Culture!!

During this week in Sociology we discussed a lot about culture. We learned how people from different countries, ethnicity, religion, or race have different cultures or ways of living. It was interesting to learn about all the different countries and how they communicate. For example, Sal was telling us about his experience in Japan. He told us how him and a group of friends went there and they were waiting for the waiter for like 20 minutes. They observed that the people around them all were saying excuse me in Japanese to the waiters. Finally they said that, the the waitress immediately ran over and said, "Hei" which means yes in Japanese. In America, we expect the waiters to serve us right away without saying anything. Other countries even clap their hands or do the 'come here' sign. Also, different countries surprisingly eat differently too! Like the Asians eat with chopsticks, we eat with forks and spoons, while the Indians actually scoop with their hands.

I also experience different cultures in my family. My parents have been divorced ever since I was young and my moms catholic and my dads jewish. Although I was raised catholic, I still celebrate the holidays with my dad. This week was their New Year and I celebrate every year with him. It is so cool that I get to experience two very different religions. Like they have a different language and everything. I learn a lot from experiencing different religions and getting to know how different they are.

Groups

This week in sociology we watched an incredible movie called "A Bronx Tale". This was an amazing film that described the life of a boy, Calogero and his hardships and how he got passed them. He turned out to be a good guy who came from a bad neighborhood. He did have some struggles throughout his childhood though. “They’re all smiling.  I was smiling too, but I was dying inside. I wanted out, but I couldn’t get out of the car.  What was I gonna’ say?  Let me out, I’m afraid, I’m a chicken.  I could never go back to the neighborhood. They would call me a punk, a dog a mutt.  They would say I got no heart.  I kept hearing my father’s voice in my head, ‘don’t blow it , son; these people will hurt you, son; don’t waste your talent, son.  Then I kept hearing Sonny’s voice, ‘be careful C, don’t lose it C, keep your head C.’  Somebody pulled the chain and I was going down the toilet.” Caloger or "C" as he was referred to belonged to many different groups. He was the son of two italian parents from Sicili, He was part of Sonny's crowd, part of Slicks group who he grew up with. He was a son, a friend, a person who touched the lives of many people. He and Sonny were part of the same group, but they were really in their own groups when it came to the way the lived. Sonny helped C realize he did not want to live the life that Sonny had. He wanted to be a "working man" as his Dad had always said. He was a guy that was a part of all these groups. But in reality, he was a part of his own group because in every group he belonged to, he didn't agree with the stuff they did. Like Slicks group for example, they hated the colored people and were very violent to them . He went along with it, but he really cared about them just as much as he would care for any other stranger. He eventually realized he had to be his own person. By the end of the story, he realized unconditional love was the most important thing; Sonny was wrong when he said fear lasted longer.


In my life I can relate to what C went through. Although I didn't grow up in the "Bronx", I still have had similar situations with groups. I was with a bad group just like C was. I didn't agree with how they treated others and what kind of people they were. But I was afraid to lose friends and I didn't want to be a loner. Eventually  I learned my values were may more important than any group in high school. I dropped them and currently I've never been happier with my decision.

What group do you belong to ?

On Tuesday in sociology, we talked about how every person is split up into groups or categories that define each and every person. This made me realize each person is very unique and every one has a "master" category that is a group they belong to that is the most important to them. Before sociology, I never would have thought to get to know every one in class and see how they define themselves and what is most important to them. It was cool to see all the groups that they came up with, it helped me get to know my classmates; something we never would do in any other class. Some people chose ethnicity, race family, jobs, religion, student, or friendship. Many of my classmates actually surprised me and it helped me get to know their values and what was most important to them.

Some of my personal categories were friends, family, clubs, and being a student at Stevenson High School. At first I chose being a student at Stevenson as being my master category that defines me the most. But then throughout the class period, I learned quickly that that wasn't true. There isn't just one group that is more important to me. I feel like each and every one of those groups define me as a person and who I am.

Social Construction of Reality

During this week in sociology, we learned about social construction of reality. Or meaning what society and our people create due to our feelings and experiences. We read a very intriguing story called The survivors of F-227 by James Henslin. In our society that we've created, normally we would think eating human flesh and our people would be absolutely disgusting and unacceptable. But, when it comes to a life or death situation like in F-227, they created their own kind of society. Due to how they were stranded on the mountain for a very long time, they needed to eat; the only way they could do this was by eating bodies. At first they were disgusted, but then as time went on, they thought it was acceptable to eat this solely on the fact that that was the only way they could survive. I can totally relate to this society we create. One of my friends started working out this summer like crazy and eating extremely healthy. We are very close and hang out almost every day that naturally I picked up these habits. I started working out, running, biking, etc. more than I ever have before. Its interesting how the people in our society who were are closest to can affect how we live and our lifestyles.

Socoiological Imagination!!

This week in sociology, I connected most with learning about sociological imagination. We read an interesting story called The Outliers. It was so cool to learn how much of an impact the people in our communities have on our lives. This story taught me how the relationships we make with the people around us can have such a positive affect on our lives , and make such a difference with our health. The Rosetos didn't know this, but because of how social and close they were with their neighbors and family, they rarely had heart diseases! This was not because of the way they ate or how much they exersized, but it was because they all had purpose in their lives. They were so close to everyone in their community, attended church every Sunday, and helped each other out.


In my life, I feel a connection to this story. I have moved around 4 times in my life. From Buffalo Grove to Naperville, now I'm currently back living in Buffalo Grove. It is very interesting how different both the communities are. If I went to Naperville Central High School I feel I would've been a completely different person. The people are so different there and people interact and have different values then the Buffalo Grove area. It is such a cool experience for me to have lived in both places and I feel its made me a really positive and accepting person.