Sociological Imagination

Sociological Imagination The sociological Imagination is the quality of mind that allows people to see how larger social forces , especially their place in history and the ways in which society is organized, shape their life stories or biographies.

Biography: It consists of all the day to day activities from birth to death that make up a person’s life. Social Forces: are any human created ways of doing things that influence, pressure, or force people to behave, interact with others, and think in specified ways. Social forces are considered remote and impersonal as , for the most part, people have no hand in creating them, nor do they know who did.

One Social force that contributed to the current economic crisis was the 1950s invention of the credit cards.

Why is it important to develop the sociological imagination? Better understand their own biography by locating it in a broader context Recognize the responses available to them b y becoming aware of the many individuals who share and do not share their situation and response Position themselves to resist destructive forces and to change society for the better.

Social Facts – Read pg. 4

Sociological Consciousness Peter L. Berger: “ The first wisdom of sociology is this – things are not what they seem” According to Berger, the wish to look inside and learn more is analogous to the sociological perspective.

Sociologists are compelled to ask questions about the nature and origin of the social forces shaping it. Those questions include: What are the social forces shaping the human activity under discussion? Under what circumstances do people resist and challenge social forces? What is the reach of a social force- is it confined to a specific group of people or does it effect human activity on a local, global, regional, or national scale? How are social forces initiated? Who benefits from a particular social force and at whose expense?

Troubles & Issues C. Wright Mills(1959) defines troubles as personal needs, problems, or difficulties that can be explained as individual shortcomings related to motivation, attitude, ability, character, or judgment. By comparison, an issue is a matter that can be explained only by factors outside an individual’s control and immediate environment.

Sociological Imagination The ability to see the relationship between individual experiences and the larger society. Private v. Public Issues

According to Mills, people need, “ quality of mind that will help them to use information” so they can think about “what is going on in the world and what maybe happening within themselves”. Mills call this quality of mind the Sociological Imagination.

The Industrial Revolution An ongoing, and evolving social force that transformed society, human behavior, and interaction in incalculable ways. The industrial revolution is the name given to the changes in manufacturing, agriculture, transportation, and mining that transformed virtually every aspect of society

“Defining feature of Industrial Revolution was Mechanization”