Assessing-Domalanta, Ashley Jade V. (12-Charity)

Classical theories Definition
The structural-functional school of

thought looks at social “order.” It
argues that society is made
possible by cooperation and
interdependence. Given this line
of argumentation, this view sees
society as a system with parts,
and these parts have their
respective functions to perform.
The health and condition of the
entire system is dependent on
these two processes of functions
and interdependence. As such,
this basic allusion to parts,
functions, and interdependence
Structural Functionalism
reflects the succeeding theoretical
principles in almost all areas of
sociological investigations-from
social stratification, to deviance,
to institutions, to socialization.
This overemphasis on functions
proves to be providential to the
structural-functional perspective
because with it, proponents of this
school of thought are able to
uncover interesting insights about
the nature of social inequality and
deviance, insights that remain
elusive even to the symbolic
interactionism approach.
The Marxist-inspired perspective

on the question of society looks at
the other side of the issue. Instead
of putting importance to social
order, the conflict perspective
sees society as an arena. Social
actors are gladiators fighting for
their very lives. The winner takes
the rewards and is assured of
freedom. Resources and their
scarcity make up the bone of
contention in every conflict
situation. However, the conflict
approach do not take the usual
assumptions about the nature and
ethos of conflict. Rather than
emphasizing competitions, which
Conflict Theory
is very clear in the metaphor of
“arena” and “gladiators,” this
views sees conflict as something
positive and advantageous. For
the proponents of this view,
conflict makes change and
Activity 2
Make an observation exercise on how people conduct themselves in the fast
food or grocery store. Explain the different actions, behavior and interaction that
you have observed.
Are there rules for eating at McDonald’s, Jollibee, Chowking, KFB, and other fast food
restaurant? Generally, we do not think about rules in a fast food restaurant because
they are designed to be casual, quick, and convenient. But as I look around one on a
typical weekday, I see people acting as if they were trained for the role of fast food
customer. They stand in line, pick their items from overhead menus before they order,
swipe debit cards to pay, and stand to one side to collect trays of food. After a quick
meal, customers wad up their paper wrappers and toss them into garbage cans. This
is a food system that has become highly rationalized in Max Weber’s terms.
Customers’ movement through this fast food routine is orderly and predictable, even if
no rules are posted and no officials direct the process. These are unwritten rules, we
think about what would happen if we behaved according to some other standards. (
Wewould be doing what sociologists call a “breaching experiment” in
ethnomethodology: deliberately disrupting social norms in order to learn about them.)
For example: call ahead for reservations; ask the cashier detailed questions about the
food’s ingredients or how it is prepared; barter over the price of the burgers; ask to
have our meal served to us at our table; or throw our trash on the ground as we leave.
Chances are we will elicit hostile responses from the restaurant employees and our
fellow customers. Although the rules are not written down, we will have violated deep
seated tacit norms that govern behaviour in fast food restaurants.
This example reflects a broader theme in the culture of food and diet. What are the
rules that govern what, when, and how we eat? Michael Pollan (b. 1955), for example,
contrasts the North American culture of fast food with the intact traditions of eating sit-
down, family meals that still dominate in France and other European nations (2006).
Despite eating foods that many North Americans think of as unhealthy — butter,
wheat, triple-cream cheese, foie gras, wine, etc. — the French, as a whole, remain
healthier and thinner than North Americans. The French eat all sorts of supposedly
unhealthy foods, but they do it according to a strict and stable set of rules: They eat
small portions and don’t go back for seconds; they don’t snack; they seldom eat
alone; and communal meals are long, leisurely affairs. (Pollan, 2006) Their cultural
rules fix and constrain what people consider as food and how people consume food.
The national cuisine and eating habits of France are well established, oriented to
pleasure and tradition, and as Pollan argues, well integrated into French cultural life
as a whole. Sociologists would argue, therefore, that everything about fast food
restaurants, choice of diet, and habits of food consumption reflects culture, the
beliefs and behaviours that a social group shares. Diet is a product of culture. It is a
product of the different meanings we attribute to food and to the relationship we have
with our bodies. The significant point is that while diet is a response to the
fundamental conditions of biological life, diet is also a tremendous site of innovation
and diversity. Culture in general is a site of two opposing tendencies: one is the way
that cultures around the world lay down sets of rules or norms which constrain,
restrict, habitualize, and fix forms of life; the other is the way that cultures produce
endlessly innovative and diverse solutions to problems like nutrition. Cultures both
constrain and continually go beyond constraints. This raises the distinction between
the terms “culture” and “society” and how sociologists conceptualize the relationship
between them. In everyday conversation, people rarely distinguish between these
terms, but they have slightly different meanings, and the distinction is important to
how sociologists examine culture. If culture refers to the beliefs, artifacts, and ways
of life that a social group shares, a society is a group that interacts within a common
bounded territory or region. To clarify, a culture represents the beliefs, practices, and
material artifacts of a group, while a society represents the social structures,
processes, and organization of the people who share those beliefs, practices, and
material artifacts. Neither society nor culture could exist without the other, but we can
separate them analytically.
Lastly, as I observe on how people conduct themselves in the fast food or grocery
store, I learned that “Rules: Invisible hand of Society.” The invisible hand is a
metaphor for the unseen forces that move the free market economy. Through
individual self-interest and freedom of production as well as consumption, the best
interest of society, as a whole, are fulfilled. The constant interplay of individual
pressures on market supply and demand causes the natural movement of prices and
the flow of trade. The concept of invisible hand has been a great factor in
understanding the basics of economics. The invisible hand is a natural force that self
regulates the market economy. The concept explains that an individual decision in a
market economy to benefit them will actually make the economy better off as a whole.
An example of invisible hand is an individual making a decision to buy coffee and a
bagel to make them better off, that person decision will make the economic society as
a whole better off. The decision of buying the coffee and the bagel will make the seller
better because of profit and it also makes the production market that distributes the
goods better. This pattern will benefit everyone because it will make the firms
(companies) and the factor market (labor) that produce resources better off. Rules are
guides in the performance of roles and in everyday actions and interactions. They
provide order in a system characterized by the presence of many actors with different
businesses and agenda to pursue. What orchestrate the simultaneous yet orderly
transactions and interactions are the rules. With this thought, rules are essential in the
everyday conduct of the members of society. In cases where there are conflicts, rules
become the arbiter of disagreements and people’s respect for rules gives them this
organizing power over human actions over time. However, not all rules are visible,
that is, written and understood by all. The written ones are easily seen and hence are
easily observed and obeyed. A lot of difficult situations are made simpler by written
and visible rules. The situation is different, however, in cases where rules are invisible
and unwritten. At first, you may surmise that invisible rules create more disorder than
order, which they are meant to establish in the first place. This assumption proves to
be incorrect as our lives are made more meaningful by unwritten rules. Our mundane
and daily actions are guided by these unseen rules-when riding public transportation
like jeepney, when queuing at a McDonald’s or Jollibee order counter, when reciting
in class, when using the toilet, when crossing the street, etc. Unwritten rules are
exciting to study because they give invaluable opportunities insights into the nature of
social behavior. Without us realizing it, almost 90% of our day-to-day actions are
governed and shaped by these invisible rules. We may not know that rules exist, for
example, in certain contexts or situations. By simply observing how people act,
behave, and interact, we may gain sufficient information as to what unseen rules are
in operation in particular situations and contexts.

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Classical theories Definition

The structural-functional school of

The Marxist-inspired perspective

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