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purpose of a paper that is to summarize a video for concept of the sociological imagination.
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#Sociological Imagination Video by Sociology Live! Essay
It is not always simple to separate personal troubles and public issues. The related problems are often associated, which can be illustrated by the concept of the sociological imagination. The purpose of this paper is to summarize a video about that concept. According to the author of the video, the task of the sociological imagination is “to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society” (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:25-00:00:37). The term and the concept of sociological imagination were presented in the book of the same title by Charles Wright Mills in 1959 (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:20-00:00:27). The primary feature of this concept is to understand the difference between the troubles of a single person and a public issue (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:37-00:00:45). For instance, if a person cannot find a job, that is their personal trouble, but if a million out of 10 million people cannot get employed, that is a public issue (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:45-00:01:01). This example illustrates what personal trouble and a public issue are and how they differ from each other.
However, the author of the sociological imagination believed that both concepts described in the previous section are related. For instance, if a person decides to exercise, it can be beneficial for both the individual and society (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:10-00:01:21). The person gains various health benefits from exercising since it helps lower blood pressure, maintain a healthy weight, and alleviate stress (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). At the same time, exercise can be beneficial for the society in many ways. For instance, people can exercise together, which helps establish positive connections between friends and teaches them to be a part of a team (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). The company where the exercising person works can also benefit as physical activity can help that person be more productive at work, directly increasing the company’s general effectiveness (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). Exercise can also provide community benefits, inspiring it to take action by building walking, biking, and running trails (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:37-00:01:45). Overall, exercise benefits an individual while also contributing to larger purposes of the social world. This example demonstrates how personal troubles and public issues are associated and how they influence each other.
It is not always clear whether a specific problem is personal trouble or a public issue. For instance, the problem of obesity can be discussed from both perspectives. Although people are generally in control of what and how much they eat, sometimes external social factors, such as family traditions, can influence their weight (“Sociological Imagination” 00:02:30-00:03:27). Another significant factor impacting obesity in the United States is associated with so-called food deserts. It is a specific area in the country that does not have access to healthy food because it is difficult to grow it there locally (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:10-00:04:27). Although there are government subsidies for food production, the research shows that less than 1% of those subsidies go to the production of healthy food, such as fruits or vegetables (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:30-00:04:40). The majority of those subsidies go to the production of unhealthy food such as meat, dairy, and grain, making the prices for healthy food significantly higher on the market (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:40-00:05:00). Therefore, from the perspectives of the sociological imagination, the factors described above can significantly contribute to the rates of obesity in the United States.