Final Blog

Who am I? This semester long class has certainly helped me figure this out. Going through Sociology, and learning about all of the different units really helped to show me how society really works, and how I interact with it. Topics such as culture and race really helped to open my eyes to different ways people live their life in a sociological setting. Learning about this helped me to see myself in a different way. It helped me to see that the way I live my life is very similar to other people except for the fact that everyone grows up differently, with many different sociological impacts, such as culture and race. Having an opportunity to participate in community service also really helped me to find out more about myself and how I compare to other people in society around me. Going to community service was something I was not very much looking forward to, but after it was over I realized it really helps you to see who you are. I learned that I am a very caring person, because throughout community service, I found myself getting more and more caught up in doing work for the better of the community. All in all, at the beginning of the year, I thought I knew myself, but after the semester was over, I had discovered parts of me that I did not know ever existed.

Crash

Last week we watched Crash, and it was a very entertaining movie. It was about how various lives of various people intertwined and all coincided with eachother. The movie had great acting and a great plot, but the best part was the way racism was talked about. Racism is a very tough subject to talk about because it leads to feelings being hurt sometimes, but this movie brought up racism in ways that people are too afraid of bringing up. This movie made a point that racism is everywhere, and that people are completely racist sometimes without even knowing that they're being racist. I hope it really opened some people's eyes if they have not known how society really is, because this movie really mimicked real society in a visceral way. In relation to Socioloy, I think this movie really related because it did not just show people and their racist opinions, but it showed how their opinions and feelings impacted other people. It showed that society will be impacted even if only a few people around you is a racist, because the effects of racism travel very far.

Living in the ghetto

We watched a video in class yesterday about different people who are growing up in poverty. For example it showed a young black boy who was homeless with his mom and siblings. This was hard to watch because it showed them living with their grandmother at one point, who said something along the lines of she would rather do crack instead of buy bread for her family. It is crazy how things are in different parts of the country. Another example was of a Mexican kid who had to live with a large family in a small building that had cockroaches crawling everywhere. The kid was a hard worker and came home from school to go directly to work everyday. I think that's good that he is helping his dad out but I couldn't help but notice something. They kept talking about how poor they were but I saw stuff in the background like stereos and electronic equipment and I wondered maybe they are staying poor because they spent some of their money on things that weren't essential. I hate to say that because I feel very bad for their situation but it was just an observation. This video really opened my eyes to the way that society is in parts of the country that I don't live in. I think that most people are very focused on their life and don't really see how others live their life. Sometimes it's good to take a step back and see how others are living their life, and maybe try to help them out.

30 Days on Minimum Wage

Last week we watched another installment of Morgan Spurlock's show 30 Days. This episode I don't think was as good as the last, but it was still very interesting to see how life is while living on minimum wage. Morgan Spurlock decides to live with his wife on minimum wage and various things happen to him that show how scary life really is on minimum wage. This was probably not a good idea because he ends up facing hardships that must have sucked to go through. The worse part I think is that he hurt his hand and since he had no insurance or money he had to go wait in a line at a hospital's emergency room and got denied. He ended up going later, but still it must have been very hard for him to deal with his problem. This really helped translate the issue of poverty in society to me because I have always known about poverty. I just have not gotten such an inside look into the life of someone who has to experience poverty firsthand. Society is made up of many people who are stricken with poverty, and it is important for more people to know how terrible life is for people who have no money.

Video about Class

Last week we watched another video in class about different types of people and they ways they live. For example, the video showcased a lady from a trailer park, and a very rich stuck up man from a mansion. It really contrasted different ways people live and how people perceive the middle class. In one part of the video, a middle class lady was being groomed to become a classy, upper class woman who was going to bid on art. When she is finally groomed and taught how to act like them, she goes to an art auction. when she approaches the real rich people, she seems awkward and it seems like the people can tell that she is not one of them. This shows that you cannot be groomed to become an upper class person, you pretty much are who you are. In relation to society, this shows that people need to strive their hardest in life to make their way, but they should not be pressured to be someone they are not. Society is separated into many different types of people, and they all play their role in society as a whole.

30 days in Jail

We watched a show the other week about how Morgan Spurlock spent 30 days in jail. The show was very interesting because it showed how life is in the biggest county jail in the nation. Jail life was a little more civilized than I thought it was going to be, however it was still very different than usual life. Morgan met various types of people in the jail and they all interacted in very interesting ways. I think that this related to sociology because people as a whole think of prison as a very scary and traumatizing place, but in reality, it isn't that bad. It is a lot different than people think, and especially the people in the jail. When one thinks of jail, they think of very hardened criminals and people that will hurt by coming in contact with you. The situation was very different in this jail and I think a lot of people in society would be surprised if they saw this show.

Freaks and Geeks

A few days ago we watched another episode of Freaks and Geeks. Without a doubt, the main issue regarding Deviance was the way the bully put peanuts in Billy's sandwich. During their lunch break, the bully placed peanuts in Billy's sandwich which was very deviant, because it ended up sending Billy to the hospital. What was especially deviant about this is what happened after. The bully explained his whole story and why he treated Billy and his friends like that. That was also deviant of the bully because he was stepping out of the shoes he normally fills and becoming humble. This relates to sociology because it really shows how deviance can happen in the school system, and how different people react to it, whether they are bullying or being bullied.