Sociological Imagination In The Decriminalization Of Same-Sex Marriage In Canada

Sociological imagination is a concept associated with Mills (Plymire, 2012). Sociological imagination is a concept that relates social forces to individual actions (Plymire, 2012). This paper will explain how sociological imagination can be a useful concept in examining same-sex marriage in the Canadian society. The central argument of this paper is that sociological imagination can be used to examine how social forces influenced people to have positive attitudes towards same-sex marriage in Canada. These social forces include; the demedicalization of homosexuality, decriminalization of homosexuality, the change of Canadian culture and values, messages passed through the media and newspaper, and feminism.
At a certain point in history, homosexuality was viewed as a mental disorder (Silverstein, 2009). The medicalization of homosexuality had a great impact on society’s attitudes towards homosexuality. When medicine was attached to homosexuality; it gave society legitimate grounds to discriminate against homosexuals. …show more content…
Many social forces have influenced individual beliefs about homosexual relationships. Sociological imagination can be used to examine various social forces that influenced people’s beliefs and brought about social change. These social forces caused individuals to have conversations about homosexual relationships. It caused individuals to become enlightened about the issues faced by homosexuals. Sociological imagination is an important concept that can be used to analyze why people’s view on homosexual relationship and same-sex marriage changed over time. By examining how same-sex marriage became acceptable in Canadian society through sociological imagination, the importance of sociological imagination can be clearly noted. Sociological imagination is still a very useful and important concept that can be used to examine different social