Class Matters

This week in sociology class we explored class. No matter who you are the class you where born in and raised in can and will impact the class you will belong to as an adult. Those born in a lower class will tend to stay in the lower class and those brought up in a higher class will tend to stay in the higher class. Thus things inherited by the generation before you, can soley put you on the fast track to success. Lower class families have less to pass down so they will continue to stay on that path. Not only did we learn that class can be inherited but we also looked at a few stories and data that shows us that class means alot more then looking "classy". In one report, we found that the stresses of living in a lower class will significantly speed up your aging process. Because lower class families live in poorer communities, crime rates will be up, business will be low, housing will be expensive, etc. All these examples will put people through enough stress to lower there lives by years. Another story looked at was of one house cleaning women of the working lower class. Her story was touching and extreme because she would try to adapt and help her fellow workers, she barely had enough for herself to live on. At one point the cleaning crew where driving to the house and they had forgetten some supplies, about 3 dollars worth, and even if the entire crew of people put there money together, they would still be short of 3 dollars. In conclusion, class can tell you your if you are to die earlier or live longer, whether you live it easy and successful or you struggle and stress about daily living. All major changes that class can implore on you.

Class and Prestige

This week in sociology class we talked about prestige, and with that, the actions and ideals of the upper, middle and lower class. Specificly we would read an arcticle called " The Uses of Poverty: The Poor Pay All". This article explains that maybe the only lesson why poverty is so persistent is because it has positive functions for the rest of society. We would learn that the only way that one goes up the socioeconomic ladder is to take someone else down. Amazing, that poverty has made it possible for the existence and expansion of respectable professions like, crimiology, social work and public health. Only because poverty exists, these occupations have strived and evolved. Even today in our major cities of the world poverty has give jobs to law enforcement, health care services and most importantly sociology experts. The lower class seems like the class that does nothing good for society but, in reality it might be the one class that helps more then any other class.

The Gender Similarities Hypothesis

So this week in sociology class we discussed gender differences and how the media and our culture helps shape us to be normal men and women of a society. These different messages help us learn what is normal for a male and a female to do and act in a society and in life. For example, men are depicted as tough individuals that are looked down appone if emotion is shown. While women are peaceful and proper. But a study called "The Gender Similarities Hypothesis" shows us how very alike we are. Although men and women have differences they are very minimal in a psychological perspective. The society and culture shape us to make us as different as possible. A book "Men are from Mars, And Women are from Venus" only talks about the differences of men and women yet we are all taught to be different and act a certain way. So the very little actual differences between men and women are less then the similarities that we have between us. Nethertheless things will always make us believe that men and women must meet a certain standard that they are raised into. Men will always have to be men and women will always have to be women. In our world the differences will be in the spot light while the more massive similarities will be shut out in the dark unless we learn to accept that men and women are only the way they are because we as a society decide what they will be like. Maybe one day men will be more open with their emotions and less male teen suicides may occur and maybe one day women will stop letting everyone else decide what they should look like for them.

Becoming Adults

This week in sociology we have discussed the differences between men and women when growing up. As boys begin life they are already being influenced by family and family friends to have things that are blue and more masculin features in their rooms. While girls will have a pink room with more feminine qualities. The only way that we can decide weather something is masculin or feminine is by the people who pick and choose what your room will have. If someone where to walk into a room they could see how society has effected this person to make their room the way it is. Biology has no effect on what a new born's room will look like and what their room will look like in the future. Some masculin features of a room might be sports, dinosaurs, astronauts, blue things, etc. All being imposed on the child through his community. Some feminine qualities are barbies, disney princesses, pink things, Animals, etc. This is not a trend that is confined to the United States. Other countries also teach boys to be tough and girls to be graceful and even in school we are taught by our peers to "man up" if you are a boy having some troubles and girls show remorse and support to each other when they are going through some troubles. If we look back only 100 years girls where taught just to be house wives and they could not have some jobs that men could. Still today men are payed more and have an edge on women when looking for work but, still in the past 100 years we have moved forward and continue to today. All in all men and women can be raised differently to be taught that blue is not only for boys and pink is not only for girls but, even today some will look at someone else funny if maybe a man is wearing pink or a girl is playing football. Things can always change.

Extreme Isolation

This week of Sociology we have learn about isolation and the effects of the society on the individual. A study was done on Anna, a little girl that was by herself for most of her first few years of life. Having only lived about 10 and a half years she was extremely slow to develop and had an i.q. of someone who was a fraction of her age. Although some information was missing about Anna what is known is that she was moved alot while she was a baby and as an toddler she was isolated from everyone execpt her mother, who would be working and left her in the addic of there house. This is an incomplete study to figure out how much of an impact isolation inflicts on a person. The reason why this study is incomplete is because there are no other cases so relavent to this one. This case may not be exactly like others but there are many cases around the world that sadly are not treatable but are studied so that maybe one day we can find the causes that isolation inflict appone us. Another intresting topic we have found is ironicly the internet. As long as is has been around it has been a way to transfer data from one user to another. Today the internet is being used as a way to communicate and exchange information. Sometimes for better sometimes for worse. While some of us watch youtube videos and talk to friends on facebook, others are stalking us and pretend to be our friends. This scary thought is a huge part of the internet. Your life on the internet is a public private life that anyone and sometimes everyone can see. You are never safe. Just like in the real world, their are dark alleys and secrets. And other people who thrive doing shady things on the web. All in all today we are all effected by mass media and extreme isolation two opposites that both can have effects on the indiviual for the worse.

Deliberation of America

This week in socialogy class we had a debate about a conflict that continues today. I'm talking about the gay/straight marriage. As we where spread apart into groups we had been put into the pro side or the con side of this debate. We would read about this debate and gather information that would soon be used to deliberate. I was chosen to be on the con side, moreover i was against gay marriage. Many points where brought up and so some of our values where also tested. This was a test to see which values are more important then others. For instance, this debliberation goes into conflict with values such as freedom and change because one group of people want the freedom to marry anyone, while change is not being used to fix the problem because another group of people believe it to be against their beliefs. This is a great example of ethnocentrism, which means to judge ones beliefs,morals and actions based on ones own beliefs and morals. All in all this is a deliberation that is made for the public to decide on because for a class such as our own and the limited resources presented we would have not been able to accurately make a decisien.

Dealers of America

This week in socialogy class we went deep into the world of drugs dealers and their habits. This was very interesting from a socialogical perspective because drug dealers will sometimes work near each other or together to sell their drugs. In this economy this is a business that takes away from other legal businesses and can heavily impact the capital of any area. To learn about how a drug dealer lives and works we would go into a study done inwhich we would follow a drug dealer through his day. We would learn that it is common to have more then one dealer in the same area and that sometimes drug dealers would take corners of streets individualy. As the dealer day progress we would learn that dealers happen to be in gangs and not that gangs always have dealers. In this case the dealer was part of a gang and would live with them in an appartment building where many of the other dealers, crooks, cons, and gang members would live. And sometimes their would be people running from the law or someone they owe money to. This shady life style influenced by gangs and intercity life can leave a person trapped to this life. In conclusion the dealer of America did not so much chose to become dealer but they did not know better and/or they may believe this to be their calling for a bigger pay check.