This video did an ok job of explaining sociological imagination. I thought the other explaining it did a much better job. The example they used of the woman with an eating disorder I think did a good job of explaining how society may pressure or influence our choices that we makes. I also think it would help people to understand sociological imagination better if they try to put it into effect with their own lives. Why did we choose the school we did, why do some people choose to have children and other don't, or even with marriage. I think if you really think about thinks society really does effect the choices we make on a daily level. It can even be as simple as why I had a one dollar pizza for dinner tonight, it be simply that that's what I wanted to eat or it could be that I am a student and I have put all my money into going to school full time that the only thing I could afford to eat was this dollar pizza. -mybabygirl004
Totally understanding the pizza....I guess a general pattern in our particular population (full time college students). I'm feeling sociology more here in my life. Morealikethanithought004
This video reminded me that there are more than just personal reasons for the seemingly personal decisions (both good decisions and wrong decisions) that we make on a daily basis. While putting on a pair of blue jeans seems pretty mindless, I’d like to share a story of a time when I was in high school and all I wanted was a pair of high priced blue jeans. My parents would not buy them as they were very expensive (around $55.00). At the age of 15, I began working a job slinging chili dogs at a local snack shop. At the time, minimum wage was $3.25. As you can imagine, it took me some time to save up enough money to buy the jeans. I did end up purchasing the jeans and I loved them. I rocked them, I felt good in them. After three washes, the jeans developed a hole and were useless. I was crushed. So, why did I feel that I needed this specific brand of jeans? I had plenty of hand me down jeans. In looking through my individual lens or personal trouble lens, I felt that I needed to buy this specific brand of jeans to prove to my peers at the time, that I was as equal of a person in both intelligence and financial status. I felt very much like a lower class citizen because of the size of and location of my house and the fact that my parents were out of work. In looking at the situation through history or structural issues, I can see now that our economy was in poor condition at the time with the labor force shrinking by 15% in the early to mid 1980’s. I can also see that material wants/needs were a trend at that time, mostly notably cemented by Madonna’s song “Material Girl”. As a teenager, these issues were hard to grasp at the time. Now that I am an adult, I can see that each seemingly personal decision I make, is backed by something bigger than my own individual lens. ~happilycurious004
I can definitely relate to your story. Mine wasn’t jeans it was the Spice Girl Platform looking tennis shoes (no judging lol). It seems so understandable after hearing about sociology. However, I have never thought that we are all so connected until this class. Something as simple as a pair of jeans or something as serious as suicide and both can be the case for so many for the same reason. It really makes me think and look at people in a different light. -MysonMyworld004
It seems today that we are guided by the news, social media and television shows to control the way we feel about everything. Thirty years ago the same structural forces; race (gender), norm & valves (classism) and historical discrimination were applied but in a very subtle way or at least that’s way I remember the 80’s. I can relate to the cost of blue jeans, tennis shoes and movie tickets being more than my mother could afford. I worked hard to achieve because I wanted to give back to her and my family. I wasn’t alone in feeling that way, it was the norm and part of valves then.
I know that my fashion most of the time is based on society and what everyone else is wearing. I don't want to be the person that is not in with the cool group. I never really thought about how things are connected like fashion and a person decision take their own life. It is really a eye opener. wonderwoman004
You really have brought up such a good point when you talked about having to have those pair of blue jeans. Our society paints this picture especially for women we always have to look our best, and name brands are what gives us that. If we don't always wear the "nicer" thing's in life we may easily be deemed as a lower class citizen. -JustMe1989004
Happliycurious004 Many of us can probably relate to having dont what you describe. It is interesting that we all reach our pivotal points in life when we become aware of our actions. I dont know about you but understanding the sociological imagination really helps to grasp the motives behind this. -Kylegoldheart004
This video gave a great explanation with the eating disorder. The individual could be feeling that she overweight or larger than her friends. But maybe the reason she feels this way is because of the way society feels women should look or what they should weigh. When mentioned that sociology is always changing it makes sense because even our idea of what a women should weigh or look like has changed since let’s say the 50s. I would say that now days it is a bit more acceptable to be overweight. Maybe not acceptable to be overweight and in the spot light but in general everyday life maybe. Breaking it down in to the lenses was a very simple way to concept it. You have your own personal issues and thoughts on why you are going through something or why you chose something. Then you have an explanation on why lots of people from different backgrounds and situations may also be going through something or choosing that same thing. When she mentioned to think about why they chose that school. I thought about the reason I chose ICC. It’s affordable, lots of grants and scholarships are offered, I know I am not going to find a job that pays enough to support my son without an education, and because it was close to home. I know from class there are lots of individuals who picked ICC for the same reasons. They are not all single moms but somehow they still chose the same school as me. It is crazy when you realize we are more connected than we thought. That our hardships are not just ours alone, but are shared with many others. -MysonMyworld004
I agree completely with what you said about the reasons you chose ICC. I am married, have two kids and work a full time job. My main reason for choosing ICC was the cost factor. I transferred to ICC from another school which was much more expensive. I figured out very quickly that I wasn't going to be able to continue at that other school. I was also very touched with the analogy of the girl struggling with the eating disorder. I think that as Americans we fall into the trap of thinking that we are so much different than other people in the World. But, when you look at humans as a whole we all struggle with basically the same things no matter what region we come from. ~peoriahighlionsfootball004
Each week the class and blog open my mind to revisit what I thought I knew. This week Social Imagination enable me to see how our weight, our race or homeless shape our view points. I have seen over the past twenty years our country perception on weight. In 1984 people who were thin, with flawless skin and young were praised and considered beautiful. It was the benchmark for how we should all look or try to look. America’s top models, magazine photos and movies painted celebrities in an unrealistic way and caused millions of people have eating disorders like Bulimia, Anorexia Nervosa and binge eating disorders. Now because of social awareness these issues are improving and companies like Mattel are making “Barbie” dolls that reflect all races (and their shades and shapes) , religious background and most importantly weight to a widely accepted and even adored sociality.
Although things are improving, eating disorders of all ranges are still an issue. I actually think that the media is making it seem like it's ok to be obese. There are these women that are obese and they are telling these young girls its ok to be over weight and I completely don't agree with that. I don't want my little girl seeing this model who is way over weight and think that's ok because it isn't. There are so many horrible health risks that come along with that. Just like I said in my other post, we as parents need to teach our children about what it is to be healthy and the media will always be thowing things in our face. I do agree with you though about them making different colored skinned toned dolls and I think that is really great. We have come a long way but we still have a long way to go. -mybabygirl004
I definitely agree that the social pressures to fit that perfect “Barbie” image led to the prevalence of eating disorders in our society. Young people are so impressionable, and they will do anything to fit in. When we teach children that they have to be ridiculously thin, girls of a healthy weigh start to think that they are fat. It is unfortunate that we praise women that are honestly unhealthy with as skinny as they are. We are setting up future generations to lead unhealthy lives in a much different way than we do. DTH004
This video really made me think about some of the things that shape my thought process. The video talks about eating disorder. It talks about two viewpoints as to some thing that shapes this persons reasons for thinking that her is not in shape. One view point is individual or personal trouble. The other is Society and how we allow their views of what is or is not a good weight. Society shapes our thinking in so many areas of our lives. There are public issues like police abuse, homeless, and suicide. Society plays a big part in how we view another people. It is how we view if they are fat or thin. It also plays a big part in how I view myself. Society decides if someone is successful or not. The problems of the world touch each and everyone of us in so way or another. wonderwoman004
I did not care for this video about the sociological imagination as much as the other video. But C Mills did have some good points I this one as well. When it broke down society as two different lenses it helped gave me a good understanding of both. When they talked about an eating disorder, and appearances, and how it can be a pressure in society. All I could think of when it mentioned using filters for your photos or cropping them to make them more acceptable is when I am on social media and how a majority of the people are like this. Most of the selfies you see are filtered by a photo app, or the people who tend to carry a little extra weight are more likely to have a photo to wear you see mainly just their face and can not see their body. I never really thought of I as social thing until now.I also agreed with C Mills when he says how society changes so much it makes it more difficult to cope with the world, but it can also work in our favor. Overall after watching this video it gave me a better understanding of both the individual and society lens and of what sociological imagination is. -JustMe1989004
I liked how you brought up about the filters. if anyone has snap chat these days thats all it is. you have face filters for everything and it makes people feel like they are attractive. i think people already see themselves differently because of the thoughts they have about themselves but now they have the ability to look as good as they want or think. It does make it hard to cope. -dislikeblogs004
C. Wright Mills' book, The Sociological Imagination discusses how we as a society can correlate things that happen in our own lives with society and nature. I look at it as the sociological imagination can be used as an explanation to help a person figure out what is going on is a persons life. A way to place "blame" on something being an underlying cause for a more prominent problem. With society constantly changing people are having a harder time adapting to the changes that are taking place, especially the middle generations. Society likes to make connections to things. We always have to find the reasons as to why or how our daily lives are affected by nature and/or society. The video highlighted eating disorders and how society affects an overweight person which is the reason why they end up with an eating disorder. I think a persons personal struggles and eating disorders can have a much deeper reason than to try to find one to pin on society. bdole004
I didn’t know that the sociological imagination was actually the thesis for C Wright Mill’s book. The first lens known as personal troubles is one that in my mind is the easiest to see through. It is easy to look at an issue from my own views or from one other person’s perspective. This is what I originally had in mind for what the sociological imagination was. Lens two, society, is what I think is tougher to see through. It is harder to look at an issue blaming society instead of personal choice. It is much easier to blame one person than say that we all have contributed to the problem. The society lens looks at social pressure put on a person versus their own personal choices. For instance, the eating disorder. It is easy to say that the reason a girl has an eating disorder is because she thinks she is fat. What many of us don’t think about however is the pressures we as a society put on beauty and fitness. She is taught that society will not accept her if she doesn’t fit that perfect image. DTH004
The different lenses you look through intrigue me. The woman who is thin but thinks that she is too big by societal standards hits home. The pressure that Is put on girls/women. Is astounding. Every single person on this planet perceives them self in one way, while the population sees them in an entirely different way. Children are raised with the ideology that "thin is best." Many of the people that think this way are at risk for developing bad habits such as plastic surgery and eating disorders. The societal view of what the woman should look like needs to be changed. Women need to be portrayed as healthy and strong, not made out to be small and weak. Being seen as a "goddess" should not only reference physical appearance.
I appreciate your comment with being intrigued by the lenses of others. I too find it fascinating to see a person who appears to be physically fit and when given a complement on their appearance, that person will point out what they don’t like about themselves. Why? What is wrong with someone saying something nice and the other person simply saying, thank you? Why can’t a person look in the mirror and say, ‘yep, that works’ or ‘I look alright’? And why is the number on the scale or the size in the dress so darn important? People are so much more than a number. One of my all-time favorite commercials: http://www.dietsinreview.com/diet_column/09/special-k-rethinks-jeans-shopping-with-a-smart-and-inspirational-marketing-campaign/ ~happilycurious004
I thought this video went a bit more in depth than the other video on C. Wright Mills “Sociological Imagination” by Sociology Live did. I liked the small amount of history that she added before she got into it. I like how she explained the two lens of Sociology imagination at the beginning, because I didn’t know that there was more than one way of getting started looking at Sociological Imagination. I feel like I just stopped at the first lens, and I only think about my problems being just that, my problems and not thinking that anyone else could possibly understand what I’m going through. I feel like this video was a little hard to take for the second half of it, because half the video did not correlate with me. With that being said, I still thought it was still a good overview of the Sociological Imagination. -CFC004
I enjoyed in this video the first viewpoint about the girl with the eating disorder. The mindset they get stuck in about their body. They brought up how everything can be photo shopped these days so that even the smallest imperfection can be fixed. The expectations society has on people are the reasons why people are insecure. This is why the girl might have the eating disorder because society has gotten to her head and now she thinks she isn’t thin enough. Society is behind a lot of your decisions without even taking it into consideration. Using social imagination it allows you to see the roll that society plays in our everyday life. -dislikeblogs004
In my personal opinion I liked the first video more than this one, the whole last part of this video I felt was just really unimportant. However, I really enjoyed the first example they used for the Individual lens and the societal lens. I agree very much with what she was saying but I would have liked to hear a little more maybe? I’m the type of person that likes great details. I agree very much that society kind of influences our day to day decisions but I also think that we ourselves also have a great impact on how we feel, act, and think. I don’t want to be completely harsh now; I do think that this video is very helpful and important. I just think maybe they should have used a different example for the second part of the video. But once again, that’s just my opinion -lilcakes004
I agree with you I think the first clip was a lot more helpful than this one. I did like how they gave the examples as well about the individual lens and the societal lens it broke it down a better. I do like details and I feel like this didnt have it very much. the ending was a little helpful and gave a good example but other than that I don't think it was much needed . -Boop004-
This video was average to me. I enjoyed the correlation between the social imagination and the eating disorder. I do agree that your social imagination can skew your view on reality. Speaking as someone who struggled with weight when I was younger I can tell you this is definitely true. Once your view on reality is changed to fit what is socially acceptable, it can be hard to reverse that. What is acceptable to one group of people or culture may not be universal. However, we tend to try to change or adapt depending on what group of people we are around. I am now raising a teenager. I am trying to get him to aspire to be a leader and not a follower. I am trying to teach him that what is "cool" now might not be "cool" later and that he should focus on his education and not "fitting in". This is hard for young people because they are so vulnerable and influenced by everything around them. I believe this influence is greatly due to the social imagination.
I don't know how I feel about this clip. It confused me a little bit, I understood some parts but not all of it. It pointed out that sociological imagination is always changing. I was wondering how was it changing all the time but it showed the example of going to college and how years ago if you wanted a good job you could come right out of high school and have that job rather then now you have to have a college degree. I think that was a good example because I didn't think of it like that. -Boop004-
I more of this video than the other video. I understood that society influences the individual. Society has themes and trends, which affect an individual’s choices. For example, they had the girl with an eating disorder. The girl has an eating disorder because of society’s image of what a female should look like. The girl could possibly see an advertisement or photo that has a beautiful female and she looks thin and fit. The girl would think that she has to look exactly like the female to be beautiful, so she would start starving herself and exercise more often. The girl would want to be thin and fit just like the female, but she doesn’t realize that the advertisement or photo was enhanced and photoshopped. The girl will be determined to be beautiful the way that society will view and accept her, not the way that she will accept herself. -Happy004
Your comment kind of goes along with mine, in that society has an image already picked out for us and if you don’t look that way, you’re out casted. I think this video helped explain sociological imagination better than the last video did, as you said. Gators004
C. Mills speaks about how sociology allows us to put our lives in context with society and history. This video helped to understand exactly how this works. When I think of using sociological imagination the topic of "trends" comes to mind. Specifically the trend of aesthetics/beauty really hits close to home. When I think back 10-15 years ago plastic surgery was much more than a luxury, it was unheard of for any lay people to have gone under a knife. Today, is common enough that 5 people in my family have had plastic surgery of some sort. When we ask what influence this trend we are forced to look at societal pressures. Documentary shows like "Nip/Tuck" bring the reality of plastic surgery to our couches. This video brings up a great point that our abilities to edit the publishing of stars photos has created an unrealistic ideology. Looking through the individuals lenses one may think they need surgery because their body is not ideal and looking through the societal lenses one may associate their ideals with the pressures of society. -kylegoldheart004
Yes C. Wright does allow us to put our lives in context with society and history. Its true, years ago plastic surgery was scarce and now, this day and age everyone and their grandmother is doing it. Reality shows is definitely an influence on individuals to try it. Being obese and wanting the life of a thin person will cause one to look into getting plastic surgery.~Mznurse004
I agree with the woman in this video that we all have our own reasons for picking whichever schools we go to. Whether that is a master’s degree in astrophysics or an associate’s in culinary, we all have our reasons. Just like with the weight issue she was discussing; we all have different backgrounds and issues. Maybe obesity runs in the family, maybe there’s a medical issue, or maybe she just does eat unhealthy foods. Whatever the issue is, we should be able to look past it and potentially offer the help that she may need (the same goes for a thin-built person). Another issue in today’s society is that everything is so critiqued and criticized, we can’t think straight. Take the photo of Kristen Stewart as an example. What was wrong with the first picture? Why did it have to be changed, altered? There was no reason to change the picture. It’s because society has an image of what every person should look like and if you don’t fit that mold, they’ll “fix” you. Gators004
Since I watched the video, I can understand why C. Wright Mills believed that knowledge is a crucial part to social change. I myself believes that today's society needs a change. On the other hand, I'm not a believer that change will come through those with knowledge and one who used it properly. If this was the case, the world would already be changed since we have a lot of people with knowledge in the crucial world. I know there are tons of high class, powerful people in this country who doesn't give a rats ass about the middle to lower class individuals in my opinion. The statement about personal troubles are linked to public issues is a true statement. If there is 14 million unemployed people in the country it is most definitely a social issue that the government needs to address. C. Wright breaks down Sociological imagination which allows us to learn whats happening in society. The statement about divorce is so true, its not a simple personal problem, it leads to consequences that effects everyone involved. Basically if people are aware of the world and themselves social changes will come.~Mznurse004
This video did an ok job of explaining sociological imagination. I thought the other explaining it did a much better job. The example they used of the woman with an eating disorder I think did a good job of explaining how society may pressure or influence our choices that we makes. I also think it would help people to understand sociological imagination better if they try to put it into effect with their own lives. Why did we choose the school we did, why do some people choose to have children and other don't, or even with marriage. I think if you really think about thinks society really does effect the choices we make on a daily level. It can even be as simple as why I had a one dollar pizza for dinner tonight, it be simply that that's what I wanted to eat or it could be that I am a student and I have put all my money into going to school full time that the only thing I could afford to eat was this dollar pizza.
ReplyDelete-mybabygirl004
Totally understanding the pizza....I guess a general pattern in our particular population (full time college students). I'm feeling sociology more here in my life. Morealikethanithought004
DeleteThis video reminded me that there are more than just personal reasons for the seemingly personal decisions (both good decisions and wrong decisions) that we make on a daily basis. While putting on a pair of blue jeans seems pretty mindless, I’d like to share a story of a time when I was in high school and all I wanted was a pair of high priced blue jeans. My parents would not buy them as they were very expensive (around $55.00). At the age of 15, I began working a job slinging chili dogs at a local snack shop. At the time, minimum wage was $3.25. As you can imagine, it took me some time to save up enough money to buy the jeans. I did end up purchasing the jeans and I loved them. I rocked them, I felt good in them. After three washes, the jeans developed a hole and were useless. I was crushed. So, why did I feel that I needed this specific brand of jeans? I had plenty of hand me down jeans. In looking through my individual lens or personal trouble lens, I felt that I needed to buy this specific brand of jeans to prove to my peers at the time, that I was as equal of a person in both intelligence and financial status. I felt very much like a lower class citizen because of the size of and location of my house and the fact that my parents were out of work. In looking at the situation through history or structural issues, I can see now that our economy was in poor condition at the time with the labor force shrinking by 15% in the early to mid 1980’s. I can also see that material wants/needs were a trend at that time, mostly notably cemented by Madonna’s song “Material Girl”. As a teenager, these issues were hard to grasp at the time. Now that I am an adult, I can see that each seemingly personal decision I make, is backed by something bigger than my own individual lens. ~happilycurious004
ReplyDeleteI can definitely relate to your story. Mine wasn’t jeans it was the Spice Girl Platform looking tennis shoes (no judging lol). It seems so understandable after hearing about sociology. However, I have never thought that we are all so connected until this class. Something as simple as a pair of jeans or something as serious as suicide and both can be the case for so many for the same reason. It really makes me think and look at people in a different light.
Delete-MysonMyworld004
It seems today that we are guided by the news, social media and television shows to control the way we feel about everything. Thirty years ago the same structural forces; race (gender), norm & valves (classism) and historical discrimination were applied but in a very subtle way or at least that’s way I remember the 80’s. I can relate to the cost of blue jeans, tennis shoes and movie tickets being more than my mother could afford. I worked hard to achieve because I wanted to give back to her and my family. I wasn’t alone in feeling that way, it was the norm and part of valves then.
DeleteBuckrogers004
I know that my fashion most of the time is based on society and what everyone else is wearing. I don't want to be the person that is not in with the cool group. I never really thought about how things are connected like fashion and a person decision take their own life. It is really a eye opener.
Deletewonderwoman004
You really have brought up such a good point when you talked about having to have those pair of blue jeans. Our society paints this picture especially for women we always have to look our best, and name brands are what gives us that. If we don't always wear the "nicer" thing's in life we may easily be deemed as a lower class citizen. -JustMe1989004
DeleteHappliycurious004 Many of us can probably relate to having dont what you describe. It is interesting that we all reach our pivotal points in life when we become aware of our actions. I dont know about you but understanding the sociological imagination really helps to grasp the motives behind this. -Kylegoldheart004
DeleteThis video gave a great explanation with the eating disorder. The individual could be feeling that she overweight or larger than her friends. But maybe the reason she feels this way is because of the way society feels women should look or what they should weigh. When mentioned that sociology is always changing it makes sense because even our idea of what a women should weigh or look like has changed since let’s say the 50s. I would say that now days it is a bit more acceptable to be overweight. Maybe not acceptable to be overweight and in the spot light but in general everyday life maybe. Breaking it down in to the lenses was a very simple way to concept it. You have your own personal issues and thoughts on why you are going through something or why you chose something. Then you have an explanation on why lots of people from different backgrounds and situations may also be going through something or choosing that same thing. When she mentioned to think about why they chose that school. I thought about the reason I chose ICC. It’s affordable, lots of grants and scholarships are offered, I know I am not going to find a job that pays enough to support my son without an education, and because it was close to home. I know from class there are lots of individuals who picked ICC for the same reasons. They are not all single moms but somehow they still chose the same school as me. It is crazy when you realize we are more connected than we thought. That our hardships are not just ours alone, but are shared with many others.
ReplyDelete-MysonMyworld004
I agree completely with what you said about the reasons you chose ICC. I am married, have two kids and work a full time job. My main reason for choosing ICC was the cost factor. I transferred to ICC from another school which was much more expensive. I figured out very quickly that I wasn't going to be able to continue at that other school. I was also very touched with the analogy of the girl struggling with the eating disorder. I think that as Americans we fall into the trap of thinking that we are so much different than other people in the World. But, when you look at humans as a whole we all struggle with basically the same things no matter what region we come from. ~peoriahighlionsfootball004
DeleteEach week the class and blog open my mind to revisit what I thought I knew. This week Social Imagination enable me to see how our weight, our race or homeless shape our view points. I have seen over the past twenty years our country perception on weight. In 1984 people who were thin, with flawless skin and young were praised and considered beautiful. It was the benchmark for how we should all look or try to look. America’s top models, magazine photos and movies painted celebrities in an unrealistic way and caused millions of people have eating disorders like Bulimia, Anorexia Nervosa and binge eating disorders. Now because of social awareness these issues are improving and companies like Mattel are making “Barbie” dolls that reflect all races (and their shades and shapes) , religious background and most importantly weight to a widely accepted and even adored sociality.
ReplyDeleteBuckRogers004
Although things are improving, eating disorders of all ranges are still an issue. I actually think that the media is making it seem like it's ok to be obese. There are these women that are obese and they are telling these young girls its ok to be over weight and I completely don't agree with that. I don't want my little girl seeing this model who is way over weight and think that's ok because it isn't. There are so many horrible health risks that come along with that. Just like I said in my other post, we as parents need to teach our children about what it is to be healthy and the media will always be thowing things in our face. I do agree with you though about them making different colored skinned toned dolls and I think that is really great. We have come a long way but we still have a long way to go.
Delete-mybabygirl004
I definitely agree that the social pressures to fit that perfect “Barbie” image led to the prevalence of eating disorders in our society. Young people are so impressionable, and they will do anything to fit in. When we teach children that they have to be ridiculously thin, girls of a healthy weigh start to think that they are fat. It is unfortunate that we praise women that are honestly unhealthy with as skinny as they are. We are setting up future generations to lead unhealthy lives in a much different way than we do.
DeleteDTH004
This video really made me think about some of the things that shape my thought process. The video talks about eating disorder. It talks about two viewpoints as to some thing that shapes this persons reasons for thinking that her is not in shape. One view point is individual or personal trouble. The other is Society and how we allow their views of what is or is not a good weight. Society shapes our thinking in so many areas of our lives. There are public issues like police abuse, homeless, and suicide. Society plays a big part in how we view another people. It is how we view if they are fat or thin. It also plays a big part in how I view myself. Society decides if someone is successful or not. The problems of the world touch each and everyone of us in so way or another.
ReplyDeletewonderwoman004
I did not care for this video about the sociological imagination as much as the other video. But C Mills did have some good points I this one as well. When it broke down society as two different lenses it helped gave me a good understanding of both. When they talked about an eating disorder, and appearances, and how it can be a pressure in society. All I could think of when it mentioned using filters for your photos or cropping them to make them more acceptable is when I am on social media and how a majority of the people are like this. Most of the selfies you see are filtered by a photo app, or the people who tend to carry a little extra weight are more likely to have a photo to wear you see mainly just their face and can not see their body. I never really thought of I as social thing until now.I also agreed with C Mills when he says how society changes so much it makes it more difficult to cope with the world, but it can also work in our favor. Overall after watching this video it gave me a better understanding of both the individual and society lens and of what sociological imagination is. -JustMe1989004
ReplyDeleteI liked how you brought up about the filters. if anyone has snap chat these days thats all it is. you have face filters for everything and it makes people feel like they are attractive. i think people already see themselves differently because of the thoughts they have about themselves but now they have the ability to look as good as they want or think. It does make it hard to cope.
Delete-dislikeblogs004
C. Wright Mills' book, The Sociological Imagination discusses how we as a society can correlate things that happen in our own lives with society and nature. I look at it as the sociological imagination can be used as an explanation to help a person figure out what is going on is a persons life. A way to place "blame" on something being an underlying cause for a more prominent problem. With society constantly changing people are having a harder time adapting to the changes that are taking place, especially the middle generations. Society likes to make connections to things. We always have to find the reasons as to why or how our daily lives are affected by nature and/or society. The video highlighted eating disorders and how society affects an overweight person which is the reason why they end up with an eating disorder. I think a persons personal struggles and eating disorders can have a much deeper reason than to try to find one to pin on society. bdole004
ReplyDeleteI didn’t know that the sociological imagination was actually the thesis for C Wright Mill’s book. The first lens known as personal troubles is one that in my mind is the easiest to see through. It is easy to look at an issue from my own views or from one other person’s perspective. This is what I originally had in mind for what the sociological imagination was. Lens two, society, is what I think is tougher to see through. It is harder to look at an issue blaming society instead of personal choice. It is much easier to blame one person than say that we all have contributed to the problem. The society lens looks at social pressure put on a person versus their own personal choices. For instance, the eating disorder. It is easy to say that the reason a girl has an eating disorder is because she thinks she is fat. What many of us don’t think about however is the pressures we as a society put on beauty and fitness. She is taught that society will not accept her if she doesn’t fit that perfect image.
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The different lenses you look through intrigue me. The woman who is thin but thinks that she is too big by societal standards hits home. The pressure that Is put on girls/women. Is astounding. Every single person on this planet perceives them self in one way, while the population sees them in an entirely different way. Children are raised with the ideology that "thin is best." Many of the people that think this way are at risk for developing bad habits such as plastic surgery and eating disorders. The societal view of what the woman should look like needs to be changed. Women need to be portrayed as healthy and strong, not made out to be small and weak. Being seen as a "goddess" should not only reference physical appearance.
ReplyDeleteThatgirl618-004
I appreciate your comment with being intrigued by the lenses of others. I too find it fascinating to see a person who appears to be physically fit and when given a complement on their appearance, that person will point out what they don’t like about themselves. Why? What is wrong with someone saying something nice and the other person simply saying, thank you? Why can’t a person look in the mirror and say, ‘yep, that works’ or ‘I look alright’? And why is the number on the scale or the size in the dress so darn important? People are so much more than a number. One of my all-time favorite commercials: http://www.dietsinreview.com/diet_column/09/special-k-rethinks-jeans-shopping-with-a-smart-and-inspirational-marketing-campaign/ ~happilycurious004
DeleteI thought this video went a bit more in depth than the other video on C. Wright Mills “Sociological Imagination” by Sociology Live did. I liked the small amount of history that she added before she got into it. I like how she explained the two lens of Sociology imagination at the beginning, because I didn’t know that there was more than one way of getting started looking at Sociological Imagination. I feel like I just stopped at the first lens, and I only think about my problems being just that, my problems and not thinking that anyone else could possibly understand what I’m going through. I feel like this video was a little hard to take for the second half of it, because half the video did not correlate with me. With that being said, I still thought it was still a good overview of the Sociological Imagination.
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I enjoyed in this video the first viewpoint about the girl with the eating disorder. The mindset they get stuck in about their body. They brought up how everything can be photo shopped these days so that even the smallest imperfection can be fixed. The expectations society has on people are the reasons why people are insecure. This is why the girl might have the eating disorder because society has gotten to her head and now she thinks she isn’t thin enough. Society is behind a lot of your decisions without even taking it into consideration. Using social imagination it allows you to see the roll that society plays in our everyday life.
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In my personal opinion I liked the first video more than this one, the whole last part of this video I felt was just really unimportant. However, I really enjoyed the first example they used for the Individual lens and the societal lens. I agree very much with what she was saying but I would have liked to hear a little more maybe? I’m the type of person that likes great details. I agree very much that society kind of influences our day to day decisions but I also think that we ourselves also have a great impact on how we feel, act, and think. I don’t want to be completely harsh now; I do think that this video is very helpful and important. I just think maybe they should have used a different example for the second part of the video. But once again, that’s just my opinion
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I agree with you I think the first clip was a lot more helpful than this one. I did like how they gave the examples as well about the individual lens and the societal lens it broke it down a better. I do like details and I feel like this didnt have it very much. the ending was a little helpful and gave a good example but other than that I don't think it was much needed .
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This video was average to me. I enjoyed the correlation between the social imagination and the eating disorder. I do agree that your social imagination can skew your view on reality. Speaking as someone who struggled with weight when I was younger I can tell you this is definitely true. Once your view on reality is changed to fit what is socially acceptable, it can be hard to reverse that. What is acceptable to one group of people or culture may not be universal. However, we tend to try to change or adapt depending on what group of people we are around. I am now raising a teenager. I am trying to get him to aspire to be a leader and not a follower. I am trying to teach him that what is "cool" now might not be "cool" later and that he should focus on his education and not "fitting in". This is hard for young people because they are so vulnerable and influenced by everything around them. I believe this influence is greatly due to the social imagination.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how I feel about this clip. It confused me a little bit, I understood some parts but not all of it. It pointed out that sociological imagination is always changing. I was wondering how was it changing all the time but it showed the example of going to college and how years ago if you wanted a good job you could come right out of high school and have that job rather then now you have to have a college degree. I think that was a good example because I didn't think of it like that.
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I more of this video than the other video. I understood that society influences the individual. Society has themes and trends, which affect an individual’s choices. For example, they had the girl with an eating disorder. The girl has an eating disorder because of society’s image of what a female should look like. The girl could possibly see an advertisement or photo that has a beautiful female and she looks thin and fit. The girl would think that she has to look exactly like the female to be beautiful, so she would start starving herself and exercise more often. The girl would want to be thin and fit just like the female, but she doesn’t realize that the advertisement or photo was enhanced and photoshopped. The girl will be determined to be beautiful the way that society will view and accept her, not the way that she will accept herself. -Happy004
ReplyDeleteYour comment kind of goes along with mine, in that society has an image already picked out for us and if you don’t look that way, you’re out casted. I think this video helped explain sociological imagination better than the last video did, as you said. Gators004
DeleteC. Mills speaks about how sociology allows us to put our lives in context with society and history. This video helped to understand exactly how this works. When I think of using sociological imagination the topic of "trends" comes to mind. Specifically the trend of aesthetics/beauty really hits close to home. When I think back 10-15 years ago plastic surgery was much more than a luxury, it was unheard of for any lay people to have gone under a knife. Today, is common enough that 5 people in my family have had plastic surgery of some sort. When we ask what influence this trend we are forced to look at societal pressures. Documentary shows like "Nip/Tuck" bring the reality of plastic surgery to our couches. This video brings up a great point that our abilities to edit the publishing of stars photos has created an unrealistic ideology. Looking through the individuals lenses one may think they need surgery because their body is not ideal and looking through the societal lenses one may associate their ideals with the pressures of society.
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Yes C. Wright does allow us to put our lives in context with society and history. Its true, years ago plastic surgery was scarce and now, this day and age everyone and their grandmother is doing it. Reality shows is definitely an influence on individuals to try it. Being obese and wanting the life of a thin person will cause one to look into getting plastic surgery.~Mznurse004
DeleteI agree with the woman in this video that we all have our own reasons for picking whichever schools we go to. Whether that is a master’s degree in astrophysics or an associate’s in culinary, we all have our reasons. Just like with the weight issue she was discussing; we all have different backgrounds and issues. Maybe obesity runs in the family, maybe there’s a medical issue, or maybe she just does eat unhealthy foods. Whatever the issue is, we should be able to look past it and potentially offer the help that she may need (the same goes for a thin-built person). Another issue in today’s society is that everything is so critiqued and criticized, we can’t think straight. Take the photo of Kristen Stewart as an example. What was wrong with the first picture? Why did it have to be changed, altered? There was no reason to change the picture. It’s because society has an image of what every person should look like and if you don’t fit that mold, they’ll “fix” you. Gators004
ReplyDeleteSince I watched the video, I can understand why C. Wright Mills believed that knowledge is a crucial part to social change. I myself believes that today's society needs a change. On the other hand, I'm not a believer that change will come through those with knowledge and one who used it properly. If this was the case, the world would already be changed since we have a lot of people with knowledge in the crucial world. I know there are tons of high class, powerful people in this country who doesn't give a rats ass about the middle to lower class individuals in my opinion. The statement about personal troubles are linked to public issues is a true statement. If there is 14 million unemployed people in the country it is most definitely a social issue that the government needs to address. C. Wright breaks down Sociological imagination which allows us to learn whats happening in society. The statement about divorce is so true, its not a simple personal problem, it leads to consequences that effects everyone involved. Basically if people are aware of the world and themselves social changes will come.~Mznurse004
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