Description: UNIT 1. Introduction: The Nature of Social Problems and General Critiques of American Society 1. Social Problems: Definitions, Theories, and Analysis, Harold A. Widdison and H. Richard Delaney, McGraw-Hill/Dushkin , 1995 This essay, written specifically for this volume, explores the complexities associated with defining, studying, and attempting to resolve "social" problems. The three major theoretical approaches- symbolic interactionism, functionalism, and conflict -are summarized. 2. The Fragmentation of Social Life, D. Stanley Eitzen, Vital Speeches of the Day , July 1, 2000 In this essay about America, Stanley Eitzen addresses a crucial problem: the fragmentation of social life. He suggests that America could come apart in the future. Eitzen discusses excessive individualism, heightened personal isolation, increasing inequality, and the deepening racial/ethnic/religious/sexuality divide. 3. How to Re-Moralize America, Francis Fukuyama, The Wilson Quarterly , Summer 1999 Recently many of the indicators of moral decline have started to show improvement. Francis Fukuyama reports the changes and accepts the challenge of explaining how moral regeneration occurs generally and what caused a potential moral regeneration in the 1990s. In the process he explores the basic sociological questions: What are the sources of value systems ? How do they arise and change? In his search for an answer he leads the reader through a sociological detective story. UNIT 2. Problems of the Political Economy Part A. The Polity 4. Who Rules America?, G. William Domhoff, from Who Rules America? Power and Politics in the Year 2000 , Mayfield Publishing Company, 1997 G. William Domhoff is the leading proponent of the power elite view of American politics as it applies to political influence in America today. 5. Rights, Liberties, and Security: Recalibrating the Balance After September 11, Stuart Taylor Jr., Brookings Review , Winter 2003 A rule of government is that when dangers increase, liberties shrink. Yes, but how much? Where should the balance be? Stuart Taylor Jr. analyzes the problem starting with the premise that today we face dangers without precedent : a mass movement of militant Islamic terrorists who crave martyrdom, hide in shadows, are fanatically bent on slaughtering as many of us as possible. Taylor calls for a reassessment of the civil liberties rules that restrict the government's investigative powers. 6. How the Little Guy Gets Crunched, Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, Time , February 7, 2000 Politics means a win for some and a loss for others. The authors show that the campaign contributions of powerful special interests provide gains for the contributor but losses for the little guy. Part B. The Economy 7. The End of Globalization, Michael Shuman, Utne Reader , July/August 2002 Michael Shuman argues that globalization does not mean that corporations must become giants. "Many companies are finding it makes more economic sense to get smaller, not larger", and Shuman explains why. 8. Where the Good Jobs Are Going, Jyoti Thottam, Time , August 4, 2003 The old story is that manufacturing companies have moved production and blue collar jobs to Third World countries. The new story is that service companies are moving white collar jobs to Third World countries. At this point the numbers are small but they are increasing at a very rapid rate. Jyoti Thottam documents this trend and discusses how it is affecting the American labor force. Part C. Problems of Place 9. A Broken Heartland, Jeff Glasser, U.S. News & World Report , May 7, 2001 Stories of economic decline are grim. Such is the situation today in many midwest rural counties that are distant from cities. They are dying economically and many residents are moving away, making it harder for those who remain to survive economically. Their history includes heroic struggles against economic hardships but today they fight a losing battle. UNIT 3. Problems of Poverty and Inequality Part A. Inequality and the Poor 10. For Richer: How the Permissive Capitalism of the Boom Destroyed American Equality, Paul Krugman, New York Times Magazine , October 20, 2002 The American economy has made the rich very rich in the past three decades but has not been nearly as generous to the poor. As a result the income gap has widened considerably. Paul Krugman details the facts about the growing inequality and explains how it happened. 11. The Real Face of Homelessness, Joel Stein, Time , January 20, 2003 The bum sleeping on the park bench is not the new face of homelessness. Increasingly the homeless are mothers with children . Joel Stein points out why this is the case and tells the painful stories of some homeless families. 12. In Harm's Way: The Working Class on the War Front and the Home Front, Rodney Ward, Dollars and Sense , May/June 2003 Do the effects of war have a class bias ? Rodney Ward argues that the war in Iraq is killing mainly working class American soldiers and is being used as an excuse to strip the working class and the poor of programs that benefit them. It is also imposing other economic harships on them. These findings provide new evidence for a prevailing theory of stratification among sociologists. Part B. Welfare 13. Corporate Welfare, Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, Time , November 9, 1998 In this essay, the authors explain how hundreds of companies get on the dole to the tune of two weeks' pay for every working American. The federal government has issued over $125 billion to corporate America which tilts the playing field toward the already powerful in society. 14. Requiem for Welfare, Evelyn Z. Brodkin, Dissent , Winter 2003 The old welfare system has been buried. What is the new welfare system and what has happened to the people who were on the old welfare system? Evelyn Z. Brodkin tackles these issues and criticizes some aspects of the transformed welfare system. Part C. Racial and Ethnic Inequality and Issues 15. What's At Stake, Barbara Kantrowitz and Pat Wingert, Newsweek , January 27, 2003 The issue of affirmative action is in confusion today. It was definitely a badly needed policy in the beginning and it has accomplished much and made our society much more fair and just. But is it needed now and is it unfair now? This article clarifies what affirmative action is, where it stands legally today, and how universities should handle the issue. 16. Why We Hate, Margo Monteith and Jeffrey Winters, Psychology Today , May/June 2002 The authors demonstrate the prevalence of prejudice and hatr

Please Wait