Notes to Think about Working Class in Argentina —Political Identities, Strategies, and Common Sense

https://doi.org/10.25058/20112742.n30.04

Gonzalo Pérez Álvarez
Orcid ID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3324-6328
Conicet / Instituto de Investigaciones Históricas y Sociales / Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia, Argentina
gperezalvarez@gmail.com

Abstract:

In this paper, we will discuss how operative several concepts are when it comes to bring into question political-ideological processes developed by Argentinean working class. We will inquire into the uses given to such a category as “political identity,” which is a key operator in a number of recent studies, as well as the concepts of strategy and common sense, which are less used. In order to do that, we will examine three landmarks in Argentina history, including the current dynamics and conflict in December 2001. By tracking down a broad corpus of literature, we will articulate some proposals to think about those social dynamics. Each turning point in the history of working class was tied to changes in prevailing political identities. But this fact does not work to explain this change process, but as an effect of confrontation. Therefore, when studying the working class we should begin by analysing social clashes, strategies at issue, and the possibility to lead prevailing common sense to crack itself.

Keywords: working class, political identity, strategy, common sense.