ and the ‘bad activist’; and representations of youth activism (e.g. within media) as replete with out-of-control young people being punished for their wrong-doings. Wider effects include the entrenched impacts of class- and race-based exclusions, which manifest within youth activist subcultures through stylistic regimes of ‘symbolic authorization’ that incorporate attire, beliefs, and practices. Although findings suggest that many young people come to activism via a predisposition created within an activist or Left-leaning family, this research also highlights the relational means by which people from outside of this familial habitus can come to activist practices. Taken together, findings suggest that youth activism must be understood as a cultural and social phenomenon, with requisite preconditions, influences, and effects; that such practices cannot be disassociated from wider social inequalities; and that such effects and influences demand scrutiny if we are to reconsider the role of activism and its part in expanding the political boundaries of the nation-state. / Education, Faculty of / Educational Studies (EDST), Department of / Graduate

Submitted by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-10T20:29:20Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DissVIC.pdf: 1038754 bytes, checksum: 431cc86875c8168538837d75b7421eb0 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-10T20:29:31Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissVIC.pdf: 1038754 bytes, checksum: 431cc86875c8168538837d75b7421eb0 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-10T20:29:39Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissVIC.pdf: 1038754 bytes, checksum: 431cc86875c8168538837d75b7421eb0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-10T20:29:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DissVIC.pdf: 1038754 bytes, checksum: 431cc86875c8168538837d75b7421eb0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-08 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / La corrida de calle es un fenómeno que se ha destacado en los contextos urbanos brasileros, consolidándose, inclusive, como el segundo deporta más practicado en el año 2011. En este contexto, el/la corredor/a se ha transformado en una figura estratégica para reflexionar a respecto de las producciones y reproducciones corporales y subjetivas de la época actual, marcada por una competitividad e el paradigma de la auto superación. A partir de lo expuesto, los objetivos que orientan la investigación consisten en a) analizar la producción de determinado tipo de subjetividad característico de la práctica de corrida para b) reflexionar sobre los diálogos con un tipo de racionalidad que caracteriza al sujeto neoliberal. Para responder a esos objetivos, desarrollamos una investigación etnográfica en un período de dieciocho meses en la ciudad de São Carlos, interior de São Paulo, en la cual buscamos acompañar dos grupos de corrida de hombres y mujeres, caracterizados por diversos niveles de compromiso con la práctica. Con la finalidad de presentar los resultados de la investigación etnográfica y bibliográfica, el texto se presenta dividido en tres secciones. En la primera sección, trabajamos con la construcción de una estética corporal vinculada a la salud y a la cualidad de vida como caminos posibles de elección, así como la construcción de una matriz moral en torno a esas dimensiones. En la segunda, nos focalizamos en el análisis de los elementos que permiten una comparación con la figura teórica del hombre-empresa. Finalmente en la tercera sección, abordamos la producción y reproducción del dolor y el placer así como los diálogos con el tipo de subjetividad neoliberal / The street run is a phenomenon that has stood out in the Brazilian urban contexts, consolidating, inclusively, as the second sport more practiced in 2011. In this context, the runner has become a strategic reflective figure on the productions and reproductions of the body and the subjective of the current age, marked by a competitiveness and the paradigm of self-improvement. Based on the above, the objectives that guide this research consist of a) analyze the production of a certain type of subjectivity characteristic by the practice of street run to b) reflect on the dialogues with a type of rationality that characterizes the neoliberal subject. In order to respond these objectives, we conducted an ethnographic research over a period of eighteen months in the city of São Carlos, interior of São Paulo, in which we sought to accompany two groups of men and women, characterized by different levels of commitment to practice. In order to present the results of ethnographic and bibliographical research, the text is divided into three sections. In the first section, we work with the construction of a physical aesthetic linked to health and life´s quality as possible ways of choosing, as well as the construction of a moral pattern around those dimensions. In the second, we focus on the elements’ analysis that allow a comparison with the theoretical figure of the man-company. Finally, in the third section, we take in account the production and reproduction of pain and pleasure as well as the dialogues with the neoliberal subjectivity type. / A corrida de rua é um fenômeno que tem se destacado nos contextos urbanos brasileiros, sendo considerada, inclusive, como o segundo esporte mais praticado no ano de 2011. Nesses meandros, o/a corredor/a de rua tem se transformado em uma figura estratégica para refletir a respeito das produções e reproduções corporais e subjetivas da nossa época, marcada por a competitividade e o paradigma da auto superação. Posto isso, os objetivos que orientaram a investigação consistem em a) analisar a produção de determinado tipo de subjetividade característico da prática da corrida de rua, para, enfim, b) refletir sobre os diálogos com um tipo de racionalidade que caracteriza o sujeito neoliberal. Para responder esses objetivos, desenvolvemos uma pesquisa etnográfica em um período de dezoito meses na cidade de São Carlos, interior de São Paulo, na qual buscamos acompanhar dois grupos de corridas de rua, de homens e mulheres caraterizados por diversos níveis de compromissos com a prática. A fim de apresentar os dados resultantes da pesquisa etnográfica e da pesquisa bibliográfica, o texto segue dividido em três seções. Na primeira seção, trabalhamos com a construção de uma estética corporal vinculada à saúde e qualidade de vida com caminhos possíveis de eleição e a construção de uma matriz moral em torno destas dimensões. Já na segunda, focamos na análise dos elementos que permitem uma comparação com a figura teórica do homem-empresa. Enfim, na última seção, abordamos a produção e reprodução da dor e do prazer, assim como os diálogos com o tipo de subjetividade neoliberal.