Premium Essay

Race and Social Class Issues

In: Social Issues

Submitted By moneyragz
Words 1607
Pages 7
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air has a lot of aspects in it that deals with societal issues that are rarely seen because this show is a comedy. There are specific episodes that really show some of these issues but look at them in a comical way. If you can get away from the comical part of it, you could really delve deep into these episodes and really find and pick apart some aspects that address major issues. The show can be looked at and broken up into three sections: Race, class, and family dynamic. I will look at and analyze these three sections using Stuart Hall’s Model of Encoding and Decoding and go through the steps involved in this model, and connect them with some episodes and some aspects of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
Race
Using Stuart Hall’s Encoding and Decoding Model of Communication, we will use a few examples from the show The Fresh Prince of Bel Air which deal with race. For each of these examples all four stages of the encoding and decoding model of communication will be applied. In one episode, Will and Carlton were driving to Palm Springs to meet up with the rest of their family, and they were following all laws and ended up getting pulled over and even taken to jail. For the first stage which is production, I look at examples of other movies or television shows, and look at what The Fresh Prince of Bel Air does. In a lot of movies and television shows, when there is a scene that involves a traffic stop, in order to build suspense, the cameras will only show the police officers feet walking up to the car, or a flashlight on the car. But in this scene, the cameras show the police officer’s whole body, in order to show that the officer was white and that it was a racially charged situation. This show was circulated on network television and they were targeting a very wide audience. If it was on cable it would cut down a large portion of the

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Maguire: Intersection Between Race And Social Class Issues

...Comparably, Maguire addresses the intersection between race and social class issues for the Animals negatively affect them. Maguire sets Animals as a race that they eventually must return to being animals. For instance, the Goat, Dr. Dillamond explains to his female students about Banns on Animal Mobility, “Animals were restricted in their access to travel conveyances, lodging, and public services... Any Animal coming of age was prohibited from working in the profession or public sector. They were, effectively, to be herded back to the farmlands and wilds if they wanted to work for wages at all” (Maguire 54). Emeralds’ government sets restrictive policies against the Animals and discriminate by lacking the equality of opportunities such as...

Words: 317 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Accuracy of Braveheart

...Accuracy of Braveheart The mass media plays a large role in modern society. Indeed, many have argued that people spend more time in “mass-mediated” interaction than in actual human interaction. The mass media, then, would seemingly be an excellent position to initiate social change, positively affect social problems, and help combat social ills that are considered normal patterns of behavior. Yet, the mass media has largely failed in addressing and helping to solve social problems. As seen through its presentation of the three major variables of race, class, and gender, the mass media has actually served to contribute to the social problems it covers, reinforcing them, and creating an inter-related cycle in which these problems continue. TV has become perhaps the primary vehicle that society receives its information and presents its values and expectations. One of the most important roles television plays is its presentation of news and information. What a station chooses to present as newsworthy can play a strong role in how people view their society and the world around them. Often, television news sources have followed a philosophy of “if it bleeds, it leads”, focusing on violence in urban environments. This violence occurs more frequently in black neighborhoods, resulting in what amounts to essentially as a steady, nightly stream of reports on violence in the inner-city by and among African-Americans. In this way, the television media plays a strong...

Words: 1731 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Social Issues

...Dimensions of Social Inequality Julie McElwain Park University Abstract Social inequality is how different categories of individuals are prescribed by the society. The society uses basic characteristics such as gender, sex, education, and ethnicity among other factors in order to categorize an individual. The social inequalities determine the access to limited goods such as market labor force, education, health care facilities, and other forms of participation in the society. Different forms of social inequalities are constructs of geographical distribution, and status within the country, however, cultural aspects, mostly integrated with cultural identities, of society are perceived to be the major contributor of social inequality. Discourses have, therefore, been raised on whether the poor deserve to be poor or not and whether the rich deserve to be rich or not. In order to address this question, I examined different dimensions of social inequalities in my life such as social class, educational level, and race among other factors. In this paper, I will also try to bring out understanding of different theories in attempt to explain social stratification. A comparison will be done between different perspectives through interviews and my own perspective of social inequalities. In essence all factors discussed in this paper show a link between social inequalities and different factors such as economic and political system. Trends such as widening inequalities...

Words: 3161 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Poverty and Race

...Race vs. Class From the time of slavery until the twenty-first century, race has been the driving element regarding opportunities for people of African descent. The question of whether this has changed presently is ambiguous. America has certainly evolved from a place of slavery and segregation to the self-proclaimed “Land of Opportunities” offering equal rights and prospects to all, yet there are still signs of inequality within the social construct of the nation. If one were to take a look at the American work field, they would notice the differences in positions acquired by African-Americans and Caucasians. African-Americans typically work minimum-wage jobs, living paycheck to paycheck and if they are fortunate enough to acquire an adequate paying job; their employers are Caucasians who usually own the major businesses and corporations. This inevitable conflict has emerged from America’s past history of unfair and unequal treatment of people of color. The American society has not completely eradicated the problem with racial discrimination and inequality within the workforce which has created the growing wealth gap. In the United States, issues of race and class are tied to together like a chain of DNA; one cannot address the issue of class without referring to the demographics of race. The methodology of determining the variations in social class was established in the mid-1960s and has not changed in the most latter years. Within the time span, there have been many studies...

Words: 1586 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Inequality In Public Schools

...All of these things considered, we have a major social problem on our hands: the inequalities among and within our public schools, and the major disadvantage this places on minority and low-income groups. In order to accurately suggest a policy to repair the cracks in our system, it is important to first understand the issues more in-depth. As Storer et al. poignantly state in “Moving Beyond Dichotomies…”, “…class, race and place are intricately bound to one another and a singular focus on any of these factors is an insufficient explanation for educational outcomes” (18-19). In other words, race, class, and location affect each other, and combined, they all play a crucial part in education. As an initial example, Storer et al. point to the...

Words: 1207 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Development of Social Values and Cultural Practices

...DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL VALUES AND CULTURAL PRACTICES Certain needs such as to make a living, the need for social organization, knowledge as well as learning, normative and metaphysical expression are common to all the people. As a result, the culture of a society not only acts as an instrument of cooperate development, but also as a basis of social values and cultural practice development. In addition, culture is not considered as being in the opposition to development, but rather as an idea that is continually changing as well as being created in relation to the changing social processes and it constitutes a common point of reference within the global development. The study examines how social values and cultural practices are shaped by age, class, ethnicity and gender. Social values and cultural practices shaped by age A study on the vast potential expansion of HIV epidemic as well as cultural impact in the sub-Saharan Africa reflects how ages shapes social values and cultural practices. Cultural practices that include large differences within the ages of men and women at marriage as well as along the period of postpartum abstinence have resulted into frequent extra-marital relations. However, such relationships have contributed to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. In order to respond to the spread of HIV/AIDS, the social adaptations have to include some profound changes within the sexual behaviours, child bearing and marriage customs. On the other hand, social values,...

Words: 2898 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

Principles of Economics

...will continue to be of consequences five to ten years hence. The paper will explain Racism as a serious problem confronting societies at the present time. The document will draw attention to the fact that these problems or issues are rooted in human civilization. Racism is the belief that characteristics and abilities can be attributed to people simply on the basis of their race and that some racial groups are superior to others. Racism and discrimination have been used as powerful weapons encouraging fear or hatred of others in times of conflict and war, and even during economic downturns. Racism is also a very touchy subject for some people, as issues concerning free speech and Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights come into play. Some people argue that talking about supporting racial discrimination and prejudice is just words and that free speech should allow such views to be aired without restriction. Others point out that these words can lead to some very dire and serious consequences (the Nazi government policies being one example).Race: Are We So Different, Understanding Race, American Anthropological Association (AAA), July 8, 2009 In a short video the Understanding Race project from the American Anthropological Association says race is a powerful idea and an enduring concept, invented by society. It has also fostered inequality and discrimination for centuries, as well as influencing how we relate to other human beings. Curses of Racism in History ...

Words: 2644 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Social Stratification in South Africa

...Social Stratification in modern South Africa by Jabu Banda 512424 Introduction Max Weber viewed social stratification from three dimensions (Wright, EO): economic class, social status and power (party). According to Weber each of these dimensions had its own stratification: the economic, represented by income and access to goods and services, the social, represented by prestige and honour and the political, represented by power .Unlike Marx Weber paved the way for us to incorporate race and ethnicity dimensions in relation to social stratification. South Africa has always been and still is very much a society divided along racial lines. There has however been a gradual but undeniable shift from a society divided along race under apartheid towards division along economic class post 1994. We can attribute this shift largely to the significant political landscape change but we still need a deeper understanding of the forces driving this shift. This paper will therefore attempt to analyze modern day South African society in relation to Weber’s model of social stratification with the view establish its validity and relevance in a local context. We are presented by opportunity to perhaps explore impact this shift has had economically. In other words what the impact has been on access to products and services, media, health, education and so forth. The dimension of power and politics was very central to Weber’s theory, it is therefore natural that we examine the impact the shift from...

Words: 1337 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Street Sex Trade Sociology

...due to their race, class, and gender certain groups of women, such as those of Indigenous backgrounds are treated unequally, and subject to marginalization and criminalization. Intersectionality explains how issues relating to race, class, and gender, such as capitalism, racism, colonialism, patriarchy, and gender inequality force women into the street sex trade in order to survive, and how social organizations provide useful resources despite the portrayal of these women as undeserving. Drawing on interviews conducted with Sage House and Transitional Educational Resources for Women (TERF) and several secondary sources, an intersectionality approach will be used to illustrate that the difficulties women in the street sex trade face are a result...

Words: 1238 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Race Problems

...We need to figure out what we can do as a society to fix these issues with race in today’s modern world. There are many key components to race, but we need to focus on the ones that truly matter. Those issues could have solutions for solving race and ethnicity problems. One key issues with race is that race determines people’s opportunities in life and it affect what you can and can’t do. In order for this issue to go away there needs to be a solutions that could solve it or at least eliminated the problem to the point where it’s barely noticeable or exists. The only way that it could possibly permanently go away is by having companies get rid of their certain social qualities like race and ethnicity. However, there is one problem with this solution that I came up with and that is: If companies were to completely get rid of those social qualities from their application requirements then the company could lose their control over how their company is portrayed and run. I know for...

Words: 1604 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Race

...What is race? Common responses in the Sociology 222 class were, 'race is something we are born with' and 'race is the same as skin colour'. When looking at these statements from a Sociological perspective, we have to ask ourselves a few relevant questions. Why are sociologists critical of the above statements? How do research writers challenge ideas about social construction and institutionalisation of race under apartheid and colonialism? This essay is going to discuss a number of readings in order to answer the above questions. This essay will also look at the relevance of the Jane Elliot experiment for thinking about, and understanding of race as a social construction. Lastly, this essay will discuss what we can learn about the dynamics of apartheid from the experiences of Sandra Laing in the film 'Skin'. In conclusion this essay will evaluate the various opinions and research done on the matter of race, and how race is socially constructed. Firstly, we have to look at how and why sociologists are critical of race as a biological phenomenon. Race is widely discussed and debated all over the world. The main sociological focus is the effects of social race and how race is used to categorize people into groups. When we look back in history, we see that race was seen as a biological factor for many centuries. When explorers from Europe in the New World discovered people who looked different, raised questions such as ‘Did God only make one species of humanity?’ and ‘Where...

Words: 1267 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

Multiculturalism

...rather than a multiculturalism. We live with the differences of people but every day we judge people and what they do or believe in, we tear people down. We expect people to be like us to conform into our ways of living. So no as a whole or individuals we do not respect cultural diversity. The reasons multiculturalism is such a controversial issues for some people is because for one people are set in their ways and for tow the U.S. expects people to be like us. For example clothed rather than bare like Indians or not to clothed like Muslims. Yes we have people like that in the U.S. but how many of us stare at them and judge their cultural believes or try to convert them to something else. “In order to be supportive of anyone or anything, we need to have an idea or an interpretation of what we are supporting. It’s so important to have the right information before going to action on any side of an issue. Especially issues of race and equality. Two subjects that have stained this country since its beginning. Therefore it’s important to have accurate and appropriate information about an issue before we stand in favor of it. In terms of race and diversity, we need to be sure that we understand the principle behind being equal. Because a misinterpretation of this fact can lead to complicated misunderstandings. Within my definition of multiculturalism, the term interpretation in the...

Words: 900 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Racial Discrimination In America

...hatred targeting a group due to their race or ethnicity. Racism can vary; as a result, the act of discrimination can affect the group or person through trauma. Today’s time, the term racism cannot be labeled in a single category. The ideology behind shows that humans unconsciously subdivide themselves; submerging hatred or single aggression against another party. Under this social science study, racism can influence the health of America’s population. Can transition of the following generations to confront the issue. The study reflects the three minority groups in the Northern part of America; pertaining to the African-American, Asian-American, and Hispanic-American groups. Studies shown that each behave under the...

Words: 1537 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Robert D. Putnam's Our Kids: The American Dream In Crisis

...Rhonda Hammad Principles of Economics Extra Credit #1 Read a book dealing with an issue of economic policy and write a review addressing a)why you think the author wrote the book, 2)how effectively he articulated his position and 3)do you agree or disagree with his ideas and why. It’s the American dream: get a good education, work hard, buy a house, and achieve prosperity and success. The book I reviewed was “Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis” by Robert D. Putnam. In this book Putnam asks a series of questions of the future and economy. He wonders what stance the economy will be and what the future may hold for Our Kids. He answers these questions through a series of analyzed data and speaking to many people about social and economic...

Words: 763 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Social Inequality

...Social Inequality What is social inequality? What are the sources of social inequality? For me, social inequality cannot be described in one sentence. Factors such as race, wealth, class, gender, age, among others all play roles into why people can sometimes be treated unfairly. However before I introspectively reflect on social inequality, there is one theory that suggests where today’s society is heading for me. Karl Marx is known as a prominent economic and political influence that lived during the 19th century. Marx’s theory of stratification is very applicable to where society, especially in the United States, is heading today. According to Marx, society would become divided into two classes, the dominant capitalist or the working class. Essentially the capitalists consist of the owners of production within a country while the working class consists of the laborers. This represents uneven distribution of wealth and resources, which creates a system of stratification. According to Professor Domhoff of the University of California, the top 20% of the workforce owned 89% of all privately held wealth in the United States as of 2010. There is already a large gap between social classes and will only continue to get worse if we continue down the same path as a nation. Whether through higher taxes on the wealthy or tax breaks on the working class, the gap needs to be closed. Money is king of today’s society whether people want to admit it or not. For me I think the uneven...

Words: 1336 - Pages: 6