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The tasks in the following pages will get you to:

THINK

REFLECT

RESEARCH

ANALYSE

PLAN

WRITE

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Sociology - is the study of human social relationships and institutions. Sociology’s subject matter is

diverse, ranging from crime to religion, from the family to the state, from the divisions of race and social

class to the shared beliefs of a common culture, and from social stability to radical change in whole

societies. Unifying the study of these diverse subjects of study is sociology’s purpose of understanding

how human action and consciousness (thoughts) both shape and are shaped by surrounding cultural and

social structures.

IDENTITY:

Is essentially how you see yourself and how others see you – by others I mean not just those close to

you, well you might say who cares what people I do not know think? You may have a point but in the

bigger picture and in reality it matters a lot!!

One’s identity can be based on one’s physical characteristics, where they live or their personality or

indeed all.

Irvin Goffman (a sociologist) researched identity and concluded that the way we present ourselves is

similar to being on a stage (a performance) but how we present ourselves depends on the audience – so

for instance we would act differently when we are with friends, to when we are in a classroom, to if we

are at an interview etc. Therefore, how we behave (perform) will form the audiences opinion; not as

only as an individual (primary identity) but also as a member of a social group (secondary identity) eg

male/female, black/white/Asian, ethnicity, age, where we live, language or accent etc. in essence

opinions/judgements are based not only on our social characteristics but also our physical

characteristics.

This can contribute to what can sometimes be harmful stereotypes (and thus judgements) in the form of

racism, sexism, ageism etc

So how are stereotypes formed? Maintained? Passed on? Etc. Are there consequences? (write down

your thoughts)

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Identity

Describe yourself in 3 words…….(be honest)

1)

2)

3)

Ask a close friend/parent or older family member/sibling or cousin to describe you. Does their

description match theirs? Similar or different? Why do you think this is? Are you happy with the

descriptions – is this how you want to be seen now? In 5yrs time? Reflect and write down your thoughts

on this:

Now consider – how do you think a stranger would describe you?

Exactly – they could only describe you physically – so do you think they could or would make

assumptions about you based on what you look like? Why?

Would these assumptions be correct about you as an individual? Would these assumptions be correct

about others similar to you?

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Can you see how opinions judgements are formed and how an individual’s behaviour can affect the

wider society’s view of others of similar characteristics ie race, ethnicity, age, gender, social class etc

What you have begun to consider is what we call in sociology – going from the micro (thinking

small, from an individual’s points of view) i.e. how you and people close to you see you - to the

macro (thinking on a larger scale, from more of a general point of view) i.e. how others might see

you.

Activity

What do you think is the stereotypical image of?

A man _______________________________________________________________

A woman _____________________________________________________________

When watching TV or your IPAD, laptop, etc. – Choose an episode from a series, or a film, a

programme and fill in the following tables:

Whilst watching your programme or film look at the roles of the male and females – in the first column

write down the main characters and then fill in the rest of the table as you go along

CHARACTER MALE OR FEMALE?

More likely to be seen in the home or work?

How would you describe this character eg strong/weak?

How do they dress? look? etc

Role? Husband/wife? Boss/employer? etc

Your thoughts? Stereotypical? Or against stereotype?

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Mulvey (sociologist) talks about the ‘male gaze’ which is about how women are presented in the

media – as something good to look at and desire hence why women are often made to look good at

all times, even when they have just got out of bed!!

Connell talks about ‘hegemonic masculinity’ – this is where men are presented in a very masculine

way – strong, don’t show emotion, tough, possibly violent, ruthless etc.

Did you observe any evidence of these? What were your conclusions? Were the characters

stereotypical? Did it depend on ie the year it was set? The ethnicity of the characters? Their social

class? Etc. any surprises?

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RESEARCH:

In Sociology one of the important perspectives (viewpoint) we study is FEMINISM. Thus

as a line of enquiry – when answering the following – think about how you are writing

this – you could write it as an article? As a report? Hence try to write in the third person

(not using I think for eg!). when stating an opinion try and ensure you have

justified/supported this view with evidence. Ensure your ‘green pen’ check your work.

Purpose of this is one once you have a line of enquiry then you can develop a line of

reasoning – essential in sociology essays.

What is meant by feminism?

How did it develop (‘waves of feminism’)?

What are the different types of feminism – traditional and more contemporary

what would their explanations be on why society is patriarchal? How does this

link to how women are perceived/represented/treated in the media?

From this research could you conclude which feminist explanation is more

useful? One or more? Or is the conclusion you reach is that feminism as a

movement is no longer relevant?

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Activity:

What do you think is the stereotypical image of?

A black person _______________________________________________________________

A white person _____________________________________________________________

An Asian _______________________________________________________________

You can choose the same programme/film as before or choose another an episode from a series, or a

film, a programme and fill in the following tables:

Whilst watching your programme or film look at all the roles– in the first column write down the main

characters and then fill in the rest of the table as you go along

CHARACTER Race and ethnicity?

‘Goodie’ or a baddie’?

Occupation? How did they talk? Language? Accent? ‘slang’? etc

Main character or support

Your thoughts? Stereotypical? Or against stereotype?

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According to Stuart hall (sociologist) the media can portray black/ethnic stereotypes – he says they have 3

characteristics:

1) THE NATIVE

In a nutshell, this ideology stems from colonialism and the belief that the black person was inferior

to the white and therefore had to be controlled and dominated. Hence why according to him,

blacks and other ethnic minorities can be portrayed as powerless, underprivileged, low status etc.

2) THE ENTERTAINER

Where the black/ethnic group is portrayed as ‘child like’ and willing to please; and also willing to

conform to the laws/ideals of the ‘white’ society’s values

3) THE SLAVE

where the emphasis is on ‘white supremacy’ and thus whites will be seen in positions of power, or

as decision makers, or ‘doing the right thing’ etc. and blacks/ethnic groups will be seen in positions

of low status/power, not have the ability to make good decisions, low intelligence, not thinking

things through, being criminals etc.

Did you observe evidence of these? What were your conclusions? Were the characters stereotypical? What

did it depend on i.e. the year it was set? The gender of the characters? Their social class? etc. any surprises?

Finally…..

Thinks about how stereotypes are formed and maintained Are they changing? If so has it changed enough? Is the media helping or hindering the change? However, the next time you hear or see something and you say ‘well that’s just a stereotype’ –

consider whether we, or others are living up to it or down to it? Are we helping or hindering the

change? What is our responsibility here? ….

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WRITTEN TASK

Essay: Outline and briefly evaluate that ethnicity is the most significant

influence on one’s identity (20 marks)

I really want to see how you would structure this essay, what you would include and how

you would conclude.

Please ensure this is your ‘own work’ and not a cut and paste. Of course, you can do and

apply relevant research but to cut and paste because it looks ‘good’ or just put to it in for

the sake of it – does you no service. Moreover, it does put in the best light as a student,

you haven’t learnt anything but more importantly view this not as a test but as a starting

point. Essays are part of the sociology assessment therefore we need to know aht we

can do well and what we need to improve on – this is the starting point!! Just do your

best.

Some guidelines:

The essay is worth 20 marks – so do a plan before you start writing the essay

Make sure you know what the question is asking? Is ethnicity the most significant?

BE CLEAR on your terms i.e. define ethnicity? How is this different to race –

therefore what can influence ethnicity

What is identity? What is the link between ethnicity and identity?

Structure – should a brief introduction; content – this is where you state

arguments for and against whether ethnicity is the most significant (this shows all

the skills i.e. KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING, but also ensuring that this

knowledge is RELEVANT AND RELATES to question; by stating arguments for and

against demonstrates the skill of EVALUATION)

In a sociology essay what you think is not important – what is important is what

have you learnt/studied that can be used to answer this question = evidence

Make sure your points link to each other and to the question

Are there other aspects of identity that are more significant? E.g. gender? Age?

Social class? If so why?

What role does media? Family? Peers? education? Religion? play in influencing

ethnic identity (choose 2-3)

Write a conclusion – a conclusion is not a summary – it is based on what you have

stated in the essay, so refer back to the question and say whether based on the

arguments/evidence stated above whether ethnicity is or isn’t or to what degree

it is significant.

Again just do your best!!