Sociology: Black Like Me
Part A - [Structural Functionalism]
One argument made by Structural Functionalists is that society should be a meritocracy. People should be rewarded based on their abilities. (Class notes, SOCI 201, Winter 2010)
An example to illustrate this argument from Black Like Me is found on page 39. The elderly owner of the Y café complained to Griffin about how unfair the economic system was to black people. Many brilliant black students graduated with great marks, but still ended up doing the most menial work or very few selected jobs. Many black people, therefore, chose not to educate themselves. As a result, the whites said they were not worthy of first-class citizenship and everything continued in a vicious circle. (Griffin, 1996: 40)
This example is an illustration of the theoretical argument because it depicted how the society would lead itself to instability when the rewards were based on skin color, instead of ability. Many blacks gave up the higher education because they knew they would not be able to be what they wanted or have a job of their choice after putting all the hard work into it. They knew the lack of opportunity was not due to their intellectual level, but the color of their skin, which they had no control over.
A lack of education led the blacks to poverty and they struggled every day just to survive. They were limited in the paths they could take, forcing many to hustle on the streets or worse. It was not that they chose this, but due to society’s lack of choices for them.
If the society was a meritocracy, black people would not have given up the opportunity of educating themselves. The whites would not be able to justify their second-rate citizenship theory upon the blacks. The problem of the inequality would slowly disappear and the vicious circle would be broken. The society would be more stable and better place for all people.
[Conflict Paradigm]
One argument made by Conflict Paradigm is that some men are privileged over other men in
One argument made by Structural Functionalists is that society should be a meritocracy. People should be rewarded based on their abilities. (Class notes, SOCI 201, Winter 2010)
An example to illustrate this argument from Black Like Me is found on page 39. The elderly owner of the Y café complained to Griffin about how unfair the economic system was to black people. Many brilliant black students graduated with great marks, but still ended up doing the most menial work or very few selected jobs. Many black people, therefore, chose not to educate themselves. As a result, the whites said they were not worthy of first-class citizenship and everything continued in a vicious circle. (Griffin, 1996: 40)
This example is an illustration of the theoretical argument because it depicted how the society would lead itself to instability when the rewards were based on skin color, instead of ability. Many blacks gave up the higher education because they knew they would not be able to be what they wanted or have a job of their choice after putting all the hard work into it. They knew the lack of opportunity was not due to their intellectual level, but the color of their skin, which they had no control over.
A lack of education led the blacks to poverty and they struggled every day just to survive. They were limited in the paths they could take, forcing many to hustle on the streets or worse. It was not that they chose this, but due to society’s lack of choices for them.
If the society was a meritocracy, black people would not have given up the opportunity of educating themselves. The whites would not be able to justify their second-rate citizenship theory upon the blacks. The problem of the inequality would slowly disappear and the vicious circle would be broken. The society would be more stable and better place for all people.
[Conflict Paradigm]
One argument made by Conflict Paradigm is that some men are privileged over other men in
References: Class notes. SOCI 201 Winter 2010. Linda Henderson, University of Calgary. Griffin, John Howard. 1996. Black Like Me. New York: Signet Printing.