Sumblog 11: The Standpoint Approach

This week we spoke more about Dorothy Smith, a woman who we met earlier in the semester. This time we learned of her work known as the “Standpoint Approach”. Dorothy saw that “the only way of knowing a socially constructed world is knowing it from within”. I could not agree more with this statement. I think it is important to realize that as thinking beings we are all biased in ways we cannot avoid based on our own personal experiences. We a lot more likely to get a “false reading” of a situation from an outsiders perspective. For example, when a CEO comes into a company for a brief time and makes large accusations based on his or her own perspective they are unlikely to get an understanding of how the company is truly being run. If the same CEO were to try a different tactic, much like on “Undercover Boss”, and disguise oneself as a regular employee, said person would be more likely to experience the reality of how that company was being run. People, in my experience, are likely to change their work ethic when they know someone from corporate is going to be visiting my place of work. We make the place look flawless and do all that is expected of us; however, things are run far from perfection when it is known that we do not have someone coming to inspect. I see Dorothy’s sociology as being applicable today. I think the CEO would also benefit from an experience like this because perhaps they would see why things are not always run smoothly; it comes from reasons such as being understaffed and under-equipped which is out of the control of the employees trying to run the business.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZYvt_pEolo

I choose this clip because clearly there is miscommunication between the worker and the owner of the business. There may have been reasons why the business was being run the way it was, and maybe not, but it is easier to look in from the outside and say “you are doing this wrong, we are shutting the place down.” To me that seems like the easy way out and I think Dorothy would say the Standpoint Approach would be beneficial to business. 

The Danger of Symbols- Sumblog 10

We encounter many symbols on a regular basis. We live in a world with an emphasis on visuals. Visuals make are a fast way for our brains to categorize without much thought. One example of a symbol that we see daily is the handicap symbol, a stick figure in a sitting position on a wheel. This is made a symbol in our culture because it indicates that whatever holds the symbol is “user friendly” or prohibited use, such as a parking space. People continue to understand the value of this particular symbol because we see it all around us. There are many benefits and risks of symbols. I think the biggest benefit with symbols is that they can be see and simply understood. On the flip side of that, there can be an over generalization or stereotype attached to a symbol based on our past experiences. They can be helpful to a society because when we see something like a simple drawing, take for example the stick figures that differentiate a men’s or women’s restroom, we are able to distinguish the difference. Again, they can be harmful for the same reason. Someone who did not understand our meaning of the symbol may be confused by our over use of symbols. If you think about how many symbols we depend on in a day, without meaning attached to those, to some we may live in an over simplistic society. We put a lot of pressure on those within a society to recognize and understand the symbols we use so frequently. I think overall it is important to remember that all symbols are not universal and we should not hold a single meaning to a certain symbol.

I choose to include a picture of 28 frequently used symbols that often used. We may not think much about them because we have been exposed to them for so long, but they may be very intimidating to someone who has just moved here and is trying to learn the cultural norms. 

Sumblog 9- Presentation of Self

Erving Goffman had a very interesting perspective of the world, making me think he must have been an artist. The way he perceived people around him to be putting on a performance makes me think that he was a creative man. He was able to see that people hold a lot of power with just words and actions, material and non-material things. Power and authority is given to an individual when they realize they are able to paint a picture of anything they want, and it's up to them to make it a reality. Looking at life as a stage makes a lot of sense. We all wear so many "hats", ever throughout a 24 hour period. You may be a boss in the morning, a friend in the afternoon, a cook and maid in the evening and a mother in the wee hours of the night. I think it is important for people to feel the "freedom" of changing who they are to others. Realizing your past does not have to define you can be very empowering. Goffman said through self-labeling we are able to create an identity that one may present to others in an attempt to manage an impression. I personally think it is great to live in a world where change is not only accepted, but encouraged.

http://womenssuccesscoaching.com/2009/03/how-many-hats-can-a-woman-wear-in-one-day/

I choose to use this link because I think it is a great visual to how many "hats" are worn in a day. This link just talks about women, but of course everyone must fill these roles. Goffman had so many great theories when it came to people in general. My favorite point he made was that there are multiple "plays" and "dramas" going on at the same time. We have all learned to adapt to these roles and somehow figured out what goes where, even when it comes to personality and authority, we all seem to find our place without needing direction from others.

The Stranger- SumBlog 8

"Despite his being inorganically appended to it, the stranger is still an organic member of the group. Its unified life includes the specific conditioning of this element. Only we do not know how to designate the characteristic unity of this position otherwise than by saying that it is put together or certain amounts of nearness and of remoteness." Georg Simmel had a very unique prospective of the sociological construction of society. The Stranger, according to Simmel, is someone who conforms to a group without question, yet is still distant from those within the same group. He references "nearness" and "remoteness" I felt this was his definition of the two. The Stranger is an interesting theory to me because I think it is especially applicable today. If you think about all of the groups and cliques, even politically, in our society today, we are able to see that people blend together as one; yet they may be very distant or alone within that group. I think sociologists have been trying to break down the social construction of society for centuries because it is not an easy thing to do. I think Simmel did a great job looking at the big picture and realizing that even though we are "one in the same" we are all very different and strangers at the same time.

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I choose this cartoon because I think it does a good job demonstrating these ideas. Society is not something that can easily be picked apart and explained, but we are able to see that groups, or hierarchies are formed within all societies; which to me is a very interesting trend that should not be overlooked. Sadly, within a society, someone has to be at the bottom- the Stranger.