...Sociology Assignment #3 February 2 A. Brianna DeLuca (brd5126); Sarah Moore (sam6137) B. In 3-5 sentences, please summarize 1) personal troubles, 2) public issues of social structure, and 3) individual factors, as presented in the textbook and lecture. Personal troubles are things that happen and negatively impact an individual on a personal level. The public issues of the social structure are the negative things that impact a society and contribute to it. Private troubles can lead to public issues. Some public issues include pollution, bullying in schools, health, sexual assault, and equal rights. Some personal troubles include job status, family issues, eating disorders, drug addictions and even death of a loved one. C. Identify the show, the general topic of the show, and the day and date watched. The show we watched is The Bachelor. This show focuses on 25 women competing for one man’s love and potential marriage proposal. We watched this show on is normal airing day of the week, Monday, February 2nd, 2015. Questions D and E ask: What were TWO of the WORST, most significant, major personal troubles people seemed to have on the show? D. In a sentence or two, what was the first worst personal trouble? Who had this personal trouble? One of the bachelorettes, Kelsey, becomes upset during the show when she lets the other girls know that her former husband died due to a heart attack about a year ago. Kelsey talks about how hard it has been for her since...
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...individuals.” (Mills 1959: 3). The author puts forward his argument of the sociological imagination as looking outwardly rather than inside as individuals have both personal troubles and public issues. We often only take focus of the inner factors (personal troubles) and forget to take a sociological outlook on other factors, as to why it may occur (public issues). Fundamental to the concept of sociological imagination is the idea of ‘the personal trouble of milieu’ and ‘the public issues of social structure’. Personal troubles are the troubles and complications faced by an individual. It is the theory of social imagination that allows the individual to recongise that these troubles are caused by the structure and/or failure of society. Without this, an individual is unable to overcome their troubles. In accordance, Yaniv Belhassen states; “…understanding that personal troubles cannot be resolved simply on the individual level; they must also be connected with public issues and vice versa.” (Belhassen 2007: 1081) Public issues are problems within society that affect individual people. Moreover, the recognition of public issues is viewed as a method of resolving the personal troubles of an individual. This alludes to the fact that sociological imagination allows the individual to recongise that the cause of their troubles is the result of a...
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...imagination (Mills 1959) as a tool to understand that personal troubles can often be caused or influenced by broader issues within society, rather than as a result of the individual. Fundamental to this theory is the difference between personal troubles and public issues in society, as often a distinction is not made between the two. If this contrast cannot be recognised then a sense of entrapment can be felt by the individual. An example of this is the institution of marriage and divorce. If the connection to the societal issues can be seen and perspective on personal troubles changed, this sense of entrapment or guilt can be relieved. Mills stated that the key to the sociological imagination was being able to see the relationship between the personal life of the individual and the wider public issues of society. An individual’s private troubles may occur due to their character, skills and immediate opportunities. Public issues are the result of broad societal flaws, affecting the individual but not caused by them directly (Mills 1959: 8). The distinction between the two is not always seen clearly, and often those that are unable to distinguish this difference are plagued by a feeling of entrapment and feel they are to blame for their situation and are thus falsely conscious of their social position (Mills 1959: 6). The sociological imagination can relieve this feeling as it allows the individual to understand that personal problems can occur due to causes beyond their control...
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...see this connection. Mills also suggests that seeing the distinction “between ‘the personal troubles of milieu’ and ‘the public issues of social structure” is the essential tool of the sociological imagination. Only when we clearly distinguish personal troubles and public issues can we see the connection between individuals’ experiences and social structures. Personal troubles are private problems that can be explained by personal characteristics; public issues are problems of collective concern. Mills used unemployment as an example to illustrate the differences between the two. He said, “In a city of 100,000, only one is unemployed, that is his personal trouble…in a nation of 50 million employees, 15 million people are unemployed, that is an issue” (Mills, 1959). We may feel empathy when we read this example as we are experiencing an economic recession. Last Friday’s headline story of New York Times (“Jobless Rate Hits 7.2%, a 16-Year High”) reports the unemployment rate rapidly increased from 2007 to 2008, from 4.9% to 7.2%. The number of unemployed people increased to 11.1 million at the end of 2008. This news story interprets the recent unemployment crisis as a public issue, as do most other observers. Politicians, economists, and citizens all have called for public policies to resolve the crisis. If politicians, economists, CEOs, and citizens all recognize unemployment as a public issue, does it mean that they possess a sociological imagination? If not, what is the difference...
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... 1. Introduction 3 2. Distinction between personal troubles and public issues 3 3. The family 3 4.1 Defining a basic family 3 4.2 Introducing the article Family sorrow as Macia is laid to rest 3 4.3 Background information on the article 3 4.4 Discussing the personal troubles and public issue of the article 3 4. Religion 4 5.5 Defining religion 4 5.6 Introducing the article Christians are not that silent 4 5.7 Background information on the article 4 5.8 Discussing the personal troubles and public issues of the article 4 5. Conclusion: personal view of the sociological imagination 4 6. References 5 C. Wright Mills (1916-1962) was an influential sociologist that wrote one of the first books on the Sociological Imagination called The Sociological Imagination (1959). According to Mills (1916-1962), sociology was merely about understanding the complex relationship between individuals and the society that they lived in by using an “out of the box” and critical way of thinking. In order to fully understand this complex relationship, knowledge of biography and history has to be considered. Another significant founder of sociology, Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) has simply described the Sociological Imagination as “the ability to situate personal troubles within an informed framework of larger social processes”. The...
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...an individual's biography and lifestyles, and place their findings within the surrounding circumstances in which events occur in order to perceive the whole picture of the society in which the individual lives. Mills says to understand this "imagination" would be to see the connection between personal troubles and public issues. Personal troubles meaning, problems that are felt personally which are caused by occurrences or feelings in an individual's life; and public issues meaning, issues that affect a group or mass of people with their roots interwoven within an organization or institution and history of a society. A person can become homeless for many reasons: a family member throws them out of their home because they do not contribute financially, or they become incapable of caring for themselves due to mental illness, or they become addicted to drugs and lose their home trying to support their habit. These are a few examples of personal troubles which most would think are brought about by the individual alone and therefore can be solved by them. But, when using sociological imagination, one can see that homelessness is also a social problem. Unemployment rates are high and public assistances rates being low could leave a person unable to sufficiently contribute financially, therefore being forced to leave their home, or there are cutbacks in funds for housing, the closing of hospitals for the mentally...
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...between Private Troubles and Public Issues which people are often unaware of. Mills explains that the distinction of private troubles and public issues is essential in grasping the sociological imagination. The distinction can be made in that private troubles are personal because of the individuals’ character. Public Issues; however, differ in that they are problems that have come from society and in turn effect the people within that society. The problem which occurs is that an individual often takes on the burden of a society created issue as their own private trouble, often without realising they have done so. An example of this given to us by Mills is marriage and in turn divorce. Individuals often feel that because their marriage is a private relationship the issues which grow within must be their own troubles. However the sociological imagination tells us that with substantial divorce rates, there must be a more logical explanation which is being overlooked. If divorce rates were low, this would indicate personal troubles. However as divorce rates continue to be so high there must therefore be a society based force causing the decline in marriages being sustained. The sociological imagination demonstrates that individuals must come to realise that making these public issues their own trouble prevents change. If people are able to let these troubles go back into a public issue social change may be possible. Domestic Violence is another issue which is too often...
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...Sociology Name Institution Sociology Question 1 Conflict perspective is that the social world is characterized of strife and tension. As such, conflict perspective aims at establishing the tensions that exist within the established order in society. It is the interest of the conflict perspective to understand social issues by considering the behavior and attitude of the halves and halves-not in society. Hence, the perspective establishes the changes that ensure the conflict and tensions. In society, modern leaders in community or government can use conflict perspective. Such is because these leaders will have a chance of determining how the society is governed within the competitive resources (Elwell, 2013). As such, the leaders will have a chance of knowing how to ensure that there is equitable distribution of the resources. It also becomes easier to restore social order, which may have declined over time in the society. Such includes identifying social problems and developing accurate solutions to these problems in order to ensure that individuals live in peace and harmony. Moreover, the leaders have a chance of understanding the nature of the complex relationships and societies where people live. As such, they can express the best symbols of power, which will not introduce tensions or conflict in society. Essay question 3 Sociological imagination is defined by Mills refers to the vivid awareness, which is related to the relationships...
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...series of traps. They sense that within their everyday worlds, they cannot overcome their troubles, and in this feeling, they are often quite correct. What ordinary people are directly aware of and what they try to do are bounded by the private orbits in which they live; their visions and their powers are limited to the close-up scenes of job, family, neighborhood; in other milieux, they move vicariously and remain spectators. And the more aware they become, however vaguely, of ambitions and of threats which transcend their immediate locales, the more trapped they seem to feel. Underlying this sense of being trapped are seemingly impersonal changes in the very structure of continent-wide societies. The facts of contemporary history are also facts about the success and the failure of individual men and women. When a society is industrialized, a peasant becomes a worker; a feudal lord is liquidated or becomes a businessman. When classes rise or fall, a person is employed or unemployed; when the rate of investment goes up or down, a person takes new heart or goes broke. When wars happen, an insurance salesperson becomes a rocket launcher; a store clerk, a radar operator; a wife or husband lives alone; a child grows up without a parent. Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both. Yet people do not usually define the troubles they endure in terms of historical change and institutional contradiction. The well-being...
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...vision. I will also bring to discussion personal examples that are relevant to the topic of the essay. Their role will be to explain the way in which Mills thinking is reflected in everyday life. From the beginning he portrays the way people see themselves “Nowadays men and women often feel that their private lives are a series of traps.”(Mills, 1959:1). This traps represent an obstacle that cannot be overcome, mainly because their sources are the same decisions taken to improve the lifestyle. As they become more conscious of their surroundings , the more trapped they feel. The only solution is to find different ways to see the world, to understand how the changes that are happening in history and society, are affecting them. Only when people will be capable to make these connections, they will be able to free themselves. In Mills vision this is called sociological imagination and it “enables us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society.” (Mills, 1959:3). Sociological imagination is what “enables its possessor to understand the large historical scene in terms of its meaning for the inner life and the external career of a variety of individuals” (Mills, 1959:2) To be able reach it, people should find not only their place in history but also of those that have been in the same situation as them. They have to be able to understand that the history repeats itself and that they should not ignore “the public issues” because it affects them directly...
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... Abstract In this paper I am going to describe an example from my life to utilize the sociological imagination, which depicts the linkage between personal troubles and public issues, how public issues caused my personal troubles. I will talk about pressure of the media and society, and how they influence many girls to go to the gym to get perfect body image. Mills believed that being able to see the relationship between the ordinary lives of people and the wider social forces was the key to the social imagination. The sociological imagination helps individuals understand the society by looking into a bigger picture of the position they are in, mostly in the environment they are living in. Going through this process helps individuals to see great link between personal troubles and public issues. In this paper I will describe an example from my life to utilize the sociological imagination, and how public issues affected my life. I will describe how public issues caused my personal trouble of conveying beauty and a good body image. As I was grew up I was a chubby kid, and although I didn’t have any major troubles I started growing an obsession of having and creating perfect body image. At that time both of my parents were not emotionally available and both of them struggled with alcohol addiction. Most of my friends who were not concerned about their body image, started...
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...C. Wright Mills (August 28, 1916 – March 20, 1962) was an American sociologist, and a professor of sociology at Columbia University. Mills was also the author of a number of books. One book which Mills is best known for is The Sociological Imagination (1959), which is considered Mills' most influential book. The first chapter of the book which is titled The Promise, Mills argues that individuals are trapped in their own private bubbles, which he refers to as private orbits. Mills states that in order for a sociologist to properly study sociology, they need to have a certain mindset which according to Mills he calls the sociological imagination. He also goes on to discuss the distinction between personal troubles and public issues. In The Promise, Mills believes that people are trapped in their own private orbits. Private orbits according to Mills is your direct everyday living routine for example your job, family, neighborhood or school. He feels that individuals are so caught up in their orbits that they cannot view the world beyond their immediate and everyday surrounding. Any ambition or threat outside of their orbit that can affect or impact it, leaves the individual feeling more trapped. Mills states that you cannot understand the life of an individual or the history of society without fully understanding both and how they are connected. He also talks about how people do not see how history can have a direct impact on their lives and how it affects them, they do not see...
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...What Is Sociology According to The Sociology Imagination written by C. Wright Mills, our men now feel that their lives are a series of traps, that “people do not usually define the troubles they endure in terms of historical change and institutional contradiction(Mills),” and that people fail fail to see how history effects them individually. These observations can be considered as the practice of sociology in the modern world. Sociology is a study of human behavior, as we learn things from such a course, we discover how we can be wiser by ways of seeing the world around us. As what the author says in his article, he wants us to use our imaginations to wake our world up; to use our imaginations to change the issues that we have; to use our imaginations to think wisely about situations that are happening. Sociology imagination can affect everything in our life, such as unemployment, war, and marriage. As the author says, the unemployed rate goes up as the issues grow up. When one is unemployed, it is one’s own trouble. When millions of people become unemployed, this becomes our world’s problem. On the other hand, the war also effects upon our economic and political. War comes when ones only thinking how many benefits the war can bring to ones country, instead of considering what negative effects it brings. Also the marriage, it is not just a divorce. If everyone is getting a divorce, then the divorce rate goes up can causes so many problems among family and other...
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...a series of traps. They sense that within their everyday worlds, they cannot overcome their troubles, and in this feeling, they are often quite correct. What ordinary people are directly aware of and what they try to do are bounded by the private orbits in which they live; their visions and their powers are limited to the close-up scenes of job, family, neighborhood; in other milieux, they move vicariously and remain spectators. And the more aware they become, however vaguely, of ambitions and of threats which transcend their immediate locales, the more trapped they seem to feel. Underlying this sense of being trapped are seemingly impersonal changes in the very structure of continent-wide societies. The facts of contemporary history are also facts about the success and the failure of individual men and women. When a society is industrialized, a peasant becomes a worker; a feudal lord is liquidated or becomes a businessman. When classes rise or fall, a person is employed or unemployed; when the rate of investment goes up or down, a person takes new heart or goes broke. When wars happen, an insurance salesperson becomes a rocket launcher; a store clerk, a radar operator; a wife or husband lives alone; a child grows up without a parent. Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both. Yet people do not usually define the troubles they endure in terms of historical change and institutional contradiction. The well-being they...
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... As we pay attention to the history and the story of our life merger with the elements in society. We start to learn about how our impersonal changes of society plan out and frame our cherished features of our personal lives. It makes us see our personal and public problems as two parts of one manner. It says in the article that we learn to understand how our private lives conjoin with a cultural society. The sociological imagination is talking about the history of society. Society concentrates on the provocations of the social powers at hand. The mortality that the society has would play a huge part in what role it will carry as a whole. The thing is that the history of the issues is that it went on before the current period. The public issues create a threat to the values of the society as a whole. Through understanding the history individuals feel that their values are being threatened and try to find a way to solve it themselves. Then, it starts to look into what society’s standing is. The society now needing to identify what is a public issue or a personal trouble. In other words, it says that your society is a reflection of what the people are like that live in it. This helps people to realize that their personal troubles are entangled in the public issues. The society’s structure as an entirety affects people’s behavior in it also. It shows you the connection between the history of society and its presence as a society. The social structures being reinforced by people...
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