Personal Opinion, sociology homework help
Personal Opinion, sociology homework help
Read each paragraph and give me your opinion do you agree do you disagree with those 4 paragraphs one for each part and if you agree or disagreewhy or why not
1. While I had always heard the reference to the United States as a ‘melting pot’, I have to say the expression of ‘salad bowl’ is actually relatively new to me. After comparing the two different meanings, I have found that I actually believe the phrase ‘salad bowl’ is a more apt description of the United States. As in the past, and even now, history of the separation of cultures in America has not changed that greatly. Just going through how many different kinds of people and cultures there are in the United States, you find that you can see a distinction between them. Families that move from their homeland typically like to keep their traditions alive for their younger generation, and teach them the ‘old ways’, so their rich history is not forgotten. And while we may all call ourselves Americans, how many surveys have we filled out actually have that as an option? You can have white, African American, Native American, Irish, Asian, etc. and the list goes on. So even if it is on a subconscious level, we ourselves do not believe that we have ‘assimilated’ into a country, like a melting pot. Think of going to New York City: you have block separated to just about every different culture- Chinese, Indian, Mexican, Italian, etc. Together, you get a city so rich in culture, people can spend their entire lives in that city and never know everything about it. All together, they may make up a single entity, but there are distinctions.If we are to think about what is beneficial to society, we have to think about what we wish to achieve within society. What, in essence, is our endgame? If we wish for an assimilation of the races and ethnicities, will we essentially lose much of our history, and what makes us different and beautifully unique? Personally, I like being able to visit twenty different ‘countries’ in a day, simply by walking around a single city. It is also important not to lose our history, because we learn who and what we came from. We learn the struggles our people came through, and how they are that much tougher for them. We learn about distinction, and pride, and we teach our children our cultures so they don’t get lost through time. In the early years, before a written language was created, everything was told by tongues, and so many stories were lost because they were not heard, and then never written down. What makes America unique, is the multitude of different types of people all living together in a single place—a beautiful mixture of a ‘salad bowl’.
2. I believe that the melting pot best describes the United States historically. I believe this because within the United States we are mixed up with so many different races and cultures. Today you do not really see someone who is just one race/culture and we no longer are separated as far as whites only and blacks only. Everyone live and eat in the same places as if we are all just melted together as one. A salad bowl shows isolation of one culture or race in my opinion. With a salad bowl I see it as you are able to pick out what you don’t want. However as a melting pot you can’t pick out the small things you don’t like because it’s all melted together. Therefore, I believe that a melting pot Best describes our society. For example, I’m from Louisiana and we make gumbo down here. If you don’t like onions or bell peppers you are either going to eat the gumbo or not because it’s all mixed up and you are not going to be able to separate which is which. However with salad, if you don’t like cucumbers and tomatoes you can easily pick them out. In the United States I don’t think you can just pick out what you don’t like. No one likes paying taxes but we pay. Everyone doesn’t feel they need health insurance but if you don’t have it you are penalized when filing your taxes. So with that being said, I strongly believe we are more like a melting pot than a salad bowl. Also, I do not feel that one pattern is more beneficial for society than another because not even the wealthiest people have a say so in a lot of things.
3. Upon reflection of the movie title The Story We Tell- Race: The Power of an Illusion, one can assume that the documentary will be about the common misconceptions about race and how it came into play in the history, and more specifically, our country. At first, settlers were more interested in getting away from their overseas native country, and trying to survive in the completely new and foreign land, to truly pay attention to separation of race/ethnicity. Even when settlement was more stable, those of wealth and certain religions held themselves apart. For example, you were alright if you were Protestant in one town, but the next town which was full of Catholics, you were considered a pariah. When farming was beginning to boom, plantation owners first had indentured servants, often of European descent, because the individuals wished to come to the new country, couldn’t afford it, and therefore offered to work for their fare. When farmers realized they needed more workers, and preferably of a less expansive venture, they took advantage of the black slave trade already going on in the Eastern hemisphere. Slaves were low in costs, and were abundant. Not only that, but if they ran away from their ‘owners’, they had a harder time assimilating to the rest of the predominantly white society. With this change in history, suddenly race, became a factor in how you were perceived in society. The Native Americans of the country were originally thought of as ‘savage and uneducated white men’, and measures were taken to try and ‘civilize’ them. When more European settlers continued to come to the new land, suddenly the land the Natives were on, started to look good, and were thought that it would be better to distribute the lands for new settlement. They were driven off their land, and expected to find a place in the ‘white’ society. This example actually encompass the idea behind the Noel Hypothesis. This hypothesis states that when two or more different groups come together, whether it be by race or ethnicity, then some form of stratification will result. One group thought their beliefs superior, and with more power backing them (financially and numbers), the other group was subject to their decree. There are a variety of different examples of when race or ethnicity has been used to rationalize or justify inequality. Like previously stated examples of slaves and Native Americans, when two different groups come together, differences are expected. More than just American history, we can look at world history. Think of the Christian persecution at the hands of the Romans- being fed to lions for enjoyment, because they refused to worship the same gods as the Emperor. Then with the Jews by Adolf Hitler, whom he blamed for the depravity of the German nation, both in social status and financial ruin. During times of slavery in America, it was justified simply by the fact that they were weaker than white men-uneducated, and had no true will of their own. Many of the slaves were actually sold to the Americas because of warring families in Africa. One tribe would take over another, and the best way to get rid of those who were unwanted, and make a profit, would be to sell them into the slave trade. When these facts were brought to the attention of the white men who were buying the slaves, they responded in kind “If their own people can have slaves of each other, then why can’t we?” This deflection of self-responsibility has been a common occurrences through histories war and trouble times. And while many powers may change their views about certain aspects of their lives, it is not without a great fight, and many hard won battles.
4. Reflect on the title of the film. What is the significance? The significance of the title is on track as it is stated. Race is an illusion. All Men may have been created equally, but treated equally is not the case. Land was stolen from the Natives and blacks were put in bondage and brought to America to do manual labor to build for those that put them in bondage. The illusion is that all are treated equal when there is no equality for non-whites. What are some ways that race or ethnicity has been used to rationalize or justify inequality? To what extent has race been used to divert attention and even responsibility away from oppressors and instead toward their targets? Thomas Jefferson stated blacks are inferior to whites in body and mind, but wrote in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. However; he owned hundreds of slaves, this would justify slavery. Native Americans being looked upon as “savages” is another way that showed based off one person’s view is now law. Simply because they looked like the white people, but skin a little darker based on how they treated their skin or from the sun. Hearing the opinion of those from Virginia as well gave Jefferson that push to still call them savages. Jefferson looking for a reason scientifically to figure out why blacks are inferior to whites would focus the attention and responsibility away from the oppressors and instead toward their targets. Now you have scientist now writing books based on a negative to find a way and a reason why blacks are inferior. These are merely the opinions based on the question that was asked by Jefferson. If you look long enough for something, you will find it, but the question shouldn’t have been a question to begin with. Choose one of the contact situations presented in the video and explain which hypothesis you think works best for describing and understanding the relationship that formed between the groups you chose. The Noel Hypothesis is if two or more groups come together in a contact situation characterized by ethnocentrism, competition, and differential in power, then some form of racial or ethnic stratification will result. In the Blauner Hypothesis the minority groups created by colonization will experience more intense prejudice, racism, and discrimination than those created by immigration (Healey & O’Brien, 2015). The Blauner Hypothesis works best out of the two in regards to African Americans being forced into colonization. They will suffer more compared to those that are voluntarily coming here to look for opportunity.
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