Final Reflective Essay

Throughout my study of sociology a key point of interest for me has been the concept of the sociological imagination.  Not only is this concept instrumental to the study of society and it is an incredibly useful tool in understanding and co-existing with the people and cultures around us.  Throughout this short essay I will reflect upon how this concept works, how it can be applied to a real world situation and, finally, why I see so much value in this idea.

In the textbook Thinking about Sociology: a Critical Introduction author Karen L Anderson defines sociological imagination as “a Particular orientation required to understand and draw connections between individual experience and a larger social structures” A much simpler way to put it is that a sociological imagination is the ability to imagine an issue from the perspective of another and to see the greater issues (such as race and social inequality) at play in a given situation or conflict.  This is massively important to the study of sociology because if allows us to have multiple perspectives which help us to understand complex social issues.  It is be truly amazing how much can be missed by keeping to just one perspective.  A sociological imagination helps to avoid this.

I was able to better understand the usefulness of a sociological imagination by putting it into action and using it for myself.  When we started on the group project in Intro to sociology my group was assigned the issue of driving rights for elderly drivers.  This was an issue I hadn’t thought about much if at all and as such I had a narrow perspective on the matter.  Before applying my sociological imagination all I had to go on was my few personal experiences with elderly drivers and my preconceptions of the issue which were heavily influenced by negative stereotypes of the elderly.  With this in mind I thought to myself “Why should old people be allowed to drive if some of them are dangerous on the road.  Better not to risk it. ” Obviously this limited perspective was going to make the assignment rather difficult and so I had to use my sociological imagination to realise that much of my decision was based on unfair stereotypes.  I also thought about the negative effects that would be put on many elderly people.  This gave me whole new incite to the issue.

I find this concept to be massively important because it can help us to understand our societies, cultures and most importantly each other.  The sociological imagination has the power to prevent conflict and bring us together like nothing else.  As mentioned before so much about a situation can be missed by taking one narrow perspective and so much can be gained by taking into the account the greater concepts at play.  A single perspective lets us see only what is right in front of us but the sociological imagination allows us to see the big picture, a global perspective.

Exploring Sociology: Entry Thirteen

In class video

Institutional Racism in American Society is Real Tim Wise

Dialectic viewing

What question did the video raise?

How does institutional racism manifest it’s self in today’s society?

How did the video answer the question?

The speaker in this video explains the ways in which institutionalised racism exists by sighting some of the clearest examples.  These examples include the passing of laws designed (intentionally or unintentionally) to marginalise certain groups and to keep them from gaining any sort of real power.

How does the answer match my own ideas and experiences?

This video matched my ideas about this issue pretty well.  I’ve always taken for granted that we live in a society that was built to give the haves an advantage over the have not’s.  Where I differ from the speaker in this video is that I see this as an unfortunate flaw in the capitalist system rather that an intentional attack on certain ethnic groups.

Exploring Sociology: Entry Twelve

In class video

Bikini and G-String are OK but Wearing Hijab or Veil isn’t? Sheikh Khalid Yaseen

Dialectic viewing

What question did the video raise?

Is it right for it to be a source of controversy for Muslim women to where vales?

How did the video answer the question?

The video attempts to answer the question by comparing the practice of Muslim women wearing vales to clothing practices that are considered acceptable by many in western culture.  The speaker in the video compares wearing a vale to people who dress overtly sexually and nudists.  The point of the speaker is that if this type of behavior ids acceptable then why shouldn’t Muslim women be able to dress how they choose?

How does the answer match my own ideas and experiences?

I’ve previously always thought of this issue as being more about Muslim women being made to wear head scarves without being given a choice.  Within that context the issue of head scarves becomes an issue of gender equality.  If the question is about these women being free to wear head scarves if they so choose then I absolutely agree that they have a right to wear whatever they want.

Exploring Sociology: Entry eleven

In class videos

Stanford Prison Experiment

Affective Viewing

 

What was the video about?

 

This video was about a famous and controversial social experiment in which subjects were given roles and placed in a prison-like environment.  Subjects were divided up into two groups, prisoners and guards.  Over the course of the experiment subjects’ behaviors changed based on the roles they were given and as a result prisoners were abused by the dominating guards.  This experiment proved that even normal people are capable of atrocity if put in the right situation.

 

How do I feel about the video?

This video made me feel disturbed that no matter how decent a person may seem, in the right situation we are all capable of doing evil things.

What do I think about the video?

I think that while this experiment was unethical and should not be repeated, much can be learned from it and it can be widely applied to many real life scenarios.

What do I believe about the video?

I personal believe that, though it may be difficult, if one understands group mentality one may be able to prevent one’s self from being controlled by one’s ‘role’.  This can help to prevent mob behavior.

What do I know about the video?

I know that it is important to learn this study and others like it to understand human behavior and group mentality so that we can prevent real world atrocities. 

Exploring Sociology: Entry Ten

Introduction to society: Possesses and structures by Charles Quist-Adade

Who will liberate Liberia?

Periphrastic reading

Summary of Article:

This article details the hypocrisy and willful blindness of the Bush administration and their war in Iraq.  It begins by pointing out the massive expenditure that the war was (at that time, It ended up costing much more in the long run) predicted to cost.  The article then points out cases in which the Bush administration’s reactions to atrocities around the world have been proportional to its own interest in them.  Lastly it details the Bush administration’s supposed disinterest to the crisis in Liberia compared to its massive focus on Iraq.

Five Sentence Segment:

“In our Orwellian world justice is blind and selective.  Reality is dictated by tunnel vision logic and eyes see only what eyes want to see.  Thus Bush and his war apparatus can see Iraq’s imaginary weapons of mass destruction, but they cannot see the real ones in Israel, Iran, India Korea and Pakistan.  The Bush administration can spot and target the tyrant in Baghdad for removal but conveniently cannot see similar tyrants and autocrats who dot the global landscape  American-inspired sanctions killed thousands of Iraqis annually, but that is the price of freedom and has no relation whatsoever to the victims of Saddam Hussein’s torture chambers, they say.”

Why I chose this segment:

This segment provides several good examples of the Bush administration’s hypocrisies in foreign affairs.  These examples did a good job of showing the point of the article as I interpreted it. 

Exploring Sociology: Entry nine

Introduction to society: Possesses and structures by Charles Quist-Adade

Negotiation, not Retribution

Affective Reading

 

What was the reading about?

 

This article tries to convey the idea that although what happened on September 11^th 2001 was a horrible tragedy and the lives lost should absolutely be mourned people need to remember the lives lost because of other atrocities.  The article finishes by reiterating the point that the people need to learn from history and negotiate.

How do I feel about the reading?

I feel a sense of hopelessness when reading this article because I know that now, over a decade after this article was written, the themes in this article are still relevant and the lessons unheeded.

What do I think about the reading?

I agree with this reading in that the motives of international politics needs to be more about forming a dialogue in order to improve the situation for all involved, rather than an unending cycle of retribution.

What do I believe about the reading?

I believe strongly that the only way to peace is through negotiation and a less nationalistic approach to policy.

What do I know about the reading?

I know that in the eleven years since this article was written things have not changed much.  The American government hasn’t learned from history and continues the same attitudes towards foreign policy as a decade ago.  Modern conflicts such are still very much about retribution.

Exploring Sociology: Entry eight

Introduction to society: Possesses and structures by Charles Quist-Adade

The Phantom of the race: The myth of race and the reality of racism

Dialectic reading

What question did the reading raise?

What exactly is ‘Race’ and ‘Racism’?

How did the reading answer the question?

The author clarifies that these questions do not have any easy answers.   The article tries to answer these questions by first explaining that race is a human invented concept and that therefore race is more of a social construct  than a natural phenomena.  Using this perspective the author of this article defines race as “a grouping of the human population characterised by socially selected physical traits.” To put it simply, race only exists because there is racism.   

How does the answer match my own ideas and experiences?

I had never considered that race was something that could exist purely because people make it exist because people believe in it as a concept.  I had always thought of race to be something that could only exist as a physical concept or not at all.  Now that I’ve had a chance to think about it this idea makes more sense to me than my previous ideas.