Sociological Problem of the Rise of Spectatorship and Decline of Direct Participation in Society - Essay Example

Sociological Problem of the Rise of Spectatorship and Decline of Direct Participation in Society Introduction Social alienation has become a part of today’s society. In simple words, social alienation can be defined as a social process in which people do not contemplate, participate or involve in those issues which directly or indirectly affect the social fabric and social values of the society. In this type of society, people are more concerned about their personal issues rather than the societal challenges. In a broad sense, they may be conscious and careful about their community, ethnicity or any sub-segment of society which directly or indirectly provides some sort of identity with the community. As a result, this fragmentation creates class-based society in which society is divided into the upper and the lower class. And each has its own personal, social, cultural, ethnic, religious, political and traditional values, beliefs and practices. In the following parts of this paper, first thesis statement has been given in which the theme of the paper has been included. Subsequently, the description of problems pertaining to the class-based society is provided, elaborating the issues and challenges commonly found in such society. It means this section not only highlights the problems but also points out its effects on the society and members as well. It is followed by the segment highlighting the causes behind the development of the class-based society. And before the conclusion, some solutions along with theoretical support have been discussed in that part. Thesis Statement Class-based society primarily causes alienation and decline of participation in the sociological arrangements. Problems Class-based society has differently defined by the various sociologists and other related intellectuals. For example, a class-based society is such type of society in which the social isolation of specific classes is common and there always exists a lack of closer interaction and contact with individuals with the members of other classes (Coutts 103). Broadly speaking, “a class-based society is that attributions about the moral, intellectual, and social worth of individuals and families are made on the basis of class” (Hardy and Laszloffy 52). Both definitions are accurately defining and unequivocally elaborating the nature and type of the class based society. The definition provided by Coutts highlights the main issue with the class based society which tears apart individuals and societies and subsequently such sociological problem creates social isolation and discourage interaction and communication between humans. And the second definition, given by Hardy and Laszloffy, takes into account the various dimensions and sources of social isolation and particularly it emphasizes on the psychological and sociological dimensions in which people of a particular class develop, retain and practice certain values and behaviors and through such acts they try to display their class status and difference existed when their class attributions are compared with the members of other classes. Based on the class-based society notion, it can be highlighted that today’s modern society has been mainly fragmented into the following: Upper class and lower class. In both classes, people have different living standard, values, customs, traditions, and attributes, personal and social paradigms and so on. For example, people from the upper class are always remain conscious about their class status; they maintain luxury cars, beautiful houses in their class-based community, develop and retain relations and contacts with the people of this stature; additionally, their daily routine is different as they prefer to wake up early and go for the morning walk, take fruit juices and so on. Additionally, their prime concern is not economic but predominantly social. In other words, they attach little importance to their daily domestic and personal expenditure, nor they care about their rising cost of living in their annual cost rise increase paradigm but they always focus that their external status and social image and perception based on the class should remain intact. On the other hand, the lower class experiences different social and economic values. For example, the lower class does not attach considerable significance to their class which is the corner stone of social thinking of the upper class; they do not prefer to maintain their social status but they are more concerned about the basic economic needs. For example, they try to cope up with their daily expenses, attempt to increase their income and lower their expenditure as much as they could. Based on the basic needs and available economic resources, their prime problems are economic in their nature. Within this background, it has been contended that class struggle between the exploited and the exploiting has been continued and dominated at various stages of social development (Marx and Engels 1). This argument clearly validates that the class rift and class-based society have created a sense of alienation and discouragement among the society members and they are forced to struggle for their class-based level and it’s so called ‘class-based identity.’ Additionally, from the exposition of Marx and Engels, it can also be deduced that only the members of lower classes do not suffer this social alienation and social interaction but the upper class members also becomes more status conscious and tries to retain its position and power in the society by using exploitation as a way to suppress the exploited members of the lower class. Education sector also reflects the effects of class-based society. In which, certain education institutions are only for the upper class and the lower class members are disallowed or they cannot afford the schooling fees. Causes Karl Marx contends that capitalism has provided strong foundations to the class-based society (Andersen et al. 189). Capitalism has been defined as an infrastructure of society in which only capitalists intersect and this infrastructure can be with or without institutions, such as the family, law, education and so on (Andersen et al. 189). Subsequently, from a Marxist perspective, inequality is persistent and unavoidable result of the capitalism (Hill, Greaves and Maisuria 59). Based on the Karl Marx arguments and his related theories, it can be easily deduced that inequality, which is a common thread in the class-based society, has direct bearing upon the growing cleavage between the upper and the lower class. And the effect of this difference is not only restricted to the economic aspect of the human life but it has spread to other segments of life, such as psychological, cultural, traditional, political, personal, religious and territorial dimension as well. For example, it is a indelible reality that the strong economic structure (i.e. sufficient access to the basic human needs, such as shelter, education, health, employment and other types of socio-economic rights), is the backbone of any family, community, society and economy as well. Currently, we observe that countries, such as the United States of America and other affluent countries dominate the international and regional politics and make big economic and political decisions of other countries. And this decision making authority is not a self-assumed power but the affluent countries have more financial and economic resources, among other things, which determine their level of influence on the international relations and on those countries which are not financially strong but largely on the aid of the rich countries. Based on this notion, it can be further argued that the economic strength/capability retains a strong influence on a person’s or community’s social outlook; and this economic capability has the highest importance when it is compared with the other aspects of society. Solutions Reducing the gap between the upper and the lower class requires an active participation from all people from both classes. In this regard, the role of intellectual community, such as teacher, doctor, religious leader, political leader, is of prime importance because they are the one who influence, construct, and deconstruct the social psychology of people who subsequently use the psychological construct for interacting with the other society members. Freire attaches considerable significance to the role of teacher by saying that the teacher must enable students to gain control over the social and economic conditions of today’s life (243). Undoubtedly, teacher has a very important role for the society. After the birth and a few years at home, child is required to attend school. Here, it is the role of this social institution to take into account all those social measures which are the bedrock of society. Based on the societal foundations, this social institution is required to inculcate such social values and behavior which are harmonious with the existing and historical social trends of the society. For example, this social institution should introduce and implement the practice of giving in which the new students are taught and convinced that the practice of giving one’s personal belongings to the friends and other colleagues is a social norm and it would be a source of happiness. Although some may argue that for children happiness and giving are totally different things and they may not be able to understand that, yet this practice would take away the feelings of possession which is a sign of a self-centered personality and, in the long run, this habit increases to other social and personal activities in which wealth hoarding, which is the foundation of capitalism, takes place and only a few individuals control the billions of dollars whereas others do not money even to buy the basic human necessities. Additionally, it can also be deduced from the suggestion of Freire that psychological development and empowerment must be started at the individual level. In other words, teachers must focus constructing the personality of the students in which they should be taught the rules which are highly essential for the personal upbringing and solidification of such personal rules comes before the application of social rules because the social rules of interaction and engagement are largely reliant on the fabric of the personal values. If the personal values are up to the standard and they are moderate and balanced as well, the effect of this would be directly visible in the social interaction and social involvement as well. In this way, the McDonaldization1 can also be restricted and controlled from spreading to other social institutions. Individualism is a basis of capitalism (Simmons 36). And the only way to reduce the spread of individualism in society is through the upbringing model and suggestion of Freire in which the schools and other social institutions are required to play a key role. Similarly, the religious and political leaders and other leaders and representative from other social institutions are also required to play their part within their field. For example, a religious leader is required to extract those aspects of religion which requires individuals to remain socially active and responsible for their role and if they are expected to contribute or help others in a difficult situation, they should consider it their religious responsibility. Moreover, in this regard, the role of political leader is also essential for spreading the social interaction and harmony among people regardless of their religious, political, ethnic and other affiliations. They should convey the message that if they remain united and eliminate the minor difference, nobody would be able to intimidate them or wage war against them. Conclusion Class-based thinking divides society into the upper and the lower class. In both classes, members have different values, traditions, customs and priorities. For example, the upper class members do not give much attention to the economic aspect of life but more emphasis is given to maintain the social status whereas the lower class members do just opposite to it by primarily focusing on the basic human needs, such as food, health, shelter and employment. In this regard, it has been identified that the capitalism is the fundamental source dividing the society into separate classes. In order to reduce the impact of individualism and self-centered thinking, each social institution is required to play its role. For example, teacher should teach values, such as sharing things with friends and colleagues to students. By doing so, the personal instinct of wealth hoarding and self-centeredness will be decreased in the society. Works Cited Andersen, Margaret L., Taylor, Howard F. and Loglo, Ki, A. Sociology: The Essentials, 8th edn. Connecticut, CT: Cengage, 2013. Print. Coutts, Robert J. The Road to the Rapids: Nineteenth Century Church and Society at St. Andrew’s Parish, Red River. Alberta: University of Calgary Press. 2000. Print. Freire, Paulo, The Banking Concept of Education, Retrieved: http://learning.writing101.net/wp-content/readings/freire_the_banking_concept_of_education.pdf Hardy, Kenneth V. & Laszloffy, Tracey A. Teens Who Hurt: Clinical Interventions to Break the Cycle of Adolescent Violence. New York, NY: The Guilford Press. 2005. Print. Hills, Dave, Greaves, Nigel M. & Maisuria, Alpesh. Does Capitalism Inevitably Increase Inequality? In Holsinger, Donald B. & Jacob, W. James. Inequality in Education: Comparative and International Perspectives. Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Centre. 2008. Print. Marx, Karl. Engels, Friedrich, The Communist Manifesto, with an Introduction by A.J.P. Taylor, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. 1967. Print. Ritzer, George, The McDonaldization of Society, rev. ed., Thousand Oaks, CA, Pine Forge Press, 1996. 1-23. Print. Simmons, Anita, Black Womanhood, Misogyny, and Hip-Hop Culture: A Feminist Intervention, Cultural Landscapes, 1 (2), 2008, 27-48. Print. Read More