This thesis presents an analysis of cadet training at the Royal War Academy between 1792 and 1866. The purposes of this study are to problematise the Academy's function and to investigate male social reproduction amongst the Swedish upper classes. Two different aspects of social reproduction are studied: the transmission of social position between generations; and the communication of ideals and lifestyle that were linked to the position that was reproduced. The former was studied with the help of Pierre Bourdieu's terminology, while the latter necessitated the use of theoretical perspectives on masculinity. This thesis demonstrates the changes in the preconditions for male social reproduction, and relates them to the transition from a late feudal to a capitalist society. At the end of the eighteenth century, the usual route to a military career was still through the family's personal contacts in the armed forces. In Bourdieu's terms, this was a very direct means of transferring symbolic capital, and one that also required social capital. With the emergence of the middle class, the Academy's recruitment patterns altered. This process coincided with the emergence of a Swedish education system, and cadet training gradually adapted to fit with other elements in the school system. The ability to transfer symbolic capital directly to the next generation crumbled in the face of a system where education was necessary for the reproduction of a social position. Unlike the shifting shape of social reproduction, masculine upbringing was central at the Academy throughout the whole period. The cadets entered as boys and left as men. In this process, relationships within the cadet corps were of crucial importance. The new cadets first had to subordinate themselves to their elders, and then in turn subordinate others. It was this social order that ensured the cadets learnt a harsh lesson in leadership.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-6145 |
| Date | January 2005 |
| Creators | Larsson, Esbjörn |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Historiska institutionen, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för utbildning, kultur och medier, Uppsala : Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Doctoral thesis, monograph, info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | Studia historica Upsaliensia, 0081-6531 ; 220 |
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