SOCIOLOGY 1001 MID-TERM EXAM
OPTION ONE:
Respond thoughtfully and thoroughly
to ONE of the questions below. In
doing so, please provide definitions and explanations of the course vocabulary
terms you are using (which are in bold).
The essay should be approximately 2-3 pages. You may use the text, materials on Ulearn,
and other relevant materials. The essay
must be in your own words. You should
cite sources if you quote them or if they are not from the course texts or
Ulearn posts.
Unlike the first and second papers, I
am not looking for a thesis and conclusion.
I simply want you to address all the questions I have asked.
1. Discuss a culturewith which you are familiar. It can be a national culture, such as the
American culture, or a sub-culture
such as your family, a club, team, church, Greek organization to which you
belong, a workplace, or this University.
What are central aspects of the material and nonmaterial culture? What are important symbols? Describe the values, norms, folkways , mores, and lawsof
this culture. What kinds of sanctions are in place for those who
violate them? How does the culture
define deviance? What sets this culture apart from others?
2. Describe the process by which you
came to be socialized in the way
that you are, either as a member of the broader American society or other
society, or as a member of a particular group (see examples from essay
#1). What do you see as the relative
roles of nature and nurture in
making you the person you have come to be?
Who are the significant others
who have shaped you and how have they done so?
How, and to what extent, have you
internalized the ways in which you have been socialized? In terms of dramaturgical analysis, how do you present yourself so as to
function successfully and smoothly in the society to which you belong? In what, if any, ways do you “perform” differently for different sets
of people? Do you experience yourself,
or have you been labeled, as deviantin
any way, either because of something you do/have done or because of some
characteristic that is stigmatized
in that society? If so, what has that
experience been like for you?
3.
As we saw in video clips viewed in class, the 19th century
outlaw, Jesse James, led a brutal life of crime, but came to be lionized in
popular legend as a “Robin Hood” figure brought down in cowardly fashion by a
traitorous associate. In our own times,
teenager Colton Harris-Moore, had a troubled youth and ultimately became
involved in a series of crimes, including the theft of airplanes. Despite being considered armed and dangerous,
this “barefoot bandit” has also become the stuff of legend, with ballads,
movies, and a Facebook fan page honoring him.
Even more recently, 16-year-old Ethan Couch was sentenced to
rehabilitation and 10 years probation after drinking and driving underage and
killing four bystanders in the process.
The sentence was based on the idea of “affluenza,” namely the belief
that his very wealthy parents had been so negligent and imposed so few
consequences that he was incapable of making responsible decisions and needed
help more than he needed punishment.
Write an essay in which you use sociological concepts related to crime and deviance to reflect on what
these examples might say about American society. Be sure to address such concepts as deviance, crime, stigma, types of crime
(property, violent, victimless), social control, sanctions, and ways in which
deviance can be considered both functional and dysfunctional.
OPTION TWO:
You should prepare the content of one
of the essays, but you may take the exam orally rather than writing about
it. If you choose this option, we will
work out a mutually agreed-upon place and time.
If you wish, you may take the oral exam together
with up to two partners from the class.
