The saints and the roughnecks discussion questions

Reading Assignment Three

Contemporary American Society Online

Required Writing Style

1. Answers should be at least a paragraph long

2. Answers should contain detail that demonstrates to the instructor that you clearly understand the material

· Your job is to demonstrate that you have read all of the required material, you understand basic terms and concepts, and that you understand the main points in each chapter.

· Given that this is an online course, I can only assess what you have learned by reading your written answer. I do not know what you are thinking unless you write it down.

· Please answer the question as completely as possible to show me that you are doing your work and you understand the material.

· A good goal to have to ensure that you write a thorough answer is to pretend that you are explaining the course material to a child or someone who has never heard of sociology. Try to forget that your instructor is reading your answers. This way, you will be forced to explain things very clearly and you are less likely to assume that the other person knows something about sociology.

3. Your answers should contain evidence from the textbook to support your answer.

· By “evidence”, I mean quotes from the text, references to a certain reading, specific terms/ideas, and other sources of proof that you read the material and that you can connect your own ideas to the material in the textbook.

· After you have answered the questions using evidence from the textbook, feel free to add your own opinions or examples.

Required Format

4. Please use this document as your writing template.

· Copy and paste this assignment into the document that you will eventually submit on Blackboard, or simply save this document to your computer and type your answers in this document.

· Type your answers beneath each question using the same font type, size, and color (Times New Roman, 11-point font, black).

· Please leave a space between the question and your answer

· If you do not answer a question, please write “omitted” below the question.

· It helps me to read the assignments more clearly if they are all submitted in the same format. Call me if you do not understand these directions.

5. Unique answers are required.

· Although you will all be using the same terms and ideas to support your answers, you will all relate to the material differently and approach the material from different perspectives; therefore, your answers will vary widely. This is to be expected, and in this way, there is no “right” or “wrong” answer, with the exception of the answers that are not thoughtfully explained and do not make use of the course material. It is acceptable and even encouraged to ask your classmates for help on the discussion board when you do not understand a question or a concept in your reading.

CHAPTER QUESTIONS

Remember to use evidence from the text to support your answers, and only write your opinion after you have written the facts supported by evidence.

CHAPTER 7 Deviance and Social Control

1. What is deviance?

1. Using evidence from the textbook and online, discuss deviance and social control. Be sure to discuss sanctions for either breaking or adhering to social norms.

1. Discuss the theories in your textbook that help to explain deviance and crime: strain theory, social disorganization theory, conflict theory, labeling theory, differential association theory, and control theory. (This will require a lot of writing and you should demonstrate that you understand these theories well).

1. Using evidence that you gather online, select a type of crime of interest to you and discuss which theory best explains the type of crime and why. Please provide links to the online sources that you use.

1. How is crime measured in the United States?

1. Using evidence from the textbook and online, discuss the U.S. Justice System.

1. Using evidence that you gather online, discuss one of the major issues that we face in our U.S. Justice System. Please provide links to the online sources that you use.

1. Answer these questions about The Saints and the Roughnecks by William Chambliss: Feel free to discuss this with your classmates on the discussion forum. You can find this article at http://people.morrisville.edu/~reymers/readings/SOCI101/Saints_and_the_Roughnecks-Chambliss.pdf

· Describe the socio-economic background of the Saints and the Roughnecks.

· Describe the kinds of activities the Saints and the Roughnecks each engaged in

· Describe the community’s perception of and reaction to the Saints and to the Roughnecks

(teachers, police, etc.)

· Which group was more delinquent and why?

· What three factors led to different conceptions of the two groups by the community (hint: these can be found as subheadings in the article—you may feel free to discuss this on the board and help each other figure this out)? List and describe them.

· Describe how labeling theory be used to explain the outcomes of the two groups.

CHAPTER 12 Sex and Gender

1. Using evidence from your textbook, what is the difference between sex and gender?

2. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the difference between sexual orientation, sexuality, andgender identity.

3. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss socialization and gender roles.

4. What is gender stratification? What are the consequences of gender stratification? Explain thoroughly

using examples from the chapter.

5. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the theoretical perspectives on gender.

6. Using evidence that you gather online, select a gender issue of interest to you and discuss which theory best explains the issue and why. Please provide links to the online sources that you use.

7. Compare and contrast sexuality around the world and sexuality in the U.S.

8. Discuss how queer theory challenges ideas about gender.

MORE CHAPTERS ON THE NEXT PAGE

CHAPTER 11 Race and Ethnicity

1. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss race, ethnicity, and minority groups.

2. What does it mean that race is socially constructed? What other topics in this course could you argue are socially constructed and why?

3. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination.

4. How do redlining and racial steering contribute to institutionalized racism?

5. Discuss the concept of white privilege after reading the following:

· Peggy McIntosh, “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack https://www.racialequitytools.org/resourcefiles/mcintosh.pdf

· “What is White Privilege, Really?” https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/fall-2018/what-is-white-privilege-really

6. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the patterns of intergroup relations.

7. Choose one topic to learn more about online—genocide, expulsion, segregation, pluralism, assimilation, amalgamation.

· Please provide a summary of the article or video

· Discuss what you learned about the systemic and negative treatment of racial and ethnic minorities by dominant groups.

· Please provide a link to the sites you visit so your work can be reviewed.

8. Read section 11.5 Race and Ethnicity in the United States

a. Choose one group to learn more about.

· summarize the passage on the group, including key points and terms.

b. Learn more about your group online --

· Please provide a summary of the article or video

· Discuss what you learned about the systemic and negative treatment of racial and ethnic minorities by dominant groups.

· Please provide a link to the sites you visit so your work can be reviewed.

CHAPTER 18 Work and the Economy

1. What is the economy? Discuss some of the issues we have been facing in the U.S. economy.

2. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the economics of Agricultural, Industrial, and Postindustrial Societies

3. Using evidence from your textbook, explain the difference between state socialism with central planning and market socialism.

4. Using evidence from your textbook, explain the ways that capitalistic and socialistic economies can converge

5. Describe the impact a rapidly growing economy can have on families.

6. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss section 18.2, Globalization and the Economy

7. What is the American dream? What are the realities of the American dream today?

8. What are some of the issues the American workforce faces today?

9. What does is mean to be underemployed? What is structural unemployment?

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CHAPTER 17 Government and Politics

1. What is power? Utilizing your textbook, discuss power from a sociological perspective, including a discussion of Weber’s work on power.

2. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the various types of authority.

3. Explain why leaders as divergent as Hitler and Jesus Christ are both categorized as charismatic authorities. 4. Charismatic leaders are among the most fascinating figures in history. Select a charismatic leader about whom you wish to learn more and conduct online research to find out about this individual. Then write a paragraph describing the personal qualities that led to this person’s influence, considering the society in which they emerged.

5. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the various forms of government.

6. Has the United States has become an oligarchy? Why, or why not? Use evidence from the Internet to back up your assertions, and provide links to the websites you use to answer this question.

7. Explain how an absolute monarchy differs from a dictatorship.

8. What is politics? Utilizing your textbook, discuss politics from a sociological perspective.

9. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss issues surrounding voter participation in the U.S.

CHAPTER 19 Health and Medicine

1. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the social construction of health, illness, and medical knowledge.

2. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss social epidemiology and health in high and low income nations.

3. If social epidemiologists studied the United States in the colonial period, what likely differences would they find in health between now and then?

4. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss the factors contribute to the disparities in health according to race, ethnicity, social class, and gender in the United States?

5. Using evidence from your textbook, what is the state of mental health among citizens in the U.S. today?

6. Discuss the difference between public and private health care in the U.S. What are the consequences of these differences for the people these systems serve?

7. Using evidence from your textbook, discuss healthcare in other countries.