Help me with this sociology essay (identity). Urgent!!

I'd suggest that you take a theory and then focus it through a specific aspect of identity, like gender or class, because if you try to do more you'll struggle.

So, take someone else's social theory, explain it, point out a problem as it relates to a specific aspect of identity and offer a solution or way to develop it in light of this problem. In this sense, you aren't trying to throw the entire theory out, you're trying to pick up a specific weakness of the theory in a specific area of identity and, by addressing that weakness, adding/developing the overall theory.

For example, you could take Pierre Bourdieu and his concepts of habitus, field and the various forms of capital as your overall theory of identity. You could explain Bourdieu's overall theory of identity formation (1-2 paras), then discuss it in relation to gender (1-2 paras), critique it for not adequately addressing gender (1-2 paras), and add something to it (1-2). With a conclusion and introduction you'll have waaaaay more then you need.

You don't have to use Bourdieu. You could go use Gramsci and his theory of hegemony, or Elias and his civilization thesis, Judith Butler and performitivity, or if you're crazy and you want to piss off your lecturer you could use Deleuze and Guattari. What ever you choose, bring your sociological dictionary.

I'm not entirely sure what they mean by illustrate it. It could mean they want you to reference studies done using that theory, in which case go on jstor and hunt some articles down. Or it could mean they just want you to reference your essay properly, in which case as long as your using your theorists work you'll be fine. I'd do both, but make sure the studies are consistent with your theory.

EDIT:

i want to know how i should start it. ie, what will i talk about in my introduction

I would not talk about anything other then what you are going to do in your essay, i.e, a variation on "This essay will critically develop a concept of social identity through the work of Pierre Bourdieu and gender. It will begin by outlining Bourdieu's concepts of habitus, field and capital. It will then critically analyse his conceptualization of social identity as it relates to gender. Having done this, it will suggest that Bourdieu's concept of social identity can be developed by adding X to his theory as it relates to gender and will then conclude with a summary."

In your introduction you should say what you're going to do, in the order you're going to do it, and then do it in that order. Once you've finished your essay and gotten the hang of the structure, you could go back and add a paragraph before that giving context.

Quinzy wrote: »

Geerz is always a good starting point. And Levi Strauss is always applicable to, well, everything, really.

Foucault seems to have written on more or less every topic too.

I'm doing the same essay and if the OP is also in Anthropology the Geertz suggestion won't go down too well after the last set of essays.:D