...English 10 H The Individual in The Society The Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of the word individuality is: total character peculiar to and distinguishing an individual from others. The novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, play The Crucible by Arthur Miller and the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy all have underlying themes of the society influencing a character’s individuality. In each text, each character struggles with the difficulty of the society’s impact on their lives. Through each text we see the struggles and stress “the society” puts upon people. In “Barbie Doll,” the main character struggles with her self image, whereas in Catcher, Holden struggles with the society’s pressure to become materialistic. In The Crucible, every character is under the microscope and pressured to stay in order and not to step out of perfection. If they do not do as told or what is thought to be the correct way to act they will be accused of witchcraft even if innocent. The society has such a large impact on each and every one of these characters, that without a doubt each character has been influenced one way or another. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden faces the pressure of the society alone and struggles with the ability of keeping his individuality from slipping out of his grips. The society in this novel brings upon the pressure of having everything, even if it means really having nothing at all. Holden feels he cannot be himself in the society surrounding him,...
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...Marshall Dennis Professor Kay Mizell ENGL 1302 S34 13 September 2014 Individual versus Society A society is defined as a collection of people living together in a community. An individual is the required element to populate a society. The question is, will an individual’s will be dictated by society? Individual will is a person’s ability to follow through with self-made decisions, unconstrained by outside influences. Society will always be the higher authority over individual will, because society produces a direct change in individual will through anonymity. George Orwell uses a personal life story to show how society has an impact on individual will in his book Shooting an Elephant and Other Essays (1950). In the reading George is a police officer in Burma. He explains how the town population shares a widespread hatred for him, partly because he is English and partly because he is a police officer. The story leads to Orwell encountering an elephant which broke free. The elephant was wreaking havoc on the locals, already killing one man by the time Orwell arrived. Orwell sends for a rifle to be used for his own personal protection. “I had no intention of shooting the elephant – I had merely sent for the rifle to defend myself if necessary.” (724). After speaking with more locals he finds the elephant peacefully eating grass in a paddy field, not harming anyone or their property. He explains his initial reaction with this statement; “As soon as I saw the elephant...
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...Impact of Drugs on Individual Society The Impact of Drugs on Individual Society As the nation grows, so does the impact of drugs within society. Social and cultural factors have helped to influence the supply and demand of drugs. In some social circles, drugs have had a major influence over behaviors, choices, and attitudes. Everyday stressors, such as work and family life, can help to increase drug usage. Individuals, who use drugs, believe that escaping their daily problems of life. The impact that drugs have had on individual society has been negative because it has increased criminal activities, health issues, addictions, and overcrowded the criminal justice system. Even though many organizations and groups have stepped forward to start anti-drug groups and have encouraged members of society to become drug free, the process has been slow. Throughout life, there will continue to be individuals who will always struggle with their interpersonal conflicts and think that using drugs is a way to solve their problems. There are ongoing studies and methods of research that view the perspectives of drug usage and its effect on society. Some people even feel that if drugs are legalized, then they would become less desirable. Actually, an addict will only stop once they feel that they had a need to do so. Drugs, within society, possess the thoughts of the addict and continue to allow for them to not realize their problem until it is too late. Society realizes that drugs...
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...Relationship Between the Individual and Society From the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic of China, China was in the social transformation era. More accurately, people was in the alternating period of the feudal traditional conservative ideology and emerging modern thoughts. Hence, the authors always wrote the stories about how individuals reacted to such social changes. Like three stories, Lu Xun’s “A Madman’s Diary,” Yu Dafu’s “Sinking,” Mao Dun’s “Spring Silkworm” which depict how the individuals’ respond when they face two totally different ideologies or moral codes. These three stories show three different conditions, three different choices, and lead to three different results. One common thing is that all protagonists are suffering in that old society. First, Lu Xun’s “A Madman’s Diary” describes a madman who is the first rebel in modern literary history. The madman was born in the feudal scholar-bureaucrat family, everyone lived around him was bound by the feudalism. However, he was not one of them, he had modern thoughts and yearn for a just society. Unfortunately, he could not find a person with a like-minded goal, and everyone else saw him as a madman. He thought that society was an “eat people” world. For example, he read history intently half the night until he saw the whole book was filled with the two words “eat people”. He thought the history were all wrote about how the powerful people oppress the poor. And he felt sorrow that such merciless history...
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...The use of the plural self reference rather than the singular, goes to the book's point, that the individual is more important rather than the society. Although Equality 7-2521 follows the rules of society, he questions if what he is doing is right. Equality 7-2521 is a lot smarter and more curious than his brothers yet when he meets the girl on the fields, he soon realizes he's not alone with his thoughts. In Anthem by Ann Rand, the society is more important than the individual. According to the society, the individual is not important, but the whole society together is. “What brought it to pass? What disaster took their reason away from men? What woo lashed them to their knees in shame and submission? The worship of the word ‘We.’” (pg.62)....
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...Murdock, a functionalist believes that the family structure is like a sub system to society. He says that the family performs four essential functions to meet the needs of society and it's members. These functions are: successful socialisation of the young into society's shared norms and values, the members of the families economic needs are met regularly e.g food and shelter, stable satisfaction of the sex drive with the same partner and finally the reproduction of the next generation without which society would struggle to continue. However, there are many criticisms of Murdock's theory. Other sociologists have argued that his 'rose tinted' harmonious consensus view that the family meets the needs of both wider society and all members of the family is foolish and nieve. Feminists argue that the family was only created to serve the needs of men and oppress the women whilst marxists argue that although the structure of the family meets the needs of capitalism, it doesn't meet the needs of the family itself or society as a whole. Another functionalist known as Parsons, proposes the 'functional fit' theory. This theory states that the functions the family performs will depend on the kind of society in which it is found and that the functions the family is required to perform will effect its 'shape'. Parsons distinguishes between two kinds of family structure: The nuclear family consisting of just parents and dependant children and the extended family of three generations...
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...Assess the Functionalist view that religion benefits both society as a whole and its individual members? (18) Functionalists see religion in a positive light and as it is a key institution of society. This differs from the Marxist and Feminist view that religion is there to simply reinforce the oppression. For functionalists, society’s key need is for social solidarity and order enabling members to cooperate. Religion ensures that this is maintained, and individuals do not pursue their own selfish desires alone as this would cause society to disintegrate. Durkheim acknowledged that the key feature of religion was not a belief in the Gods but the apparent distinction between the sacred and the profane which is found in all religions. Sacred being things that are set apart which give feelings of awe and wonder and profound being things which have no significance and are ordinary and mundane. In Durkheim’s study of an Australian Aboriginal tribe signified these differences. When the group practised their rituals, through prayer to the sacred, this was done collectively as a social group which binds individuals together reminding them that they are part of a community in which they owe their loyalty to. Durkheim’s view on sacred symbols represents societies collective consciousness, the shared norms and values, shared value beliefs and our knowledge that make a harmonious society and social solidarity possible. In contrast, responding to Durkheim’s claims Worsley maintains that...
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...Pros & Cons of Union Representation from Individual, Organizational and Society Perspective The rise of unions from the 1930s through the early 1950s was due to the convergence of a number of events, an economic policy that attempted to restrict competition beginning in the 1930s, the belief that labor markets were noncompetitive and that individual workplaces were unfair and union premiums were low. The passage of favorable legislation, in the form of the Wagner Act, was a reflection of the idea that unions could actually improve the functioning of labor markets and serve as a countervailing power to big business. Over the past several decades, union membership has declined because government policy became pro-competitive, it became clearer that labor markets were relatively competitive, HR practices developed that reduced the amount of opportunistic behavior of employers, and unions increased the percentage premium they enjoyed in industries where rents were available. In this environment, the public-good aspect of labor unions and their ability to improve the functioning of labor markets was being questioned. The passage of amendments to the NLRA that were unfavorable to unions was a reflection of this changed sentiment as to the public good aspect of unions as well as to the adoption of pro-competitive market policies in general. Consequently the future trend in union mass will depend on the competitiveness of the economy and on the related question of the number of...
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...What are he Impact of IT (good, bad, and ugly) on Individual, Organization, and society. 1. What is SIS? Strategic Information Systems (SIS) is basically a viable strategy that seeks to obtain competitive advantage in an industry. Now more than ever with frequent changes in technologies in a global market; new business models are created or modified. All this idea entangles, changing customer’s demands, online competitors, pressures for better quality products and services, higher supplier cost,, demands for superior customer service, etc. SIS changes the way a company competes in the market, it seeks to be innovative, and it also accompanies some degree of risk when implemented. 2. What happens if SIS is not aligned with Organization Mission and goals? One thing for sure, the core of business has not changed and that is to make a profit and survive. The goal is to link organizational goals with its systems. The question is not what if SIS are not aligned; the statement is, both should be related. Implementation of SIS should be treated as an investment. It should be perceived as the step needed to achieve competitive advantage. In many instances the mission and beliefs of an organization reflect the values of its top management. In all, the objective of a company should always contribute to its mission and it should not compromise it. The consequences can be devastating. For a good example we can refer to the case of Xerox and CEO, Anne Mulcahy. Mulcahy took over Xerox...
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...can still be said to be functional for individuals and for society (18 marks) Functionalists define religion as promoting social solidarity and integration. This can be described using the biological analogy- each segment of society performs a function, this maintains an equilibrium, without which society would disintegrate. Functionalists see religion as contributing positively to society, as it performs functions for the individual as it creates a sense of purpose for life, both religion for society and the individual then creates equilibrium. Durkheim argued that society worships the sacred and the profane, “The scared” are objects that set religions apart, and they are used to inspire individuals and bring other individuals together, an example of this is The Bible, The Bible is a sacred object for Christians, The Bible can bring the Christian community together as it is something that the religion worships. Durkheim believes that when people worship their sacred objects they are worshipping society. This is shown in Toteism religion, the worship of objects influence the tribe, the Aruntas, way of life. This reinforces solidarity and cohesion. Some can also say religion creates a “Collective Conscience”, as the sacred symbols can reflect society, the rituals of the religion maintains the social solidarity, and gives a sense of belonging as others share the same values and norms. This therefore suggests it has a function for society through the theory of collective conscience...
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...importance to a large group of people. However the real question is whether religion serves to benefit both the individual and society in this ever evolving postmodern world. One perspective that suggests that religion does serve to benefit both the individual and society as a whole is Functionalism, which believes that religion maintains value consensus by creating social solidarity and keeping social order in place. Marxism however believes religion creates class division in society, by acting as an “opium of the people” and a “spiritual gin”, which in turn creates the false class consciousness and illusory happiness, which leads to people being subordinate and not challenging their place in society, as religion helps to explain their place and maintains social order. A core argument from the Functionalist perspective, put forward by Durkheim, was society’s distinction between the “sacred” (things set apart,special,inspire feelings of awe and wonder) and the “profane” (things that have no special significance,ordinary or mundane). Durkheim argued that the reason why scared symbols or festivals in religion evoke such powerful feelings in individuals is because they represent a greater power, this in Durkheim’s opinion could only be society itself. Therefore in Durkheim's view when members of society are worshipping sacred symbols, they’re merely worshipping society and all that it stands for, thus uniting society’s members into a single, moral community creating value consensus...
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...The inevitable tensions between the individual and society are the foundations for the most engaging moments in Hamlet. Consider YOUR understanding of Hamlet and how this statement affirms or challenges YOUR response to the play. The most engaging moments within Hamlet have been founded by the inevitable tensions encountered between the individual and society. Hamlet explores the tragic consequences of attempting to unite the two opposing forces of personal morality and societal corruption. The deception and political corruption within Denmark has detrimental effects upon an individual’s sense of self. Due to the corruption of the society around him, Hamlet’s values of integrity, loyalty, trust and honesty are destabilised, thus showing the vulnerability of the human character. Hamlet is a universal play as it transcends through both time and context with Hamlet resinating with modern audiences due to Hamlet’s confusion, he faces a struggle when asserting his morality against the disease and deceit inherent in Denmark. Shakespeare’s exploration of Hamlet’s consciousness of his own mortality and questions of his identity haunting him throughout the play lead to his inevitable death at the closing of the play. Hamlet’s loss of identity is due to his mother’s incestuous relationship with Claudius and also by the death of his father, a man he saw as an idol, with his distress and grief being demonstrated through his actions and the response of characters towards his actions. Hamlet...
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...1.Explain why individual rights and public order perspectives are such contentious issues in contemporary American Society.. In America advocates for individual rights feel that it is extremely important that no rights or freedoms should be given up to ensure order for society. Many of these individual rights are guaranteed to us in the constitution and with that being said that would mean that everyone has these rights including the criminals in society. These rights often are one of the reasons that the justice system is always so tied up and court trials can take many years. One of the hot topics with individual rights and public order currently is the many protests and demonstrations that are going on in America of the past several months. This is a good example of individual rights versus public order....
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...Functionalists believe that religion is beneficial for both society as a whole and its individual members, this is because it unifies society and creates consensus, which in turn gives each individual member a source of support when they need it. However some theorists disagree with the functionalist ideology. Firstly, functionalist claim religion benefits society in a number of ways, it creates a sense of social solidarity, meaning a shared sense of identity, history, norms and values (a collective conscience). This is supported by item A, ‘religion's contribution to value consensus and social integration’. Functionalist explain that if all of a society's members are part of the same religion then they all share the same belief system, resulting in consensus between all of its members. The religious institution will teach its members the norms and values of the society they are in and the collective worship will bind societies members closer together, for example, people in Muslim countries who are part of the faith of Islam, understand it is normal to stop and pray 5 times a day and also that no-one should work on Friday however people in Christian countries understand the day of rest to be Sunday. Functionalist therefore claim members of a society have a collective conscience, they think in the same way, due to their shared norms and values. Functionalists also believe that religion unifies people; the functionalist Emile Durkheim studied an aboriginal tribe the Arunta...
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...reflection on the powerlessness of the individual in modern Russian society through the film “Durak” (The Fool) INTRODUCTION “You must obey the law, always, not only when they grab you by your special place.” Vladimir Putin I grew up on American movies built around stories portraying an underdog protagonist (ex. Erin Brockovich) who against all odds through hardship and danger manages to beat all sources of antagonism, fight injustice, save the day, and ride off into the sunset with cash and a high sense of self-achievement, reaching a full transformation circle in his/her character development. In contrast, after watching “The Fool” by Yuri Bykov, and “Leviathan” by Andrey Zvyagintsev I couldn't help but noticing the exact opposite. Namely, the stories revolve around an underdog protagonist, who in a toxically decaying environment, never seem to change or learn anything while battling against either corruption, injustice or both, ending up with the protagonist being ruined in every way imaginable, losing practically everything including his family and hope, his efforts ridiculed, and he himself severely physically punished. The two protagonists are of course very different, however, one needs to be reminded that behind every movie script there is an individual writer with a goal of conveying a statement to his audience. In the film “the Fool” through Dima, the powerless protagonist, the writer/director describes a society that is deeply in decay, where people...
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