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tional understanding of capital as being constituted predominantly or exclusively
by financial means, or economic capital.59 In addition, Bourdieu introduces the
concepts of social capital, cultural capital, and symbolic capital. Social capital
encompasses the resources gained by individuals as a result of their participa-
tion in various social groups and networks.60 Cultural capital entails education
and other acquired skills and how they are put to use; because the individual
incorporates these skills, so to speak, they tend to seem as natural as charac-
ter traits.61 Symbolic capital refers to the reputation and respect gained from
demonstrating one’s access to the three previously mentioned forms of capital.
Central to Bourdieu’s theory is the idea that all four capitals can be traded with
and transferred into one another in order to accumulate wealth and to advance
one’s social standing and reputation. His approach is therefore flexible, allowing
for the various forms of capital to be adapted to a wide variety of historical and
social situations.
Even though Bourdieu does not explicitly define the body as being a (major)
part of a specific form of capital,62 the importance and meaning of the body in
the creation and movement of capital cannot be denied, neither on a general
level nor as regards Old Norse literature in particular. It is reasonable to suggest
that physical integrity and able-bodiedness are crucial factors for success in saga
society. In this context, the body is best understood as a highly valuable form of
capital that must be preserved in order to thrive in a society in which reputation
and social stature are fundamentally dependent on physical prowess. The body
59 See Pierre Bourdieu, “Ökonomisches Kapital, kulturelles Kapital, soziales Kapital,” soziale
Ungleichheiten, ed. by Reinhard Kreckel, Soziale Welt, Sonderband 2 (Göttingen: O.
Schwartz, 1983), and Language and symbolic Power, ed. and introduced by John B.
Thompson, translated by Gino Raymond and Matthew Adamson (Oxford: Polity Press,
1983). My understanding of Bourdieu’s theory of capital is heavily influenced by the work
of Joseph Jurt.
60 Joseph Jurt, “Bourdieu,” Grundwissen Philosophie (Stuttgart: Philip Reclam jun, 2008), 77.
61 Jurt, “Bourdieu,” 73.
62 Catherine Hakim suggests erotic capital as a fifth capital in the context of modern society,
arguing that especially women have the possibility to make use of their physical appearance
in order to achieve their goals, both in relation to the job market and in private. While it is
certainly useful to emphasise the importance of the body as an asset, it is limiting to reduce
the body’s potential for capital to erotic components. Hakim’s discussion could benefit by
considering the body as a neutral entity with many potential functions in relation to differ-
ent forms of capital, rather than as a limited form of capital that mostly applies to Western
European heterosexual women (Catherine Hakim, “Erotic Capital,” European sociological
Review 26.5 (2010): 499–518).