Allan G. Johnson

Sociology is defined as ‘The study of human social life, groups and societies’ (Giddens, 1989). It involves describing and analysing how different forces such as social, cultural, political, and economic have on behaviour and an individuals identity. (Van Kreiken et al.2000). Furthermore, it encompasses the complex connections on a micro level along with those on a macro level thus enabling sociological imagination.

Privileges are things that a person receives that gives them an advantage over most people (Merriam-Webster). These are benefits that only certain people receive for being in a certain group or discourse. Peggy McIntosh, director of the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, wrote “White Privilege and Male Privilege” and states “I think whites are carefully taught not to recognize white privileges, as males are taught not to recognize male privilege” (605). She argues that whites and males receive certain privileges, yet they do not even notice them. This shows that different races and women are still put at a disadvantage, but the people who receive the benefits are blind to the problem. Many people will argue that she is correct

Peggy McIntosh concludes white privilege is, “an invisible package of unearned assets which I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was meant to remain oblivious.” The writer came to this conclusion when observing male privilege initially in America. McIntosh discusses the lack of acknowledgement of men when it came to addressing their own advantages over women even if they could admit the position of disadvantage of women. This shed light on how white privilege is curtailed; In the United States, foundations of our society are interlaced with institutionalized privilege creates unethical levels of dominance; dominance of males over females, whites over people of color,

“The first wisdom of sociology is this:  things are not what they seem”  (Berger 1963)  http://archiv.watzlawickehrenring.at/2008/peter‐l‐berger/fotos.html Berger, P. (1963).  Invitation to Sociology, Bantam Doubleday Dell cited in:  http://www.soc.iastate.edu/sapp/Berger.html: date accessed 12 January  2016. Key Concept: The sociological imagination C. Wright Mills: “ …enables its possessor to  understand  the

An alumni group, Check Your Privilege organized by Dr. Ja’Nina Walker, works to raise student and faculty awareness about privilege on a San Francisco campus and increase social equality. The group defines privilege as “unearned access to social power based on membership in a dominant social group.” The group desires to increase consciousness about privilege, especially in the among social justice influences. They work to bring privilege into regular public discussion and urge those with privilege to use it for public benefit.

After reviewing the article titles given for this first assignment, I believe they indicate that Sociology, generally speaking, is not only a study of diversity or commonality in traits among people; it is also a science about factors in a person’s life and how these factors culminate responses. Interestingly enough, its topics of concern seem to be directly determined by current and common events of the world. Through the invention and expansion of new ideas, popular trends and fashions through time, Sociology adapts to responsibly to service the very subjects of interest it studies; for, even the slightest change of a person’s daily experience can have an insurmountable impact on attitude, personal growth, family

Privilege and oppression provides a framework for understanding how institutional structures and ideologies shapes individual experiences. Privilege and oppression also explains “how power operates in society” which led to the formation of “a dominant group and a marginalized group” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 72-73). “Oppression can be defined as prejudice and discrimination directed toward a group and perpetuated by the ideologies and practices of multiple social institutions” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 73). While, privilege refers to the “benefits, advantages, and power that accrue to members of a dominant group as a result of the oppression of marginalized group”,

To be a person, requires intersectionality. Intersectionality is the idea that people do not function on only one aspect of their being, but instead, function on every aspect. Aspects that include race, gender, ability, etc. With this intersectionality comes innumerable categories that lie on the scale of privileged, oppressed, or somewhere in between. To be privileged is to have advantages that are not necessarily earned, and instead come with a specific, usually uncontrollable feature, such as race, gender, class, and ability. To be oppressed is to have disadvantages that are not earned, but instead come with the same uncontrollable categories as privilege. Even cis-gendered, heterosexual, white, men have aspects of their intersectionality that might not place them at the top of the privilege hierarchy. And it is in these complications where people start to place doubts on their own privileges. It is important to realize that it is nearly impossible to have privilege in every single way or oppression in every single way, yet, this is not an excuse to deny privileges. Even with some oppressions, some are still granted more advantages than others. To delve into this deeper, analyzing writings from established writers, such as Peggy McIntosh and Devon Carbado become necessary.

If Sociology is the systematic study of human society, then sociological imagination is what we perceive or think about how people work and or think in a more personal and bias matter. C.W. Mills believes that merging two different theories of social reality of the “individual” and “society”. Mills challenges readers and learners by arguing many basic terms and definitions from what “we” believe are right. Chapters one and two talks about how society portrays what we know rather then the facts. Our bias opinions and beliefs often go against what science has proven.

A key part of engaging in sociology is to adopt a sociological viewpoint or 'think sociologically'. Etymologically, sociology is the 'study of society' but this doesn't differentiate sociology from other forms of social study. Hence, many begin to describe thinking sociologically by what it is not - it is not thinking politically, thinking anthropologically, thinking historically or thinking psychologically, for example (Berger 1966: 11-36; Reiss 1968: 2-3). Others try to determine the nature of sociological thinking by detailing practical phenomena which can be thought about such as social systems and their subsystems, social institutions and social structure, and social aggregates, relationships, groups and organisations (Reiss 1968: 1),

Bibliography PageJames M Henslin. Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach, Core Concepts (3rd Edition). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 2008.

Collins, L., & Barnes, S. L. (2014). Observing privilege: Examining race, class, and gender in

During this investigation I seek to explore the differences in privilege that males and females, of different race and ethnic backgrounds, experiences in their daily lives. My fellow Sociology of Race and Ethics classmates and I will conduct Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege survey, in hopes to find any differences in privilege felt by individuals of varying age, gender, race or class membership.

Kendall, Diane, Jane Lothian Murray, Rick Linden. Sociology in Our Times. Scarborough, Ontario: Thomson Canada Limited, 2004.

Allen Johnson’s book, The Forest and the Trees, doesn’t just explore the idea of sociology through multiple lenses, but instead uses these lenses to examine the consequences that these sociological concepts have on individuals, systems, and our culture. In his mind, the field of sociology being limited to mere theoretical ideas is egregious. He examines the interactions between systems and the individuals that comprise those systems, culture (and the resulting norms, beliefs, and attitudes), and the relationship between an individualistic and sociological point of view. These variations in different subsets of culture can create clashes between different groups and societies, rooted in the idea of privilege that is prevalent in any social environment. Privilege is the dichotomy between the “haves” and “have nots”; members of society that have been gifted with traits or characteristics that have been socially reinforced to be superior to others. He argues that the individual and the societal system they reside in are eternally and intrinsically linked, each relying on the other to sustain itself. Johnson explains that culture is one of the main ways this societal system runs, and points to beliefs, values, norms, and attitudes as being the four cornerstones of this culture.