Agency and Sociality

Abstract

This thesis is, above all, about sociality. Sociality refers to the condition or quality of being social. Sociality refers to the many ways in which we live together. It is about living under the same roof, sharing a bedroom, or being together in a stadium, cheering with other fans for your team. This thesis is about life in society, but especially about the relation between agency and sociality. It is about playing football, going to cafés, and meeting online. I will analyze different fragments of sociality. The social world is rich. There are so many different ways of acting with others, being with others, and connecting with others. This thesis is composed of four chapters. The first is about, perhaps, the strongest forms of cooperation. It tackles sociality at a highly collective level. The second is about a very light form of sociality. It deals with just being near others without even engaging in joint activities. The third chapter is about how none of the main theories in social ontology can explain all types of collective action. It is only in the fourth chapter that I attempt to provide a more positive and ambitious theory regarding sociality. That last chapter is about how we need to take the environment seriously in order to understand agency and, therefore, sociality.

Date of Award	1 Aug 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	John O'Neill (Supervisor) & Thomas Smith (Supervisor)