Posted: April 4th, 2016

How is society gendered? What social institutions operate under a gender binary?

How is society gendered? What social institutions operate under a gender binary?  How do we learn gender norms?  Provide examples of gender inequality or feminist issues.  Why does gender inequality persist?  What can we do to even the playing field?

Discuss the issue of welfare/poverty. What would a sociological perspective take into account?  Please reflect on personal responsibility and agency vs. institutions and larger social structures (such as the government). Is it society’s role to intervene and provide assistance?  If so, to what extent?

Pick a social movement. Are multiple layers of oppression at work? Are groups of people systematically denied access to opportunities/resources/services?  Explain how these forms of discrimination create or maintain social stratification in society.  Finally, describe two specific social movement tactics that have been employed and your opinion on whether or not they are harmful or helpful to tackling the social problem.

Use the following article about the Aylmer twins to discuss how race is a social construct. Discuss how some other racial or ethnic groups have been perceived across space and time.  Do you perceive yourself as having “a race”? Is your life significantly affected by how others perceive your racial or ethnic background?  In what ways?  What stereotypes bother you most?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kimberly-cooper/a-look-into-race-as-a-soc_b_6787574.html