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Societies are complex dynamic systems and, as a result, are self-organizing - without central authorities - due to their internal structure. Historically there has been considerable debate over whether a society is a single system, or composed of multiple systems, e.g., capitalism, White supremacy, and patriarchy; in either case there are questions about how those systems (and others) interact. This issue arises especially in discussions of structural intersectionality, and this, in turn, raises questions concerning the relationship between structures and systems.

In this talk, Haslanger argues for a single system analysis, but resist the suggestion, by Nancy Fraser and others, that "the" system is capitalism. To explain how social systems emerge, change, interact, and collapse, we should attend to different (micro, meso, and macro) levels of analysis. Macro-level social systems, e.g., the contemporary global order, are composed of co-integrated sub-systems, such as political and economic systems, but also transportation systems, health care systems, and education systems. Haqslanger argues that these meso-level systems are driven by capitalist, White supremacist, and patriarchal dynamics. So rather than thinking of capitalism or patriarchy as “systems,” Haslanger argues that we should see them as forces (or “logics”) at work in the wide range of material meso-level sub-systems.

A systems approach, however, is often criticized for losing track of human agency and autonomy. Following the work of Giddens, Sewell, and others, Haslanger argues that the structure of a social system is constituted by social practices - socially learned patterns of interaction - that enable us to coordinate and communicate. Such practices rely on a set of tools - a "cultural techné," including the dynamic "logics" - for collectively interpreting and responding to the material conditions. The structure of a system shapes and constrains agency, but the possibility of individual improvisation, material intervention, and political organizing can - at least locally - influence how the system develops. The micro-level of human agency has an impact on the meso-level practices that constitute health care, transportation, and political systems. And collective efforts to change our meso-level practices is a key strategy in the struggle for social justice.

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