Applying Sociology Concepts and Theories to the Events in the Book - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages Examples of such theorists are Marx and Weber, Ralf Dahrendrof and Gerhard Lenski, who have come up with theories to deal with the social issues (MacLeod 2004). Jay MacLeod is one author who has sacrificed 30 years to writing. His writing is mainly about the life and times of Americans who seem too invisible to the rest of society. MacLeod immersed himself in the culture of public housing development, and in the course of working on his thesis in the year 1980, published a book that has since then become a required reading (MacLeod 2004). ‘Ain’t No Making It’ is a book recommended for any individual who cares about social and economic issues such as equality, poverty and race, as are common in modern day society. The book that has ended up being a best seller especially in the academic sector, is also a recommended reading for sociology students all around the US. ESSAY Brief Summary of Ain’t No Makin It This book by Jay MacLeod takes readers into Clarendon Heights, which is a low income American housing project. Here, readers are introduced to two resident groups of youths, where one is a black minority group calling themselves, The Brothers and the other is a group of whites calling themselves, The Hallway Hangers (MacLeod 2004). This account regarding the location where the narrative is set up, is not meant for only those who are familiar with Clarendon Heights, but also to other people all round the globe. Readers from everywhere are able to identify in a local context, where youths struggle with issues of defeatism, racial discrimination and poverty, in similar situations (MacLeod 2004). In the course, of looking at these two groups, the author questions why the groups have opposed aspirations of attainment, considering that they have experienced similar educational and living conditions (MacLeod 2004). This situation seems not to make any sense, as America has promised to offer equal opportunities to every American citizen. MacLeod also takes a closer look at the issue of hypocritical rhetoric that seems to surround idealistic ideas of America as the land of equal opportunities (MacLeod 2004). This ideology is obviously the cause of challenges these youths presented in the book are experiencing, with regards to embracing certain social structures. In the course of writing this book, the author elaborates on every question raised, thus presenting pleasingly critical, as well as, theoretical discussions, which are interwoven with logic quotes from the youths (MacLeod 2004). These 2 different groups residing in the same neighborhood are also seen discussing issues such as sex, occupations, poverty, race, crime, parents and drugs. Their discussion is presented in a candid form by the author and brought back to the theoretical (MacLeod 2004). Sociology Concepts and Theories Present in Ain’t No Makin It Sociology Concepts Present Poverty Even though, the main sociological concept and theory is Poverty in this book, MacLeod has also included other theories such as the Marx and Weber’s Theory, and sociological concepts such as Class, Status, Social Inequality, Ideology and Labor Rules concepts (MacLeod 2004). There exists a strong connection between occupational outcomes and aspirations in this book. It has been ...Download file to see next pagesRead More