Alissa Rodriguez Sociology Reflections by Alissa Rodriguez

Alissa's Initial Reflection video.

alissarodr1_ — 2023-10-20 01:06:27 UTC

Module 1- Prompt Two: Personal Experience

alissarodr1_ — 2023-11-21 01:45:56 UTC

In the article, Sociological Curiosity: Updating C. Wright Mills, he states how understanding social imagination plays a crucial role in understanding how social structures work. He urges many students to ask questions about social structures that may impact individual decisions, since this may help us gain insight into how larger social forces shape individual experience. While reading the passage it made me go into a deeper thinking of going beyond my individual experiences and connecting it to a larger social factor. To expand on my personal experiences, I had this job not too long ago where I went through many work challenges in which I felt like I had poor communication skills, a sense of loneliness, and uneven task assignments. When first encountering those feelings, I thought I was doing something wrong and felt like a failure. I blamed myself and saw it as a personal obstacle. As these feelings grew, I also became a good observer hence the feeling of loneliness. I began to see how the decision making of management and saw how the information they provided flowed through the lower workers. This made me realize that it was not anything I was doing but how management creates obstacles that impacted the work dynamic. Seeing it from a social worker perspective it made me realize that my experiences were not only singular events, but rather mirrored larger problems within the system. The more that I read, the more that I began to understand and ask questions like “ How does management decision making affect my work? How does it affect my communication skills? How can I advocate for changes in the workplace system such as communication protocols to be more inclusive and create a better team culture?

Module 2-Prompt One: Outside Content

alissarodr1_ — 2023-11-21 01:47:39 UTC

Religion is a system of ideas that influences communities and many people. This has the power to alter people's worldviews, as well as their values and life goals. "In Christianity and Judaism, for example, the idea that God exists is obviously true, but for Zen Buddhists, Confucians, and animists the idea of God simply doesn't come up in religious life or anywhere else," the author writes in the book Culture: Symbols, Ideas, and the Stuff of Life. This demonstrates the diversity of viewpoints on God among individuals, highlighting the significance of appreciating other faiths and cultural traditions. He adds that not everyone believes in God since they cannot see him, but for some, seeing is believing. They won't understand something that they can't see. The reason I thought of God’s crucifixion and the readings of the Holy Bible is because while hearing the lecture he stated that many cultures around the world have their own religious beliefs and most of them contradict each other which means that not every single belief is true. For example, I believe in God and the ideas that are in the bible is my evidence that God truly existed but for some people the Bible is just a book passed down that might not be accurate. I accept that those people do not believe in it but may believe that there is a high power and that's ok. Simply because someone holds a different opinion than you does not make it wrong hence that's why it's a belief. My religious beliefs guide the way I conduct my life. For example, I avoid seeing content related to Ouija boards because I think they may attract evil spirits into my life. Little things like that have a big impact on how I view the world.

Module 3-Prompt Four: Feelings

alissarodr1_ — 2023-11-21 01:57:33 UTC

In the reading, The power elite, he quoted ““If such celebrities are not at the head of any dominating hierarchy, they do often have the power to distract the attention of the public or afford sensations to the masses, or, more directly, to gain the ear of those who do occupy positions of direct power.” This demonstrates how celebrities must keep a positive public image, as they may frequently draw attention from the general population. Most famous people want to be liked by the public, which sometimes forces them to do things against their better judgment or beliefs. This phrase got me thinking about how many famous people might start a scandal or even draw positive attention to themselves in order to divert attention away from a terrible situation. For instance, my coworker and I were conversing when she mentioned how the cartels use the president of Mexico as a puppet to maintain hidden influence over the nation. She went on to say that when the president of Mexico said “Abrazos no balasos” everyone in Mexico was talking about it shifting the attention of the war going on to him. I do not know if she was right or not, but it made me feel disgusted with the world we live in now. Seeing all these celebrities making things about them rather than using their following to talk about the things we as humans need to change. In the reading, he also emphasizes the enormous economic clout that many large firms possess. This is related to the fact that celebrities may increase their income through ventures and media appearances, giving them the ability to sway public opinion and impact a wide range of different industries. Things like these irritate and perhaps even anger me because I recognize that wealthy people become richer and the poor get poorer. Stars such as Kim Kardashian have massive followings and make billions of dollars from their platforms, which they utilize for personal gain. Indeed, they do occasionally discuss certain topics, but they never dig farther. For instance, I was disappointed to find that no celebrities, politicians, or other prominent figures used their platforms to promote the film "Sound of Freedom" when it first came out. Being aware of the fact that human trafficking is among the largest industries in the world, second only to the drug trade because you can sell a bag of cocaine once, but you can sell a child over 10 times in one day.

Module 4-Prompt Three: Two Things You've Learned

alissarodr1_ — 2023-11-21 02:04:21 UTC

One thing I discovered was the significant obstacles that everyday life presents for the people living in the Petosky-Otsego neighborhood, including restricted access to healthcare and education. They also have several challenges, one of which is food security. The fact that they were charging children to enter the boys and girls club while being aware of the residents' financial difficulties was one item that particularly attracted my attention. I find myself asking why this is happening. Why do they not receive additional funding? "Everyone deserves to get an education"—whatever happened to that? This gave me a feeling that I need to be more appreciative of everything that I had been given, both personally and academically. Some kids and families aren't getting basic amenities, which shows that there isn't an urgent need to help them when in fact it should be a top priority. In addition, it mentioned that it ranked third among abandoned cities, indicating that other communities face even greater difficulties. I also discovered that the design of spaces like homes, workplaces, and classrooms greatly influences social interaction. For example, the way the fireplaces were built in the main room, and since it was the only heating source at the time, it brought people together in one room causing them to interact with each other. I learned that it shapes the way people interact with each other within different spaces. It made me think about my own house and how the fireplace might've gotten my family to interact with each other more often in the past. It also made me think how since now there are different types of ways to interact with each other, things like that might not work anymore at this point in time.

Module 5- Prompt Two: Personal Experience

alissarodr1_ — 2023-11-21 02:08:10 UTC

In the reading, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life by Erving Goffma, he quotes “At one extreme, one finds that the performer can be fully taken in by his own act; he can be sincerely convinced that the impression of reality which he stages is the real reality.” Which he finds this to be an “act” but a sincere one since you truly believe in it. This shows how people usually perform in front of others to have a good impression and how it relates to everyday situations. For example, I usually tend to do this when going to a job interview and might even throw in a white lie. During my initial interview for the job, they asked if I could make coffee drinks like lattes and cappuccinos. I had some experience making coffee before, but I didn't know anything about steaming milk. Since that was a prerequisite, I stated with confidence that I knew how to get myself employed. While I wasn't quite lying, I did distort the facts to support my claims. This demonstrates how I deliberately repositioned myself to influence the manager's opinion of me.

Module 7- Prompt One: Outside Content

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 01:42:18 UTC

I picked this website from CBS News' crime section, and the list seemed endless. This links to the modules' course on crime because Durkheim's view of crime was that it was extremely normal. He believes that crime is an essential component of a healthy society. And it's normal in the sense that it occurs everywhere and in every civilization. He also highlighted that as society progressed, crime would evolve and alter throughout time. The way he thought is very true and will continue to stay true because of the way our world is today. Our world has become increasingly violent, and it is quite unfortunate that numerous individuals are victims of multiple types of crime. Durkheim further stated that crime offends people's feelings, and that the absence of certain crimes known to us currently would result in a new set of crimes.

I thought about this source while studying, since reading the news and being informed are both crucial. Our world is a frightening and uncertain place. Everything from children murdering adults to adults murdering children, as in this news source where adolescents beheaded their teacher while adults are murdering children in Gaza. I believe that crime is something that we will never be able to remove, but that it is also beneficial to society. This aligns with the idea of Durkheim that crime changes and adapts based on societal developments.

Module 8- Prompt Four: Feelings

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 01:43:13 UTC

Upon seeing the Masculinity and Unattainable Standards video during my gender module study, I experienced conflicting feelings towards my partner and myself. I noticed while watching the film that there has been a considerable shift in body standards over time. It shows how Batman or Superman used to look way different in the past, like a normal man, but now shows superheroes having six packs and big muscles creating insecurities in young men. As I continued to watch, I started thinking about how much body insecurities my partner has because of the social expectations that are shown everywhere.

It made me sad to think that he feels any less of himself because he does not look like a bodybuilder, giving him the impression that he is ugly. He is constantly scared that I will leave him for someone better looking or with a better body, which truly upsets me to think that he can't see himself the way I see him. The way that society puts this type of pressure on both young men and older men is truly heartbreaking. It also drives a big insecurity in myself because although there are a lot of unrealistic stereotypes for men, it is the exact same with women. There have been occasions when my feelings about my body have prevented me from eating or from going out. I would say that I was a reasonably fit girl in high school. I would describe my weight as medium; I wasn't extremely thin nor large, but I have recently put on a lot of weight, which has made me feel really self-conscious.

Furthermore, I'm often thinking back on my former body and comparing my current body to it. I also wonder all the time if I would be happy if there were no such things as beauty standards. Would my self-esteem increase? What would my partner think of himself? I often wonder "what ifs," such as what would happen if I had been born in a different era of time. What if I didn't have to worry about my weight all the time? It saddens me to realize that I am probably not alone in thinking this, and many young women experience this.

While working on this padlet I feel like when I come upon this prompt I tend to connect the module to negative emotions such as sadness or anger because I feel like we truly live in an awful world. I feel like instead of going forward and making more progress, we are instead taking steps back. Such as the superheroes being better in the past rather than now. The way things are now in the world are scary.

Module 9-Prompt Two: Personal Experience

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 01:43:38 UTC

I was raised in a way that made learning about sexuality both at home and at school feel "weird." I was taught at school that it's acceptable to have diverse feelings and to be expressive about my sexual orientation. Furthermore, I learned about STIs and STDs, how to use birth control, and that having sex is normal. At home, things were very different, since my mom was deeply religious and strongly opposed to having sex or identifying as anything other than a woman. I came across the article "How sex became fun" while studying the biological, emotional, and gender norms of sexuality in Module 9. It discusses how most college students are very open to having fun and having sex.

I can personally connect to this because, while my family does not see sex in the same light as I do, I still think it should be enjoyable and exciting. The passage from the article stated, "For quite specific historical reasons, both men and women who are coming of age in America today believe that sex is and should be fun. They easily dismiss the Puritan idea that it's sinful outside of marriage.” I belong to the new generation that grew up in California, but my mother, who is quite traditional and old school, has a different opinion. She used to teach me as a child that having sex before getting married was a sin and was going to put me in hell. In addition to using religion to create fear in me, she informed me that women do not really have sex unless they are married to a single person. Despite having grown up hearing these unfair stereotypes, I now think that women can enjoy themselves just as much as men do and that this does not make them any less of a woman. I was able to reject the double standards put onto me.

Module 10- Prompt Four: Feelings

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 01:44:10 UTC

While reading the article “ Subordinating Myth: Latino/a Immigration, Crime, and Exclusion” it evoked very strong feelings because I am a proud Latina woman. In the article it questions the misbelief that Latino immigrants are connected to crime when in reality research has shown that it actually reduces crime. This made me feel both sad and happy at the same time because on one hand it is proven that latinos do not increase crime but on the other hand the many misinterpretations put on us latinos is just one of the many forms that racism still exists. As I continued to read the article I started thinking about being in a very hard circumstance that many latinos still face today . In order to have a better chance at life they have to risk their own life and come into an unknown country, starting with nothing. Many immigrants come to the USA for better living conditions and a chance for a good life. But while on the journey here, many of them die, get kidnapped, raped, abused, etc. Thinking of this made me really sad because I dont think a lot of Americans including myself have experienced that danger and trauma. Later in the article it talks about prisons making profit off of immigrants while being detained which angered me because at the end of the day we are all humans.

The article reminds me of my friend's experience crossing the border, which is why it both saddens and enrages me. As she was crossing, her father was left defenceless as she was raped and abused, and she witnessed them do the same to her mother. When getting to the border she told me that they treated her as if she was a criminal as if breaking this law made her a serial killer. She talked about how embarrassing it was to have handcuffs on both of her hands and feet. The meal she consumed resembled a murderer’s, and the extreme cold she endured while receiving only foil blankets for warmth. This deeply saddened me since many people observed these immigrants as mere laws—neither more nor less. Many become angry and blame parents when a child dies or becomes separated because they believe that they are risking their child's lives for illegal purposesHowever, a lot of individuals lack empathy; these immigrants only wish to live better lives. This is just one of the numerous frightening stories of persons at immigration facilities and crossing the border that I have heard. These stories really make me feel like an outsider, impotent, and ashamed of my country.

I am afraid to bring another human into this world because of how terrible the world we live in is. In addition, because my partner is a black Latino man who is also an immigrant, it makes me fearful of America and how most Americans perceive Latinos. This worries me so much since I am aware of how common racial discrimination is and I can't help but worry that he could one day be singled out or jailed due to the color of his skin or his immigration status. I have seen what the article says when it states that latinos may reduce crime because my boyfriend follows every single law and other immigrants also because they do not want to risk being caught and deported. For example, he does not speed and actually forces me to drive at the speed limit, he has a license, pays his taxes and much more.

Module 11- Prompt One: Outside Content

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 01:45:54 UTC

While reviewing the social class module, I became interested in the elite and how much influence wealth possesses. The mini assignment specifically got me thinking about concentrated/dynastic wealth. In other words, it is when certain people have a great deal of power as a result of their riches that they can pick and choose anyone they want to fund, such as politicians. During the assignment, it was also discussed how wealth is handed down, producing uneven opportunities for people who do not have the same amount of wealth. That is, success is primarily determined by your family-related background.

This made me think of the show Gossip Girl, which is about high school students whose parents are among New York's wealthiest and most influential individuals. The episode was about a character seeking to get into Ivy League schools, where they solely apply/compete to get in as a mark of status. This clip portrays both of the main characters arguing about getting into an Ivy League institution, where one of them is admitted exclusively due to his father's connections and financial background. It also demonstrates how the other character honestly put in a lot of effort to get to the top and should have been accepted into an Ivy League university based on his efforts, but it was taken away from him because he lacked resources, social standing, or connections. He even says in the video that Nate's entry was only made possible by his father's wealth, demonstrating how many people are aware that something is wrong but choose to overlook it, making it normal standards.

When it comes to upper-class people abusing lower-class people, the show reflects many real-life issues. One example is Lori Loughlin, who played a character on the television series Full House, and who paid her daughter's college admissions fees to guarantee her place, robbing someone else who worked hard and had the necessary grades. Many real-life things about privilege, social class, and opportunity exposure are shown in Gossip Girl.

Alissa's Final Reflection Video

alissarodr1_ — 2023-12-14 05:39:03 UTC

Thank you so much for taking the time to teach us! I really enjoyed this class.