Chris 's View On Society

Humans in society are like musicians in an orchestra. Solo, their parts sound odd and out of place, lacking the harmonies mindfully composed for the rest of the orchestra. Humans are interdependent, social creatures by nature. We rely on each other to survive. We rely on each other to do jobs that might require a certain skill set or jobs that we might not have time to do ourselves. We even rely on each other to bring a sense of familiarity and security to our communities just by knowing one another. If we all remained anonymous, then we could not rely on each other to satisfy these vital societal needs. Scott Russell Sanders, in his essay “The Common Life”, states that the more people in a community who prefer to live isolated and reclusive lives, the more susceptible the community is to a division that impedes its ability to live together, interact synergistically, and thrive. He correctly believes that this division can lead to a total “breakdown” in society.

In the essay, “The Common Life” by Scott Russell Sanders, Sanders studies the connection between the individual and society. However, this leads to the question, what is the relationship between the individual and society? Individuals and societies may be in opposition but this helps to develop both the individual and society. The decisions that an individual makes reflects on how society views him/her. The overlook of the community can be reverted back to the individual within the society. Society and individuals are a package deal.

Imagine a double headed arrow. The arrow at the bottom, pointed down, is the individual. This individual is connected to something bigger, the upward arrow. This upward arrow explains the social system or “larger than us”. Johnson (1999) explains “We are always participating in something larger than ourselves…to understand social life and what happens to people in it, we have to understand what it is that we’re participating in and how we participate in it.” (39). To picture this, Johnson (1999) uses the analogy of a forest stating, “…a forest is simply a collection of individual trees… a collection of trees that exist in a particular relation to one another,” (39). He goes on to say that “…the key to understanding social life isn’t just the forest and it isn't just the trees. It’s the forest and the trees and how they're related to one another.” (Johnson 1999: 39). This is sociology and the rule that people are not systems and systems are not people (Johnson 1999).

Society can hold people back and keep them from improving. People might not think this is significant, but when reading The Lord of the Flies and looking back at the world’s history the reader can see that these things can cause societies to fall apart. The creepers in the book may seem unimportant, but the individual vines that make up the jungle creepers are symbolic of the individual citizens that make up a society. Like the ball of yarn, the separate strands are woven together, but they can easily be unraveled by a tug in the wrong direction or they can become so tangled together that they lose their individuality. People need to treat each other and society with care if society is to survive and grow

There are many reasons for people to isolate themselves from society. Human beings are social animals and live tolerably well in a complex society where, in the United States, the government only minimally restricts their lives to make their society function. In Jon Krakauer’s nonfiction book Into the Wild, the main character, Chris McCandless, was born into an upper-middle-class family. While others might consider this a comfortable life, McCandless abandoned his affluent background without hesitation. Tired of social norms, he wanted to find a new way to live. He initiated his journey by maintaining minimal contact with others and eventually sought complete isolation. McCandless deliberately avoided any form of intimacy, and he refused

“Society exists only as a mental concept; in the real world there are only individuals.” The posed question is if society is controlled by people, or are people controlled by society. Some may argue that society is controlled by people, but if you step into the light is that really the case. If you were to look at society, really look at it, who is being controlled. Its not society itself, sure people affect the directions society turns, but that is a small group of people who represent societies movement and trends. People do not really affect what society truly is. Society is, as said before, a mental concept, the popular, important figures in the world are the physical representation. The world is full of unique individuals, although everyone is under influence of society. It is subconscious, but always there. These next paragraphs will express how society controls people by elaborating on three main ideas that show up in the book Lord of The Flies. Society controls our actions, we learn from society and use it to try to be in control of others, and it is always there and so we have no idea what to do apart from it.

Society and Solitude written by Ralph Waldo Emerson states what society means to him. Emerson states, “ To be a member of society is to be a conformist, and this makes self reliance impossible.” (Emerson paragraph 2)This quote explains that Emerson believes that to live in our society you have to go with the normal. He states that society makes it hard to come up with your own ideas or opinions. Emerson emphasizes that “It is so easy with the great to be great; so easy to come up with an existing standard.” (Emerson paragraph 1) Emerson is saying that if you have all the ingredients to be great than you will be, and if not then you won’t. In his essay Emerson believes that society will break a person, and it is better to have your own morals and ideas. This

Tonnies discusses the concepts of Community and Society in great detail, from the differences between the two to the wills that fuel them. Perhaps the main argument in the book is the differences between Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft, or Community and Society. Tonnies defines Gemeinschaft as a more intimate grouping of people who rely on each other and have shared goals that places emphasis on the cohesive unit. On the other hand, Gesellschaft is the impersonal grouping mainly found in city and urban areas. Societies are made up of people more interested in personal goals and the places an emphasis on individualism. I agree to an extent that communities are more personal and intimate and can foster stronger relationships within it. Communities require people to be more dependent on each other than cities and metropolitan areas and as a result the chances for tighter bonds are higher. However, present day Society and Community are vastly different than the time it was written. With technology and travel, communities can grow all over as well as virtually and can be present in a society location.

Society and its inherent need to have all of its inhabitants fit together as one

Society, on the other hand, is made up of individuals; people live together in communities. The development of people depends on the environment, which in other words, depends on how organizations manage it to make it a healthy society. Therefore, whether a society is healthy or not does has an impact on individuals.

What is society and how did it help shape me into the person I am today? First, society is the state of living in organized groups of people. These organized groups of people are the ones that made me who I am today and will continue to shape me, as I grow older. My version of society is white middle class people who grow up going to catholic schools. These white middle class people are only associated with other white middle class people, and very seldom venture out of this little society. As stupid as that sounds to not associate with other people it is true. The reason this is true is because of where I live, where I go to school, and who my friends are. I guess it is just like

We as a human race have become a byproduct of our society. Through media, technology, and social pressure, humans no longer run society, but it seems like we are run by society. The quote from sociologist Peter Berger states “Not only do people live in society but society lives in them” This statement is referring to a form of social control were groups and the people in those groups conform to society partially knowingly and partially as a reflection based on dominant social expectations. As I further explain Berger’s statement I will explain how individuality, identity, and freedom fit in to such a predetermined future.

Personally I feel that this is the correct way to view societies. At one point in my life I was walking in a park and noticed a man picking up trash and then later on walking I noticed someone disposing of trash wherever they wanted. If only the person that threw the trash down could have placed himself in the shoes of the person picking it up, it might have changed that person. He might have realized what his carelessness had created for someone else. I believe that society is about integration. One back scratches another. From the economic standpoint, I consider it to be like a snowball rolling down the hill. It collects many

Society may be defined as a group of people living in agreement, having the same moralistic and judicial rules and standards. To live in a society, one must accept these standards and adopt them as their own. For example, living in the United States indicates that you respect the life, liberty and property of each individual, and you decide to accept the punishment if you violate any of these natural rights. Although one may not always agree with these standards, they choose to make sacrifices for the well-being of others. Society is responsible for creating an image of the ideal person, family, environment, and way of life. Our modern day society has dictated its own definition of beauty, happiness, and success. It seems society has accidentally tied these three together, and since these definitions are not universal, different societies may assign different meanings to each concept. Unlike societies explain why there are so many contrasting beliefs and viewpoints throughout the world today. The growth and morals of society are exclusively dependent on those who choose to be a part of something greater than them. Societies tend to grow only when people come to an understanding to be involved. Society is an accumulation of majority rule and the goals of the majority.

Before modern technology, men would band together for the protection of their families. History has proven people group together for survival, whether that be warmth, food, or protection. The idea was that a group is stronger and more profitable than one person acting alone. Each tribe or gathering of individuals working together is considered a society. A society is nothing more than a group of people living together for a common purpose, or simply because it is more convenient. But, if all societies were thriving entities, then we would not know the hardships that have repeated throughout history, such as, poverty and famine. On the contrary, a society that works well is a society that works for the well-being of its individual members. A high functioning and successful society is built on a foundation of trust and equality and enforced by a governing body.