Hegemonic and polemic social representations in the context of rural identity [TC]

Abstract

The objective of this study is identifying the rural and the urban representations leading to an understanding of how members of the rural community see themselves in relation to the hegemonically urban social and symbolic structure. The data was collected through interviews with 200 members of a rural community, covering the following topics: reasons for exodus from/permanence in the territory, experience of prejudice, stereotypes attributed to rural group and in/out-group values. The results in terms of reasons for exodus from/permanence in the rural area revealed a predominance of life projects linked to the countryside. The classic stereotypes of hick, dumb, country bumpkins were identified as the social image linked to the rural dweller, elements that provoke strategic scenarios in conflict with the elaboration of defensive representations, where the in-group is associated to positive values and the city to negative values. The imaginary group is viewed as a force field where polemic representations are elaborated in answer to urban hegemony