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The Blind Side Sociology

Decent Essays

I decided to analyze the The Blind Side from a sociological perspective digging deep into the film examining the different people and how they live in society. The certain personality traits and appearances play a huge role in this film when studying it from a budding sociologist. Certain sociology related terms came to mind when watching the film such as social imagination, symbolic interactionism, self-awareness, perspective, and stereotypes. A sociologist will look at this film very differently than any ordinary human being such as myself. They will look hard into the meaning behind certain pictures and interactions, whereas I would just be watching the film for entertainment and pleasure. Interactionism appears a lot throughout the film …show more content…

Some would say these symbols include football, family, his nickname, or a car accident. Because of Michael’s appearance, many stereotypes and generalizations quickly develop creating an idea in people’s minds of who he is and where he came from (Adler & Adler, Joel Charon, 19). People other than Michael’s new family would view him as ‘big’, ‘black’, ‘homeless’, or ‘stupid.’ For example, in the film Leigh Anne’s friends see Michael as “a large black boy living under the same roof.” This upsets Leigh Anne because she sees Michael as her son and does not appreciate the racist comments and lack of support. Looking at the family as a whole would not be the norm in today’s society since there is one black man living with four white people (Adler & Adler, 498). The conflict theory has a lot to do with this point about the norm and one can examine this social conflict into greater detail (Lecture, 2 Feb.). Many would argue about this problem because it depends on what type of family or social class one a person is talking about. Developing an idea about Michael without even knowing his story and background creates conflict and …show more content…

The film gives insight into both extremes of the social structure in Tennessee through the lives of both Michael and the Tuhoy family. Social reality is distorted in the film through Michael’s ability to overcome stereotypes and social interactions and then become a successful, educated athlete. The Tuhoy family brings Michael into their home as one of their own and forms many inseparable relationships that represent social interactionism. Viewing this film from a sociological lens really made me pay more attention to detail and the purpose behind many of the scenes. It was a lot different than how I would normally watch it. I was able to use a lot of terms and ideas from class lectures to help me look at this from a sociological viewpoint. The Blind Side greatly exemplifies many sociological struggles that society faces almost every

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