Media & Technology, Gender, sex & Sexuality, Aging & the elderly, Social movements & social change

Required Resources: Chapters 8, 12, 13, & 21 & Media Links from this module.

I provide the media links because I think they enhance the process of learning about sociology and make it easier to ground the theories in real life. To that end, in each module, students will write a 750-1000-word essay and two 300 word responses to other students’ essays. I’m looking for integration: That means every chapter in all substantive chapters, and spread the media links and your personal insights around too. Think TOPICAL. Write about something, then use your new sociological perspective to analyze and more deeply understand your taken for granted world. Module 01 is required, but the system will drop the TWO lowest grades out of the remaining FIVE (Modules 02-06) This is a multi-step process and should not be approached all at once one hour before a deadline!

Step One: Complete Primary Post = 7 points – Due on last Thursday of each Module: Write a 500-750 word essay about your understanding of the concepts from the textbook, through the lens of the media links you watched and in context of your life (conventional wisdom/common sense). Tell the readers what you watched, listened to, and read and how these impacted your understanding of the “taken for granted world.” Write how these links helped you understand chapters concepts and in what ways. It is especially interesting if you can tell us about the preconceived notions you had about some topics and how the information in the media helped change, reinforce, and/or modify that conventional wisdom. This process may be challenging at first, but I promise, it will get easier with each board. These are not summaries of what you did. They are learning documents showing what you learned and how you are making connections (micro/macro) how you are developing your sociological imagination and/or your sociological perspective. There are integration requirements for each essay.
Integration Requirement 1: 4 (FOUR) concepts from each chapter in the relative module. Integration means you needs to spread terms throughout the essay – do not bunched them all up in one paragraph. Highlight ONLY the first important time you reference a textbook word, concept, date, or person to help me assess your ability to integrate the new terminology. Do not highlight a whole sentence or paragraph, just the term. Use a different color for EACH CHAPTER and provide a KEY to help me grade.
Integration Requirement 2: 3 (THREE) Media links from that module. Use a signal phrase to introduce the media links when you use them the first time. You will use the same color for all the media (as if they are their own chapter).
Integration Requirement 3: 2 (TWO) Insights derived from your life. This is where and how you use your sociological imagination, showing the micro macro connections your coursework is revealing. Bold/Italics these tidbits. Consider your life thus far and how the textbook concepts and the media links can shed light on or lift the veil from aspects of your life. In other words, write about your developing sociological perspective and show us how you are developing your sociological imagination.
Example: “As I learned about Marx’s concept of the false consciousness, I was struck by the way I’ve noticed this happening at work. For instance, my colleagues and I are the proletariat, and we are often in competition with each other and do not look at our bosses for an understanding of why we cannot get a raise. This especially occurred to me after watching the School of Life video because I thought about how if I studied my coworkers, immersing myself in that world by conducting an ethnography, I might notice how they……)”

Yellow = Chapter 1, Pink = Chapter 2, Red = Media Link

Media links

It will take approximately 3 hours to complete this page.

Gender:

Watch the Lecture called “Killing Us Softly IV”

This title available only in hard copy through the HCC library.http://discover.linccweb.org/primo_library/libweb/action/dlSearch.do?vid=FLCC1100&institution=FLCC1100&search_scope=FLCC1100&query=any,contains,killing+us+softly#

Here’s a free link on my Youtube channel: https://youtu.be/moFq73TDwss

In this update of her pioneering Killing Us Softly series, Jean Kilbourne takes a fresh look at how advertising traffics in distorted and destructive ideals of femininity. The film marshals a range of new print and television advertisements to lay bare a stunning pattern of damaging gender stereotypes – images and messages that too often reinforce unrealistic, and unhealthy, perceptions of beauty, perfection, and sexuality. It challenges a new generation of students to take advertising seriously, and to think critically about popular culture and its relationship to sexism, eating disorders, and gender violence.

Of course, there is not just ONE gender, is there? And often, when you hear about gender, the focus is on women, and that makes sense. But I’d like to have you watch this awesome documentary from Jackson Katz called Tough Guise 2.

Unfortunately, again, HCC library does not have it available online.

http://discover.linccweb.org/primo_library/libweb/action/dlSearch.do?vid=FLCC1100&amp=&amp=&amp=&institution=FLCC1100&search_scope=FLCC1100&query=any,contains,tough%20guise&pds_handle=252017165347418078881781369937364&calling_system=aleph&institute=

It is in hard copy at one of the campuses. check it out if you can. I will continue to try and secure an online version – wish me luck! IN the meantime, you can watch Tough Guise, from 1999 on my Youtube channel.

In this highly anticipated update of the influential and widely acclaimed Tough Guise, pioneering anti-violence educator and cultural theorist Jackson Katz argues that the ongoing epidemic of men’s violence in America is rooted in our inability as a society to move beyond outmoded ideals of manhood. In a sweeping analysis that cuts across racial, ethnic, and class lines, Katz examines mass shootings, day-to-day gun violence, violence against women, bullying, gay-bashing, and American militarism against the backdrop of a culture that has normalized violent and regressive forms of masculinity in the face of challenges to traditional male power and authority. Along the way, the film provides a stunning look at the violent, sexist, and homophobic messages boys and young men routinely receive from virtually every corner of the culture, from television, movies, video games, and advertising to pornography, the sports culture, and US political culture. Tough Guise 2 stands to empower a new generation of young men – and women – to challenge the myth that being a real man means putting up a false front and engaging in violent and self-destructive behavior

Finally, these are just for fun. Sometimes I laugh and sometimes I cry at the comedy in these clips. The inept father is certainly a stereotype we’re all familiar with; however, as more and more families have had to make changes to their statues and roles, what has happened to the role expectations of Mother’s and Fathers? What was (is) the parenting situation in your household? In what ways does it look like the American Cultural Ideal and in what ways is it different? Watch a music video & a clip from the 1983 film

Mr. Mom by Lonestar: http://vimeo.com/74302951

Mr Mom from 1983 Mister Mom.

Social Change Section

This is really a time for you to find TEDs that speak to you. I’d love for each of you to find some social problem that a TED talk has addressed. Go down a rabbit hole!

Here are a couple of my favorite about subjects that I’m passionate about.

Revisit a TED from Sheryl Sandberg . She looks at why a smaller percentage of women than men reach the top of their professions — and offers 3 powerful pieces of advice to women aiming for the C-suite. However, beware. She assumes her aiduence understands the systemic and historic realities of sexism in our society. I worry because as I read the discussion boards that reference Sheryl’s talk, many students seem to think women just need to LEAN IN. It’s basically our fault that we’re not more successful. I understand why some of you got that impression, and I’m excited that you will now get a chance to take a more macro view of gender in our society and specifically, in the workplace.

Watch a TED from Jessica Shortall called The US needs paid family leave — for the sake of its future

She says she wants to make point with her photos of the REAL working mothers and then tells some stories of working mothers. She asks, “What percentage of working women in America do you think have no access to paid maternity leave?” Can you answer that question? Now what is the real number, according to Jessica? Does it matter? Do you care? Should you care even if you don’t have a baby and don’t plan to have babies?

So, how did we get here? You have your textbook to help you understand the historic and structural impacts on gender stratification. I like to focus on ONE aspect of gender socialization (remember that term?) One of the AGENTS of socialization is media, and that’s where I like to focus.