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Our actions define who we are: pragmatic praxis and tactical tastes

ABSTRACT In this paper, we highlight the utility and implications of the sociological pragmatic theory of action, in particular for the study of social movements. Drawing on the classical theories of George Herbert Mead and John Dewey, we illustrate that there are moments in social life where we cannot strictly ascribe rational/strategic or identity/cultural logics to actors’ actions. During socially indeterminate periods, people are able to reflect upon how they want to see themselves, and act to help crystallize and reconstruct their identities to fit this image; at these moments, the means/end distinction dissolves. We utilize a comparative study of two cases to illustrate this point. Both the 1930s Farmers’ Holiday Association from the Midwestern US and contemporary DREAMers in the broader US illustrate that people can utilize action to help them re-create their self-understandings to fit with how they want to see themselves. This has implications not only for the study of social movements, but also in the study of social action in general.