Conflict Theory American society today is made up of all three of the theories. In my opinion, these theories all thrive off each other as a whole. I feel that the chain is something like this, Symbolic Interactionism, as well as Functionalism, lead into Conflict Theory. However, I feel that Conflict Theory is by far the largest component American society is made from, here is why! First I would like to touch on Symbolic Interactionism, symbols we attach value or meaning. This is a large part of this theory that sticks out, the part of this theory that I think applies the utmost to our society. It’s applied to everything around us, from what car you drive to what kind of earphones or purse you own. These material comforts …show more content…
If we had an even playing field then everyone would be equal, this would eliminate value. Conflict Theory is used to secure resources and maintain the value of them for the rich. Wealthy working together as one to maintain the value of themselves directly impacts the education system. A high level of education produces higher paying jobs. The more people that have these jobs, the more uniform the playing field; this directly diminishes the value of money. Greater education comes with a higher price tag. This I believe is set in place to keep the wealthy, rich in addition the poor uneducated. A system of winners and losers, a system that creates conflict. Racism is another great example of Conflict theory as it creates that separation, the void of having Functionalism. If the wealthy, as well as corporations, keep the void between us all, they keep their power over the American society. Conflict theory is everywhere I look within American; the country was born and thrives on conflict theory. This is something I have felt strong about for years. After doing some reading, the cross correlation between the three is amazing. However, I feel we have an extensive amount of Conflict Theory in society
Groups and individuals with that hold these resources use them to maintain power and social control. The wealthy are the independent variables that hold the power to make decisions and control how society is ran. The lower classes are the dependent variables that have little to no control over how society is structured. Conflict theorists encourage social change. Instead of allowing the “well off” to force social order on everyone else, the general public should fight for social change even at the expense of a possible social revolution.
I think the most important conflict in the novel, A Lesson Before Dying is person versus self (Grant versus self). Grant struggles with self-doubt, unsure if what he is doing within his community is truly making a difference. This uncertainty is evident when Grant questions himself in relation to his teaching at the local church, “What am I doing? Am I reaching them at all?... Is it just a vicious circle?
In the article Culture War? The Myth of a Polarized America, Morris Fiorina addresses the issue of the illusion of political polarization. Political polarization is the separation of political beliefs into two separate extremes. The main illustration Fiorina uses is the use the electoral map. The electoral map is used to gauge which party won an election or polling.
There is competition for resources such as power, wealth, prestige and values/beliefs. The demand for the resources exceeds the supply and conflict occurs. The article claims that the American dream of working hard and making it is not true for everyone. The article goes on to point out that the United States has an extremely high level of economic and social inequality. This is reflected in the conflict perspective that sees our society as based on inequality and competition.
Does the Greatly Skewed Distribution of Wealth Amongst the Lower and Upper Classes of Society Cause Conflict? American citizens as a whole do not recognize exactly how greatly skewed money is distributed amongst the lower and upper classes, nor the problems and conflicts that come with this great amount of skewness. People argue that this uneven distribution contributes in keeping society functioning because people are unaware of this disproportional spread since there are not any grave conflicts that would cause them to need to become aware. The article, Wealth Inequality in America: It’s Worse Than You Think by Chris Mathews, instead states that the top two percent of the wealthiest people in America contain over half of the total overall
In sociology, there are three theoretical perspectives; symbolic interactionism, functional analysis and conflict theory. The major point of symbolic interactionism is to use symbols to help understand how we as a society view the world, and how we communicate with one another. In functional analysis, the major point is to look at society as a whole, constructed of various parts, or groups, that all have their own function. Lastly, conflict theory is the opposite of functional analysis. In this perspective, society is viewed as different groups, each competing for power, or dominance.
In Ordinary People Conrad and Buck were out sailing when Buck drowned. Conrad tries to commit suicide by taking a knife to his wrist. He was hospitalized then was suppose to go to a psychiatrist to get help. Conrad gets into a serious relationship with Jeannine, and starts to get his life back together. By the end of the movie, Beth leaves home after Conrad came home and gave her a hug.
Human beings are all individually incredibly unique. This uniqueness is apparent in every experience of a person’s life, but it is the cycle of these unique experiences that connects all human beings. This cycle is defined as the human condition. Furthermore, this cycle is a series of inevitable life aspects that makes up a human being; two of the most obvious being growth and conflict. Within the human condition, growth cannot exist without conflict and conflict cannot exist without growth.
An aggregate is a group of individuals who temporarily share the same space. When reading the article “Descent into madness” by Mark Colvin you can notice that aggregate can also be used for prisoners. Just for the simple fact that they live together until getting released back into society. You can also see the prisoners have separated themselves into cliques. Using the conflict theory with the riot at the penitentiary of New Mexico.
Conflict theory depends on the premise of three fundamental inferences. The first one is the fight for limited resources is universal to all relationships in society. The second one is that people or groups often benefit from that fight over resources more than others. Ultimately deeming inequality and power are just fundamentals of the system. The last part so that.
Boundless Sociology. Boundless, 26 May. 2016. Retrieved 13 Jun. 2016 from https://www.boundless.com/sociology/textbooks/boundless-sociology-textbook/race-and-ethnicity-10/sociological-perspectives-on-race-and-ethnicity-83/the-functionalist-perspective-484-6546/ Conflict Theory Definition | Investopedia http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/conflict-theory.asp#ixzz4BRil7B00 Conflict theory | Introduction to Sociology Keirns, Nathan J., Eric Strayer, Heather Griffiths, Susan Cody-Rydzewski, Gail Scaramuzzo, Tommy Sadler, and Sally Vyain. Griffin, E. (1997).
Above all the conflict theory shapes society as a greed filled place fighting over power and money. Claerbaut defined conflict theory as The battle over power can range between social class, race, sexuality, even monumental corporations causing the society to divide into groups against each other. Opposed to conflict theory, symbolic interactionism is composed of people who are focused on individuality and personal pathways. To be a part of a symbolic interactionism society you should see no color, religion, or social class; only an individual sharing their ideas with the world through their way of communicating with
The conflict theory is a macro-level theory where theorists look at the unequal distribution of resources such as money, power, education, and social prestige. Those who are wealthier and more educated than others in the society hold more power over those who are not wealthy or as educated. Conflict theorists see this a lot in the educational system, where inequality is shown through the materials in the school, teachers in the classrooms, and topics being taught. This type of inequality leads to learning differences that emphasizes social inequalities. Macro-level sociology is looking at the bigger picture of the social process, such as stability and change throughout society.
Theoretical Framework: Conflict Perspective: Conflict perspective focuses their attention on society as a whole. Conflict theorists see society as in a continuous sate of conflict between groups and classes. He struggle for power and income is a continuous process but one in which many categories of people appear as opponents-classes, races, nationalities and even the sexes. Society is held together through the power of dominant groups or classes. The shared values, which functionalist see as glue for holding society together, do no realty form rue consensus; instead this is an artificial consensus in which the dominant groups or classes impose their values and rules upon rest of the people.
The notion and the meaning of conflict have evolved with time. Before Coser, conflict was seen more as a source of social change and disintegration. However, the conflict theory we are referring to here is not necessarily an infliction of violence or atrocities, but a conflict that arises due to unequal distribution of power and resources. Theorists consider power to be an important element of conflict theory. For instance, who uses power or where is power located are two of the main concerns of conflict theory.