Hey guys! Hope all of your week's went well. This week I shall discuss the pros and cons of, that's right, capitalism.
Capitalism is defined as the organization of society in such a way that the wealth and means of production are privately owned by capitalists, commodities are produced for profit through a market mechanism, and workers are free to sell their labor to the highest bidder. There are many pros to this type of organization.
The open competition that capitalism offers allows for a individuals to gain higher incomes depending on the progress their businesses make. It also pushes individuals to work harder. Their hard work is then rewarded with more profit, a larger business, or possibly more customers. The growing competition also opens doors to a multitude of job opportunities.
Capitalism has many cons as well. Marxists see capitalism as unfair competition. Not every one benefits from capitalism. It is survival of the fittest and the weak are weeded out. Marxists see this as wrong and completely unfair to those who do not survive. Many individuals also believe that capitalism is harmful to the environment. The constant competition requires for their to be a constant depletion of environmental resources.
In my opinion I believe that capitalism is good thing and we as humans need motivation to work hard. Capitalism pushes us to exceed to the best of our abilities and rewards us for our accomplishments.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Monday, April 9, 2012
Globalization. Yes! And no!
Hey everyone! Hope you all had a great Easter. I really enjoyed spending time with God and thanking him for paying the price of death to give me the gift of salvation. My God's not dead he's surely alive. :) This week I am going to discuss the many pros and cons of the ever increasing phenomenon of globalization.
Globalization Is the idea that the development of social, cultural, and Economic relationships on a world scale has created a single social order or world system. There are many pros and cons to this theory that have been debated widely among sociologists. Some of the pros, I believe, include that globalization allows people from all over the world to feel connected in some way. Globalization also helps developing countries that are suffering. The diffusion of American companies to other countries helps provide jobs for the people in poverty. This then raises the country's economy, which further develops the country.
There are also many cons to globalization. One con is that globalization causes individual to lose their cultural identity. They adopt the customs trends that are made popular through globalization and gradually forget their individual customs that belong to their family and country.
In mu opinion I believe that globalization is a bad phenomenon. I don't like the idea of everyone becoming the same and doing the same things. I think that we all should have our own unique characteristics that add to the society as a whole.
Globalization Is the idea that the development of social, cultural, and Economic relationships on a world scale has created a single social order or world system. There are many pros and cons to this theory that have been debated widely among sociologists. Some of the pros, I believe, include that globalization allows people from all over the world to feel connected in some way. Globalization also helps developing countries that are suffering. The diffusion of American companies to other countries helps provide jobs for the people in poverty. This then raises the country's economy, which further develops the country.
There are also many cons to globalization. One con is that globalization causes individual to lose their cultural identity. They adopt the customs trends that are made popular through globalization and gradually forget their individual customs that belong to their family and country.
In mu opinion I believe that globalization is a bad phenomenon. I don't like the idea of everyone becoming the same and doing the same things. I think that we all should have our own unique characteristics that add to the society as a whole.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Interactionists are the best stalkers
Sociologists are pretty much educated stalkers in my book. They go around observing people from from far away as well as up close up. Some even are undercover while observing the people they are hanging out with. I don't know about you but to me this is just a little creepy. It puts me on the edge when I think about it. People who look and act like ordinary people could actually be sociologists watching your every move to see if you do something that interests them. They then record everything you do and add it to their pile of research. This may just be me but this makes me feel like i'm part of a museum display. My conclusion, as I said, is that sociologists are educated stalkers.
Sociologists can also take two different approaches to study the "museum exhibits" around them. There is the positivist and interactionist approaches. The approach that I believe gains a deeper knowledge of sociological issues would be the interactionist approach. This is because interactionists like to collect more qualitative data than quantitative data. Qualitative data deals directly with people's experiences, as well as their feelings about, and interpretations of, the situations they find themselves in. So sociologists who take the interactionist approach like to interview people more and interact with them. These are the real stalkers. They may work undercover or have one on one conversations with individuals. Interactionists like to get an understanding of how their clients feel about certain situations. In other words, interactionists want to know your thoughts and feelings in a deeper way than just by you filling out a multiple choice questionnaire.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Poverty is a Culture?
Salutations fellow people of the planet Earth. This week I am going to discuss the culture of poverty. Many of you are probably wondering "what, poverty is a type of culture?". Well yes in a sense those who are in poverty all share similar characteristics. These similar characteristics, over time, have developed into what some consider a culture.
This statement was first coined in 1961 by Oscar Lewis. In his studies of small Mexican communities he discovered that these poor communities all share similar characteristics. The characteristics they shared included: neglect of planning for the future, frequent violence, and a lack of a sense of history. All of Lewis's studies created the paradigm that people in poverty share a consistent and observable "culture". Much of what Lewis discovered about the culture of poverty remains the same today.
Today those individuals who are in poverty usually pass the unfortunate state onto future generations. It is possible but very hard for poverty stricken people to move up in class. There are many rags to riches stories in the united states but very few are seen in other countries. If you are born poor in a poor and developing country, your chances are very slim at rising to the top. America is one of the few countries that makes social mobility possible. That is why so many people migrate to the United States. These people come to escape the culture of poverty that has taken over their lives'.
This statement was first coined in 1961 by Oscar Lewis. In his studies of small Mexican communities he discovered that these poor communities all share similar characteristics. The characteristics they shared included: neglect of planning for the future, frequent violence, and a lack of a sense of history. All of Lewis's studies created the paradigm that people in poverty share a consistent and observable "culture". Much of what Lewis discovered about the culture of poverty remains the same today.
Today those individuals who are in poverty usually pass the unfortunate state onto future generations. It is possible but very hard for poverty stricken people to move up in class. There are many rags to riches stories in the united states but very few are seen in other countries. If you are born poor in a poor and developing country, your chances are very slim at rising to the top. America is one of the few countries that makes social mobility possible. That is why so many people migrate to the United States. These people come to escape the culture of poverty that has taken over their lives'.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Pop Culture!
Hola everyone!! Guess what? Its spring break!! Well it is for some of us in South Florida. Spring break is a great time to have fun, relax, and keep up with the latest trends and fads of today. For instance wearing the newest styles of clothing or listening to the most popular music.
What is popular culture? Well from the Marxist perspective popular culture is seen as a way to divide classes. The upper classes wear the newest styles and they can afford the latest apple products. The lower classes still strive to keep up with the newest trends but are still divided from the upper classes in many ways. The popular trends of the upper classes can also differ from those of the lower classes. Every class adopts their own popular culture that that makes them feel more connected. Over the years this gap in popular trends between classes has diminished greatly. The middle class has become more and more similar to the upper class because the mass production of popular products are now being made so that lower classes can afford them. Now many upper and middle class families have similar clothes and cars due to these company's efforts to reach out to a larger group of customers. Popular culture is a way to divide classes but also to bring the people within each class closer together.
What is popular culture? Well from the Marxist perspective popular culture is seen as a way to divide classes. The upper classes wear the newest styles and they can afford the latest apple products. The lower classes still strive to keep up with the newest trends but are still divided from the upper classes in many ways. The popular trends of the upper classes can also differ from those of the lower classes. Every class adopts their own popular culture that that makes them feel more connected. Over the years this gap in popular trends between classes has diminished greatly. The middle class has become more and more similar to the upper class because the mass production of popular products are now being made so that lower classes can afford them. Now many upper and middle class families have similar clothes and cars due to these company's efforts to reach out to a larger group of customers. Popular culture is a way to divide classes but also to bring the people within each class closer together.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
The Theory of Symbolic Interactionism
Hey everyone!! I hope you all had an awesome week. This week I shall discuss the idea of symbolic interactionism. Most people out there are probably asking themselves "what in the world is symbolic interactionism?"
So what is symbolic interactionism? Well it is the theoretical approach and sociological perspective that emphasizes motives and meaning for individuals. It focuses on the importance of symbols for people, particularly language, as the core elements of all human interaction. The founder of this approach is George Herbert Mead. Many see symbolic interaction as more of a psychological theory while it is essentially a theory of socialization. The process of becoming a human is much more complex than merely being born. This process is achieved through the interactions that are between a child and his or her elders that surround him or her. The first step in an individuals journey to becoming a human being is finding his or her own social self. This is where an individual realizes that he or she is no longer a part of his or her mother, as in the womb, but that he or she is a unique and completely separate individual. After this is achieved the individual then goes onto the stage where he or she becomes a generalized other. This is where individuals learn how to operate as a member of a wider group (society).
Symbolic interactionism is clearly a sociological theory due to the complex and social process of becoming a human being.
So what is symbolic interactionism? Well it is the theoretical approach and sociological perspective that emphasizes motives and meaning for individuals. It focuses on the importance of symbols for people, particularly language, as the core elements of all human interaction. The founder of this approach is George Herbert Mead. Many see symbolic interaction as more of a psychological theory while it is essentially a theory of socialization. The process of becoming a human is much more complex than merely being born. This process is achieved through the interactions that are between a child and his or her elders that surround him or her. The first step in an individuals journey to becoming a human being is finding his or her own social self. This is where an individual realizes that he or she is no longer a part of his or her mother, as in the womb, but that he or she is a unique and completely separate individual. After this is achieved the individual then goes onto the stage where he or she becomes a generalized other. This is where individuals learn how to operate as a member of a wider group (society).
Symbolic interactionism is clearly a sociological theory due to the complex and social process of becoming a human being.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
We each have a function.
Hello fellow people of the world! Society as we know it is changing, but one thing remains the same. The theory of functionalism is the best and will remain the best way to explain how the machine known as society works. Functionalism is where every individual has his or her own function or duty which contributes to the society as a whole.
Some individuals may be teachers others stay at home to take care of their children. The point is, is that every human being has something uniquely different that they contribute to the functioning society. Even if the roles of individuals change the idea that each person is valuable to society stays in tack. For example society needs doctors to save lives, garbage men to keep the planet clean, entertainers to bring joy to depressing situations, and Olympians to push others to achieve their highest goals. Sure their has always been a class struggle between the wealthy and the poor, but that may end in the future. The idea of a functioning society will always remain because everyone will always be doing something that contributes to society, whether in a negative or positive way, and is needed for it's survival.
Some individuals may be teachers others stay at home to take care of their children. The point is, is that every human being has something uniquely different that they contribute to the functioning society. Even if the roles of individuals change the idea that each person is valuable to society stays in tack. For example society needs doctors to save lives, garbage men to keep the planet clean, entertainers to bring joy to depressing situations, and Olympians to push others to achieve their highest goals. Sure their has always been a class struggle between the wealthy and the poor, but that may end in the future. The idea of a functioning society will always remain because everyone will always be doing something that contributes to society, whether in a negative or positive way, and is needed for it's survival.
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