Good Morning World… It’s Monday morning yet again!

Quick thought:

Are we always acting? After reading his writing, I am starting to wonder what is real. I am still trying to fully grasp this concept of Goffman. I never knew so much thought went into the most mundane actions. From the way we walk, talk, and move, is it all rehearsed? I am guilty of this myself. How many times have I been in my car listening to the most gangsta rap possible, only to get out of the car, “straighten up” before visiting my pastor. I would think back then, “What if he saw me?” or “What if someone who was also going to his home pulled up next to me at a traffic light before we arrived?” I would think how embarrassed I would be. That goes back to the fundamental expressiveness of an individual. We have two different kinds of sign activity: the expression one gives and the one an individual gives off.

I kind of understand the first one, which is the expressions we give . This involves the verbal symbols or substitutes which we us to communicate information that others attach to these symbols. This form is pretty traditional and narrow. The second, the expression that one gives off, is a bit muddled for me. This involves a wide range of actions that others can treat as symptomatic of the actor. That means the action was performed for reasons other than the information convey. What the hell does that even mean? Are we being deceitful at every turn. Are there ulterior motives behind our actions? I will have to get back to you on that part… I will just ask the professor (shrugs).

Back to the understandable… I often wonder how often do we change into character before we arrive somewhere. At what point do we become conscious of us being watched as we approach our intended destinations. How stressful it must be to put on a role for such an extended amount of time. I am very interested in this. It shows just how focused we are on making sure we are accepted in some sense. Our society claims to be extremely individualistic, but in reality so much is dependent on what others thinks , and/or what we want them to think of us… WOW!

Welp, lest I go into a foolish, incoherent ramble, I will just stop now. This Sociology “jazz” is not for the faint-hearted. PEACE!

This will be a brief post. I was reading the OpenStax (OS) book, I came across a something that was kind of interesting. Sociologist classify in relation to the Industrial Revolution. Think about that for a second. It all revolves around that revolution. The pre-Industrial, Industrial, and Post-Industrial Revolutions are the categories. That shows just how much influence economics has on societies. I wondered, why couldn’t there be another classification. What about the Service Revolution? The United Revolution? Something other than basically money. Geez! Even though we try so hard to say other things matter and shape us. Obviously, money and economics shape our culture more than anything. How American is that?

In closing, I do not want to come across as a person who hates everything money. I was just a bit taken aback to see that it has that much influence on how Sociologist classify societies. I will not give up hope though. I am the eternal optimist. It may take some time, but I believe in humanity. There will be a change. So, I will not be surprised when there arises another classification in which Sociologists will use in the future. I just choose not offer up anymore corny sounding names. PEACE!

 

It is true. I act a certain way in different situations. The reason must be due to the fact that I simply do not want to be that person who “blows it.” No one wants to be the person who is shunned in normal social settings, regardless of how independent one is. Since I have made this confession, I will use the thoughts of George Mead and Charles Horton Cooley to help explain why I do this. I will first start with George Mead’s “generalized other” theory. The generalized other says that we develop a sense of self through social interactions. It means that self is developed two ways: by interacting with others and being able to see ourselves through the perspective of others. The “looking-glass self” that Cooley championed, says that we perceive ourselves based on how we think others see us.  Let us delve into a couple examples of how these theories play a role in my life.

Looking at Cooley’s theory, I am reminded of when I would teach Bible study classes. Many times they would just sit there. Now, one must understand that those churches I taught at were responsive churches. That means the people would usually make verbal affirmations as the speaker/preacher would speak. They even would nod usually. So, it was very easy to feel that the people were totally disengaged if they were not making these verbal affirmations. It was straight nerve-wrecking. Often I thought I was up there flunking away. Even though I was always prepared, it just made me feel as though I was not being effective if the people were not making those affirmations. I would repeat points, change my voice in hopes of “getting through.” I was thinking they thought I was incompetent. I felt they were bored and/or annoyed. I would wonder was I dressed to casual, or was I overdressed. So many thought went through my head during those times. I would sit down sometimes in disgust thinking they felt I was boring. Regardless of that, the class was always steadily attended. That confused me even more. I would ask, “Are they just doing this to be “church-nice” to me?” Later on, I learned that the opposite was true. They were actually actively listening. I was told the lessons were presented in such a relevant and genuine way that it made them just want to listen. In actuality, I was making the Bible alive! Wow, I thought to myself. All that time, I thought I was an idiot. All I had to do was just use myself for an example of quiet listeners. I love to actively listen, but in silence. That means I am processing the information, while staying engaged and undistracted. That was a relief. Now, to Mead.

The generalized other theory was a bit easier to find an example. I do this all the time. I wear certain clothes, because I do not want to look as if I do not care. Especially being a college student, I want to be taken serious by both my peers and professors. I hope they would figure, if I take my grooming serious, maybe that will translate to how they treat or view me. I volunteer coach for a third and fourth grade basketball team and I remember going to Marshall’s to buy sports clothes and shoes before the season started. I wanted to be perceived as a real coach, even though that was my first time ever coaching. Seems like they brought it.

In closing, these are just a couple of instances of when these theories were at play in my life. They still are every day. These decisions are made without thought. I am just thankful that now I have the words and theories to explain and analyze these occurrences.

Good Morning World…

I must first say that reading these stories made me extremely thankful. You never know how hard people have. Also, it made me appreciate just how blessed we are to grow up in homes and environments where we can learn language.

That brings me to my second point. The importance of language in our social development cannot be overstated. The stories of Anna and Isabella show just how imperative it is for our families/guardians to teach us language. I never thought of just how fundamental language is to our development. Anna, who was raised in isolation without any investment in her language, soon died. She simply did not have anyone who invested their time in her development. She was basically left to her own. She died at ten years old with severe disabilities and cognitive abilities. Isabella on the other hand, found shortly after Anna, had a more successful development after her isolation. She had many of the same issues as Anna. The difference, a staff at a facility took it upon themselves to teach Isabella language. Since, these people did this, Isabella processed this at an extraordinary rate. She was able to learn in two years what kids usually learn their in their first six years. She actually thrived! From the last report, she was fourteen years old and had passed sixth grade. Even her social skills were exceptional. Even though these were sad cases, it was refreshing to see that at least one kid was able to blossom.

I just want to leave you with: Language is unquestionably the way we learn to be socialized into this society. It is also good to note that even when situations like this occur, there can be a silver lining. Only if people invest their time and energies into others… PEACE!!!

 

 

GOOD MORNING WORLD!

Anticipatory Socialization is a concept that really made a light go off in my head. It is when you began behaving like the group you want to be a part of with the anticipation of being accepted. An example of this is when people take up golf so that one day they could be a part of the certain inner circles. It is basically a preparation for future life roles.

Two thing stood out about this concept. The first, everyone does this in some sense. No one seems to be immune. There are so many ways I did this not even knowing I was doing it. I spent my first few years of life in a notorious housing project in Memphis, Tennessee, and I behaved in way that was the antithesis of that place. I behaved more affluent throughout my life. Whether I was copying from my parents or it came natural, I knew I didn’t want that for life. So in essence, I did and still behave in this manner.

The second thought regarding anticipatory socialization is the one that has my head spinning. It is fairly simple, but I am trying to figure this out. The thought or question is, Do we so easily accept capitalism, because of the concept of anticipatory socialization? I mean, Do we allow the system of capitalism to continue because so many Americans “anticipate” moving up in financial status. We define success in terms of money here in America, so could there be a correlation? Is it possible we allow this system to go, even though we suffer in it, just because most of us hope to become a part of the system in the future. I must admit. I have been guilty of this. It is sad, but a true reality for myself.

So, do we allow this system to stay in place simply because we look to be a part of its inner workings one day? PEACE!!!

Recently, I heard an interesting story on NPR about the sociology behind wealth. It made me think of the values we promote. Or, maybe a glimpse of why the social conflict is still so prevalent between class in our culture. This social psychologist, Paul Piff, had a Rigged Game of Monopoly to show how wealth changes behavior. Participants of game did not know it was a study. They basically flipped a coin to see who would start the game wealthy and who would start poor. Inevitably, the participants who started rich won the game almost all the time.

The surprise was how the rich ones acted. As the game would go on and they became richer, they also became louder. They also became more entitled and hostile toward their peers. The rich one antagonized directly or indirectly the poor by their celebrations. What was even more telling was the interviews they gave after the game. Even though it was by pure luck by flip of the coin they acquired the initial advantage, when asked how they won, they all basically talked themselves up. Not once did they mention the coin flip. They talked of their strategies, intelligence, and the moon, but never the coin toss.

Basically, it was not their genes or biology that led to their inherent advantage. It was luck. It was the experiences they had. It was the plethora of opportunities given to them that were the driving forces for their success. It made me think of value. Where did these players get their values? Is America that screwed up? For people to be born on third base and act as if they hit a triple was mind boggling. It was just sad to hear how people treated others. I am sure these players were nice, law abiding citizens, but their attitudes were borderline barbaric. They had evidence of the Social Darwinism theory, which is a skewed concept when taken out of its context.

I just simply sat in the car stunned at how we can treat others in this society. These people simply disregarded their less fortunate counter parts. They, in some cases, because extremely harsh about collecting rent from the poor players. They showed little compassion and empathy. That struck as strange considering the only thing that was the determinant was a coin toss. I asked would I be that way? Of course not, my experiences in life just would not allow me to turn so cold, unappreciative, and entitled. I pray that our values change in this society, because these players did not display good values at all, but that could be dependent upon whom you ask. Now that is the scary part… PEACE!!!

Class was rather revealing on Monday. The Nacirema people are actually the Americans. Wow. I was blown away… Well I have one:

I have been observing these people for a couple of years now. They are obsessed by the thought of beauty. One thing that stands out is a ritual of the men. These men go into these buildings and wait an entirely long time. The buildings are in every single community that they have. They sit until called to the seat by the strange witch doctor. These witch doctors take out tools that are loud and extremely sharp. They put these objects to the man’s head, while the man sits in relative quietness. These doctors are taking off the men’s hair, but these men smile. When done, smelly chemicals are sprayed over the head. Still, the men do not object to this treatment. In most cases, not much hair is taken, but in other cases much of the hair is gone. It just lies on the floor. Eventually a tool with a long wooden handle is used to pick up the hair, and it is discarded into a trash bin. The men then must leave a gift in order to leave. They also must give some body to body contact. The strange thing about this ritual is that they involve their sons. These men do this often and without a thought.

(The haircut experience)

 

 

 

 

(THIS POST WAS WRITTEN ON THE MORNING OF THE MONDAY THE 22ND AND THOUGHT TO HAD BEEN POSTED. FOR SOME REASON, IT WAS KEPT IN THE “DRAFT” SECTION UNTIL NOW – APOLOGIES)

It is 5:11 AM… Before the chaos of the day.

Well, I had a thought while reading about the Nacirema people. I mean this thought came not too long into the read. As I read about this group of people, I thought how American. Now, of course there are definitely differences, but these people are not that different from Americans. In theory, they have the same obsession as Americans with the outward appearance. They just practice it a bit differently. To me, the Nacirema’s are so American in three ways: their obsession with the outer, the layers of people involved, and the economics of their system.

The Nacirema people have this laser focus on the outward appearance. They go through much pain and time to mold their bodies into certain images. At the heart of this ritualistic society is the concept that the body is ugly and debilitating. With that as the foundation, they have many rituals to improve the looks of their bodies and teeth. That is extremely American. The American society is obsessed with how people look. Just look at the direction of advertising in America, the whole thought is that we as Americans are insufficient. Advertisers play on our self-esteem. Magazines, movies, and the entire entertainment industry have this unattainable standard of beauty that our culture obsess over. In many cases people have even died trying to be beautiful. Much like the Nacirema people, many of those people endure painful and dangerous rituals just to conform to their cultural standards of beauty. The Nacirema people even shun one another if certain beauty standards are not upheld. This is a systematic practice that involves many others.

The Nacirema people also have layers of people who perpetuate this system. They have the priest who lead elaborate ceremonies that consist of making the water holy. They have the medicine men whom prescribe and carry out sadist like rituals on the people. They also prescribe the charms and shrines that the people pray to. This culture also has people who are the “listeners.” The listeners operates as the exorcist. They cast out the evil. I compare that to Americans in the sense that there are multiple forces at play when it comes to how our culture views beauty. In America you have the advertisers, different industries, and even subcultures that dictates how we as a society view ourselves. We invest so much to make ourselves acceptable here in America.

Now, the economics behind the Nacirema people’s culture of beauty is extremely American. You literally have to pay for everything in that culture. In comes cases, you pay to enter the temple, but you also have to pay to leave. At each point a “gift” is required. Whether you are rich or poor, you have to pay. That sounds very familiar. Here in America, the beauty industry’s products sell in the billions of dollars annually. It is no shock why. Since Americans are so obsessed with beauty, products just keep coming out. We are bombarded with products to buy. They are simply everywhere. From regular retail store to the plastic surgeon, beauty in America is big business, much like in the Nacirema culture.

So I ask the question, in theory, Are they really that different from us?

Ajanaku congrats on coming to Morehouse college. I want to take a brief moment to talk about a couple of subcultures on the campus. Allow me to define exactly what a subculture is. A subculture is a group of people with cultural patterns (values, norms, and artifacts) that distinguish them from the dominant culture. It is like a world within a world. You may even find yourself in one of these subcultures. There are so many different subcultures on campus, so I will focus on just three at this moment. I will explain the subculture of the athletes, the social activists, and the Greek life, which is a big deal here on campus.

The first group is the athletes. They are usually identified by the clothes they wear. These guys are usually in athletic gear every single day. They also usually eat high protein and high carb diets Ajanaku. So you find them hanging out more in the University Center by the pizza and wing places. They also show their camaraderie by a lot of touching and roughhousing. Most of the time they will have the television turned to ESPN network or whatever game that is on. Usually these guys travel together around campus. Most of the time they seem as a closed group, but these Brothers are extremely approachable.

The next group are the social activists. These are the clubs that you may be interested in. There are The Black Lives’ Matter group, 100 Black Men of Morehouse, and various groups that focus on socio-economic empowerment. These groups are usually the ones you see protesting issues on campus and off. They usually wear clothing that is inexpensive. You will not see them in many of the high clothing or shoes. That is their way of a protest against “the man.” They are very engaging. Do not worry, they will approach you with ease. Island music is a top choice of their. They love conscious Hip-Hop as well. You will never hear them listening to the Fetty Wap, Gucci, and others. They listen to music with a message. Especially messages that uplift Blacks. They are for the most part highly successful in class as well.

The last group are the Greek fraternities. These are tricky organizations. By that I mean, their approachability. They listen to all types of music. They have handshakes, which only they do. Also, you cannot participate in any of their lines dances unless you are a member. This is serious. They may be nice to you, but that stops at that fraternity line. Most of them wear nice, high end clothing. They are pretty decent in class. They eat together at the nicer restaurants on campus. Again, these guys are pretty closed, but if you get into their fraternity they are good people. They have their chants and colors as well. Sometimes, fights will occur between the groups, which is ironic, considering these groups were founded on the principles of brotherhood.

In closing, congrats Ajanaku. You will do well here on campus. Just be watchful and observe these subcultures. They all make the campus work. They are contribute to the betterment of this campus. So enjoy!!!

 

Wow.

I was just sent a link regarding a group that was considered counterculture. Let me first define counterculture so that we can be on the same page. Counterculture is defined as a subculture that rejects society’s norms and values. They active defy normal society. Now that we are on the same page this information blew me away.

The White Panthers were a far-left, anti-racist, white American political collective founded in 1968. It started in response to an interview where Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, said whites could support the Black Panthers by forming a White Panther Party. Pun Plamondon, Leni Sinclair, and John Sinclair did just that. They were a cultural revolution.

This is obviously significant considering the times. Blacks were still being treat as subhuman. It was normal. It was perfectly fine to do so. Whites either actively participated in discriminatory practices or were simply indifferent to the plight of Blacks. It is just always good to see that others bucked the system and stood for what was right. To even think of them as “counterculture” shows just where America was as a country. It was a good read to find out about the White Panthers. Thanks for your service and efforts!!! Peace.