What circumstances have put us in the position or situation we are in society today? What factors have lead people to become divorced, unemployed, or put in prison? People blame themselves for being put into any of those circumstances. According to C. Wright Mills in “The Promise”, people feel as if they are “trapped” and the problems they deal with in their lives are never ending. People possess a “individualistic bias” that leads them to think the problems they face in their everyday lives are their own fault. To overcome this bias, people need to have a sociological imagination. Mills believes “to truly understand people’s behaviors, we must look beyond those individuals to the larger social contexts in which they live” (Mills “The Promise”).
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The social imagination works as a way for a person to problem solve their way out of social factors that are causing them to face troubles like divorce and unemployment. Mills says the essential tool of the sociological imagination is to decipher between personal troubles and public issues. He uses the unemployment as an example. If only one man was unemployed in a city of 100,000, that is his personal trouble; his ability to work, personal character and opportunities he has given himself. In contrast, in a city with 50 million employees with 15 million unemployed the unemployed would be a public issue (Mills “The Promise”). There are underlying economic or political issues that could be causing the unemployment rate to be so high. People must look at their social environment when placing blame on what is causing problems in their …show more content…
Women have continued to be oppressed by men. It is not women’s fault for taking too long in the bathroom if they haven’t been given the equal opportunity as men to use the bathroom. Molotch takes into account that women have different circumstances like having to use a toilet and having a period that causes them to be more hygienic (Molotch “The Restroom and Equal Opportunity”). These are the “personal troubles” that Mills said you must decipher with public issues to possess a sociological imagination. Although these personal troubles women deal with is causing the public issue if women’s bathrooms should be bigger than the men’s. But the question is should women look beyond their personal issue of needing more space and take away the already equal sized public bathrooms? Or should men consider the fact that they don’t need as much space as women do and accept public restroom inequality? Men should consider the fact that in the past women have not been given as much equal opportunities as they have today and give them more bathroom space. This would allow the men to have a sociological
The social imagination works as a way for a person to problem solve their way out of social factors that are causing them to face troubles like divorce and unemployment. Mills says the essential tool of the sociological imagination is to decipher between personal troubles and public issues. He uses the unemployment as an example. If only one man was unemployed in a city of 100,000, that is his personal trouble; his ability to work, personal character and opportunities he has given himself. In contrast, in a city with 50 million employees with 15 million unemployed the unemployed would be a public issue (Mills “The Promise”). There are underlying economic or political issues that could be causing the unemployment rate to be so high. People must look at their social environment when placing blame on what is causing problems in their …show more content…
Women have continued to be oppressed by men. It is not women’s fault for taking too long in the bathroom if they haven’t been given the equal opportunity as men to use the bathroom. Molotch takes into account that women have different circumstances like having to use a toilet and having a period that causes them to be more hygienic (Molotch “The Restroom and Equal Opportunity”). These are the “personal troubles” that Mills said you must decipher with public issues to possess a sociological imagination. Although these personal troubles women deal with is causing the public issue if women’s bathrooms should be bigger than the men’s. But the question is should women look beyond their personal issue of needing more space and take away the already equal sized public bathrooms? Or should men consider the fact that they don’t need as much space as women do and accept public restroom inequality? Men should consider the fact that in the past women have not been given as much equal opportunities as they have today and give them more bathroom space. This would allow the men to have a sociological