Making a work of the self. An ethnographic comparison of the effects of neoliberalism in a spiritual movement and a Brussels business circle

Abstract

This article, written by four hands, examines the forms and roles of collectives in neoliberal societies, from a comparative analysis of two different ethnographic studies: one conducted by Bénédicte Fontaine in a Brussels business circle, the Club, and the other conducted by Justine Vleminckx in an international spiritual movement, the Rainbow Family. Based on our two distinct and different research fields, we propose to show the situated expressions of neoliberal ideology, and specifically of the contemporary injunction to be a self-entrepreneur, i.e. to be an active subject of one's own life and happiness. We will look at the particular speeches it generates and the consequences it has on individuals, their relationship to the world and their relationship to the collective.