Phillipe Bourgois's In Search Of Respect

Phillipe Bourgois’s In Search of Respect is an ethnographic account of people living in El Barrio-East Harlem-New York. Specifically, the book focuses on specific inhabitants within the community. In addition, the book explores many themes ranging from the experience of poverty, violence, political economy, substances abuse, ethnic segregation, marginalisation and inner-city street culture (Bourgois, 2003: 1). Furthermore, the book studies modes of interaction, values and ideologies that have emerged in opposition to exclusion from mainstream society by the people of El Barrio (Bourgois, 2003: 8). Namely, according to Bourgois (2003: 8), societal exclusion has forced individuals to seek alternative forums in order to obtain autonomous personal

Firstly, structural forces can be thought of as external factors that have the ability to constrain individuals. Similarly, it can act as a sustained force that is enduring and in some respects beyond individual control. For example, structural forces could include colonial and migration history, economic restructuring, deeply ingrained prejudice, generational inequality and the rules and arrangement (both formal and informal), which govern them. For Bourgois (2003: 12), one of the objectives of his book was to emphasize the interface between structural oppression and individual action. Thus, he recognized the role of structural forces and the restrictions that it can impose in the lives of individuals. In contrast, local cultural dynamics generally refer to cultural changes that happen in the locality (neighbourhood) over time, such as different groups of people moving in and out. Additionally, for Bourgois (2003: 48-49), local cultural dynamics can be closely linked to structural changes, such as colonial history and economic crisis, which has ultimately lead to upheaval at the individual human to human level. Therefore, another key objective of the book was to examine how individuals, like Primo and Caesar, deal with the forces that oppress them (Bourgois, 2003: 55). Consequently, these forces will be delved in greater detail as this paper