Week 2

This week in class we watched the movie "A Brox Tale". This movie alone shows the different topics we learned about in class; the first being ingroups and outgroups. The main character, Calogero, is apart of many groups in his life. Calogero serves as a student and son-like figure to the men of his neighborhood. He is shaped by them and their ethics. He is a son to his father and mother. Calogero is also a student, and friend. His father and his mentor, Sonny, clash often, showing conflict between groups. Calogero's master status is the "gang" he is a member of. His life is shaped by these men and especially Sonny. No matter where Calogero goes, he sees himself as a member of this crew. He thinks about Sonny's opinion before even considering his father's. Because of this, Calogero's family is a secondary group to his mentor. This is opposite of my own life, as my family always comes first. My friends, boyfriend, and mentors will always come in second to them. No matter where I go, I see myself as a sister and daughter first, and a girlfriend and friend second. 

This movie is also a fine example of stereotypes and catagories. Calogero and his friends are sterotyped as the "Italians" by their African American neighbors. Likewise, the African American neighbors are stereotyped as less than the Italians. These groups do not like to mix, shown in a scene where the two groups clash and end up in a fight about race. Although I have never experienced a fight solely due to race, I have experienced stereotypes. Just this past weekend, I flew to Tennessee with my dad. I specially remember hearing someone say that they stereotyped Chicagoans as rude and lacked that certain "southern hospitality" that Nashville seemed to have. Another person commenting on my choices of college mentioned that the further South one gets the more genuinely nice the people are. While the general population of Nashville was caring, I can assume that not everyone is having a good day. These comments about the south were stereotypes about the population as a whole. Though these people are from the same region, they cannot be grouped together. Ones personality changes with their mood, therefore Southerners cannot all be viewed as genuine people- I'm sure someone out there is having a bad day!

Overall, this class has taught me a lot not only about myself, but about society in general. I am now wary of stereotypes around me and how they are affecting my perspective on things. 

Week 1

Growing up, I never really thought that one person could change the world. The idea that one thing someone does in Japan can change a person in New York and what they do can change a person in Paris just seemed impossible to me; then I started taking sociology.

This week we learned about sociological imagination. This idea was created by C. Wright Mills. It basically means that your history shapes who you are and who you will be. When we say history, we mean where you're from and when you are living. For example, I was born in 1998 so I never knew a world without computers or cell phones. I barely remember 9/11 and I never witnessed any wars besides the War on Terrorism. I vaguely remember life without an African-American president, so the idea doesn't seem so different to me. I'll graduate high school in 2016, college in 2020, and law school by 2023 (hopefully!). Knowing how much the world has changed in 5 years, I can't imagine what it will be like when I walk out of my law school graduation. All of these things are when I live, but where one lives shapes them hugely. I live in a suburb of Chicago. The city is 30 minutes from me on a good day, an hour on a bad one. I'm not used to living far away from a big city, as I have had it in my backyard for 16 years. I've traveled much of the world and experienced many cultures. The way I am growing up is different from a teenager growing up in a small town in Kansas. He/she probably has not traveled out of the country and their big city is Kansas City. The outlook they have on life I far different from the one I have.

After learning about sociological imagination, we learned about sociological mindfulness. This is the idea that one's society shapes them and they shape their society. I was never aware that I make an impact on society, but I am learning differently in this class. Now, every little thing I do I wonder how it will effect someone. If I litter, how will that effect future generations? If I decide to sit with someone new today at lunch, how will that effect them and their day? These questions and the general thought that one influences their society is 1/2 of the backbone of sociological mindfulness. The other 1/2 is that society shapes anyone living in it. For example, it had been drilled into my head that I will go to college and I will be successful in life. Society brings on this pressure to me, and I let it run its course. I am being mindful that society shaped me into believing that I must do all of these things in my lifetime. But, I am a member of society and I influence it right back. I have the power to change its way of thinking and maybe helping the future generation decide what they want to be in life and not have society choose it for them.

Finally, this week in class we watched "Freaks and Geeks". This show touched on the different social cliques there are in high school. With this, we learned about Functionalism. This was created by Emile Durkheim. He studied suicide rates and how there is a pattern within them. He found that there are large scale patterns to society. Next, we learned about Karl Marx's Conflict Theory. He theorized that different groups had different levels of power in society. An example of this in real life is that a government official has more power than I do. Finally, we learned about Max Weber and Symbolic Interaction. He studied religion and it's affect on economics. He concluded that there is small group interaction in today's society and we use symbols as special meanings. These concepts connected to Freaks and Geeks in multiple scenes. It showed conflict when the Freshman were bullied by an upperclassman. The bullies showed more power than the Freshman, causing them to attack them. Symbolic Interaction was showed when the "cool kids" sat on the bleachers and the rebels sat underneath them. The rebels also had the smoking roof as their spot. These all showed that different places can symbolize power in a certain society.

Well, that's all we learned about this week. Overall, I am becoming more aware of myself and others and how we affect the people around us with our actions. I am learning that a simple smile can change someone's day, which can change another persons day, and so on. And to me, that's pretty freaking cool.