Week 12 ~ The Family and Intimate Relationships

Personally, I consider my immediate family to consist of my sister, mother, father and step-mother. I consider my extended family to not only include cousins, aunts/uncles, and grandparents, but also close family friends who my sister and I grew up with. I consider these people family because the relationships that I have with them are based on long established friendships and family ties. These are people who I will continue to love and depend on, no matter what happens. All of my immediate family, as well as most of my extended family share, if not the same, then very similar moral and ethical beliefs and values that I do.

It is clear that the family unit has a definite impact on the greater society. The roles of the family that we discussed in class such as socialization of the next generation are a clear example of how this impact occurs. However, I do not believe that families are either inherently detrimental or beneficial. Instead, I agree more with the conflict theorists in that there are aspects of the family that can negatively effect society, as well as those that can have a positive effect. Furthermore, I would argue that because individual family units are so incredibly different, that it would be impossible to make a significant change in the impact of families on society by making a change in the family unit.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBdkq02CZ58

Week 11 ~ Stratification by Gender and Age

I chose to make a derogatory comment regarding a person's sexual orientation. I chose this because it is something I never do, and I was curious to know what the reactions would be like. I made the comment around two good friends, in the middle of the conversation regarding a mutual acquaintance. I anticipated shock, anger and indignation from my friends. I was correct in expecting surprise and shock, but they were not angry or indignant, which surprised me a lot. Instead they were very puzzled, and seemed to eventually come to the decision that it was both confusing and hilarious that I would say something like that. Apparently, it did not occur to them that I was serious. I think that their reactions speak less to greater social norms, and instead demonstrate the norms of the smaller social group that the three of us are members of. I found it particularly interesting that it never occurred to them to consider that I would say something like that and mean it, and instead they found it so abnormal a comment to hear from me that they found the whole situation to be humorous.

Week 10 ~ Racial and Ethnic Inequality

I have been working as a server at a restaurant in the area, and many of my coworkers are of different ethnic and racial backgrounds. About four months ago, my coworker Maria had a table that told the manager they didn't want to be served by 'an illegal' and that they wanted 'a nice white person' to serve them, instead of Maria, who is Latina. I was unlucky enough to be the 'nice white person' who was assigned the table. It was very hard for me to be polite to the table throughout the meal, but I knew that refusing to serve them or being mean to them would not really change anything. So, I served them with a fake smile and could not have been happier to see them leave. In retrospect, I'm glad that I didn't treat them with disgust, because nothing productive would have come of it. However, I do wish that I had refused to serve them. I hated every minute that I had to smile at these people who could not look past my friend's race and ethnicity and I would not do it again if given the chance.

Week 9 ~ Inequality in a Global World

I don't think that there is a clear answer to the question. I believe that every situation is different, and that as a HDC, drawing a line between what is 'acceptable' versus 'unacceptable' involvement in a LDC is preposterous. If any line is to be drawn, it should be done so by all parties, not just one or a select few.

Week 6 ~ Social Control

At Montgomery College, one could find millions of examples of both formal and informal social control in every day life. Informal Social control is evident in the interactions between students, professors, and employees of the college, where conformity and peer pressures play large roles. Similarly, media that is available on the campus (i.e. posters, video clips, and pamphlets) serve as informal social control. One can find formal social control in the rules and regulations that the college adheres to, such as the code of conduct for students, the smoking ban on campus, and a professor's syllabus.

Video of an interesting experiment on conformity: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRh5qy09nNw

Week 5 ~ Mass Media

I was on team two (the pro-mass media team), and according to my notes, team one made the following arguments

Question 2
1. Focuses on biased opinions- There is no such thing as total objectivity. Therefore, how could one expect it from the media?

2. Shows negative stereotypes- Can also demonstrate the inaccuracies of stereotypes

3. Increases materialism- Has materialism been defined as a bad thing? Materialism increases a country's economy and the global economy.

4. In some countries, the gatekeepers are the government- In such cases, people often find a way around it, like in Egypt.

5. Not everyone has access/interest- True, but if mass media is 'bad', wouldn't that be a positive thing for those who do not have access? Also, those who do have access often use it for productive or positive reasons, and to advocate for those who are disadvantaged. (Example: Egypt)

6. The dominant ideology suppresses the marginalized groups- While this is true, one must remember that there are sometimes TV channels, radio stations, online communities and so forth that serve as an outlet for the marginal groups. (Example: The Maori broadcasting agency "Te Māngai Pāho") Get more information here: http://www.tmp.govt.nz/index.html

Question 3
1. Focuses on extremes -Sometimes, extremes can be very helpful in ushering in social change. (Mass media coverage of Egyptian protests)

2. Often one-sided- This is very similar to question 2, argument 1, and I would apply the same rebuttal. However, in addition, the viewer chooses what sources they get their information from, which often exposes them to multiple sides of an issue.

3. Doesn't show the 'middle crowd'- I don't believe that is true. An example of this would be Modern Family, which depicts a family that is not considered 'typical' but has become a more common occurrence. Also, the TV show Community depicts a community college experience,  rather than the mainstream idea of attending a prestigious college/university.

Photo retrieved from http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/archives/2008/Feb/

Week 3 ~ Human Rights v. Cultural Relativism

                                         
  

In 2004, the French Government passed a bill banning obvious religious apparel in schools, such as large crosses, Jewish yarmulkes, and Muslim headscarves (Cosgrove-Mather, 2004). This can be seen as a violation of human rights, as it prevents the freedom of religion and its practices. In fact, according to the BBC, "The State Council - France's highest administrative body - warned that such a law might be unconstitutional and violate European human rights laws." ("The islamic veil," 2010).

However, when viewed through the lens of cultural relativism, the law can be seen as culturally acceptable because one French formal norm is the "separation of state and religion" which "is enshrined in law" ("The islamic veil," 2010).


Personally, I think that the norm in French culture to separate church and state is very understandable (in fact, US culture encourages such a separation). However, I do believe that the ban is still a violation of human rights. I don't think that the desire to have religion separate from the state outweighs the human right of freedom to practice religion, and that clothing that is a formal norm in a religion should be protected under such a freedom.


Find more information about the ban, and what Amnesty International thinks about it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yn-JBsH8rSU&feature=fvwrel



Works Cited

Cosgrove-Mather, B. (2004, March 3). France bans head scarves in school. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/02/02/world/main597565.shtml 

Niqab. (2008). [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/photos/23515821@N02/2244343793/

The islamic veil across europe. (2010, June 15). Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5414098.stm

Week 2 ~ A Reflection

The first two weeks of sociology class have been remarkably interesting, and I have really enjoyed them. Typically, learning the "basics" of such a broad field like sociology can be dry and sometimes very boring, but learning about the fundamental theories and classical theorists has been very engaging. Mostly, I believe, because basically everything we are learning can be applied to everyday situations. Furthermore, I think that by applying it, I am understanding the theories more. I am finding that a sociological imagination is something that can be utilized very often, and that by doing so, I become a more open-minded individual.

As an example, yesterday I was watching the footage that the BBC released of an 'uncontacted' tribe in Brazil (http://www.uncontactedtribes.org/brazilphotos). While I watched it, I used my sociological imagination to think about what it would be like to be a member of the tribe and see a plane, or what 'first contact' would be like, or more importantly, if I would want to make contact or to be left alone. I also thought about operational definitions, and wondered what 'uncontacted' was defined as. It could be argued that by seeing a plane, this tribe had had 'contact' with the outside world. By utilizing the skills and information I had learned in class, I was able to think more critically about what I was watching.

After the first two weeks of class, I am excited to learn more about sociology.