Ricerc@Sapienza

This article intends to juxtapose (in an unprecedented way) the Robert K. Merton sociological approach to that of Pierre Bourdieu, within a systematics framework, and with the aim of overcoming canonic oppositions. The analysis is not proposed as schematically comprehensive: a detailed reconsideration of each consonance between Merton and Bourdieu will not be provided, nor are all the inevitable differences which run between the two authors examined. The specific interest is restricted to the action theory: the attempt is to envisage a basic pattern (a certain idea), shared by Merton and Bourdieu, that can cut across the established positions, with a specific heuristic value (the hypothesis).