StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Contemporary Social Problems - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The author of the essay explores how do different values, beliefs, and norms affect the definition of social problems. Reportedly, societal induced conditions that harm different aspects of the society and violate the rules and values of a society cover the definition of a social problem…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER91.3% of users find it useful
Contemporary Social Problems
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Contemporary Social Problems"

Contemporary Social Problems Q. How do different values, beliefs and norms affect the definition of social problems Societal induced conditions that harm the different aspects of the society and violate the rules, regulations and values of a society cover the definition of social problem. There are objective social realities like poverty, racism, sexism etc that cause social problems of material or psychological anguish to the people and they form part of such a definition. However, subjective factors always occupy a position in the definition of social problems.

The myths, stereotypes and official dogma that exist at the time also affect the definition. The study of social problems is never value-free. We cannot just accept the definitions of social problems made by those who enjoy power, and the media act as mediators of such a definition. The values, beliefs, and norms of the society are determined by the powerful groups that affect the definition of the social problems. Thus, the definition about the social problems that we arrive at is actually manipulated and partially distorted. Q. What is the sociological imagination How does it apply to the study of social problems Why is it important The study of social problems needs to be based on the sociological imagination.

By and large, people tend to limit the scope of studies on social problems to isolated and individual events like slavery or alcoholism, ignoring the relation of these with other major aspects of society like the culture, economy, religion or other social systems. The ability to make out the relationship of isolated experiences and the larger society in all its aspects is what we understand from the term sociological imagination. It is vital that we define the personal problems in terms of the larger historical changes and institutional contradictions.

We need to understand both the individual life and the course of the world simultaneously. This kind of a study about the social problems is the need of the day as we are what we study. (Long, 2007). Q. What are a socialist's and a capitalist's notion of human nature The common notion about the human nature is that it agrees with the capitalist views whereas totally disagrees with the socialist thinking. The common saying that "socialism is a great idea, but people are generally greedy" makes this view clear.

However, the socialist notion about the human nature is not that pessimistic as it is thought to be. It is true that socialism considers human nature as greedy, selfish and individualistic where as capitalism considers such aspects in people as natural to their character. Capitalism believes in the fighting nature of individuals whereas the other trusts the urge in human nature to fight for the common good. These are the basic paradigms for the two ideologies. As against the capitalist thinking that has naturalized the basic instincts in human nature like greed and individualism, socialists consider the human nature as fighting for the common good. Q. Democracy and capitalism are often treated as being the same.

Are they really equal types of systems Explain their differences and similarities. The discussion about the relation between capitalism and democracy is much less today though the significance of such a differentiation is highly relevant. It will be an overt simplification of the matter to consider both as same. Democracy is a process that organizes us to perform capitalism. Capitalism and democracy corroborates in a way to tell the 'what' and the 'how' of present time respectively. Democracy in its complete form comes in the capitalist world system.

Modern democracy is much assisted by capitalism in its formation and the two are mutually supportive. However, there are definite demarcations between their meanings. Capitalism is inherently nihilistic or pessimistic as opposed to democracy. Capitalism is just a system of economy whereas democracy is a system of governance that affects the dealings of the capitalist system. They are entirely different systems when we consider them in the sociological perspective. There are ever more distinguishing characteristics between the two and they are not the same or the equal types of systems.

References Long, Russ. (May 27, 2007). Social problems, Chapter 1, the Sociological Approach to Social Problems. Retrieved October 31, 2007, from http://www.delmar.edu/socsci/rlong/problems/chap-01.htm

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Contemporary Social Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words”, n.d.)
Contemporary Social Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/sociology/1501198-contemporary-social-problems
(Contemporary Social Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words)
Contemporary Social Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words. https://studentshare.org/sociology/1501198-contemporary-social-problems.
“Contemporary Social Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/sociology/1501198-contemporary-social-problems.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Contemporary Social Problems

The Social context of health and social care

The social context of health and social care Name: xxxxx School: xxxxx Course: xxxxx xxxxx Due Date: xxxxxx Introduction The main purpose of contemporary society is to increase interaction of the humans through a social network.... People tend to interact more with the people of their social class and those who have similar political and religious background (Barker, 2010).... hellip; This selected interaction leads to social stratification....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

What Is Sociology And Why It's Important In Today's Society

The only field that can address the problems of peace in various societies is the sociological field.... Sociology refers to the analytical scientific study of the human beings in the lines behaviors and social structure.... Kumar (2011) illustrates that sociological studies provide explanation of human being as a social creature.... According to Kumar (2011), sociology provides a deeper understanding of the society as it increases the potential of responding to various social actions, capabilities and limitations....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Demographic Explosion

This will result in many types of social problems.... In the paper “Demographic Explosion” the author looks at one of the most serious problems that the world is facing today – demographic explosion.... Already there are many problems like increased traffic congestion, the proliferation of foreign language TV channels, expansion in the number of professional teams, and so on.... All these factors cause serious problems of social concerns....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Contemporary Social Problems on Homosexuality

Nowadays homosexuality issues have become one of the central topics for discussion in American society: the society which was one of the first societies to accept the protection of human and civil rights now discusses the social and civil problems and aspects of homosexuality.... What's more, homosexuality does not even represent social or cultural progression.... So homosexuality remains to be one of the most contradictory social issues judged by conservatives and church....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

Contemporatry social problems

It is a present waiting to be opened, wrapped with a thick cover of racial discrimination and prejudice, Analyzing Contemporary Social Problems in the Movie “Crash” The movie Crash is a brutally honest film that depicts the harsh realities in today's society.... It tells of a convoluted story that shows how intertwined the lives are of people from all walks of life, from all kinds of races and cultures and value systems....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Latino Culture

Further, Latinos have considerably different histories, cultural approaches and Contemporary Social Problems (Suarez-Orozco & Paez, 2008).... However, the core element of Latinos is the continued presence of a Latino civil society, which provides Latino children with their initial experiences in the social world, teaches them right and wrong, duty, early concepts of civic responsibility, and first notions of personal identity.... The social practices and cultural models of multiculturalism contribute to the experiences, perceptions and the range of behaviors of both immigrant and native-born Latinos in ways unprecedented during earlier large-scale immigration....
2 Pages (500 words) Research Paper

Personal Experience of Medicalization

?Images of issues: typifying Contemporary Social Problems.... “‘Medicalization' describes a process by which non medical problems become defined and treated as medical problems, usually in terms of illness and disorders,” (Conrad, 4).... The happy kid we knew in Peter taken away by the society that was keen on giving a quick solution to his ‘problem,' and in the process they unnecessarily deprived him of his social life....
1 Pages (250 words) Essay

Martha Graham - Dancer and Choreographer

The paper "Martha Graham - Dancer and Choreographer" highlights that Martha Graham was a wonderful performer and good choreographer in America.... Her choreography is very surprising and amazing to viewers that she created a new style of body movements and facial expressions.... nbsp;… Martha Graham is not only a resourceful dancer but also an excellent choreographer....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us