Sociological imagination
News post
The progress on poverty as a result of capitalism
The capitalist system is the answer to the high poverty incidence in U.S. states. The government greatly influenced the labor market to eliminate poverty and improve other areas such as education and health. However, the labor market has changed, and it does not seem to meet the goal of employment protection, minimum wages, workers’ protection, and inclusive economic growth (Luna, 2016). Today, capitalism is ruling the labor market. Everyone in the market is profit-oriented. Capitalism has exploited workers in that workers work in poor working conditions, they earn very little money, they work in low-paid jobs, and others are suffering from unemployment and underemployment (Luna, 2016). These factors are contributing to in-work poverty. The latter is worsening the living condition and elevating the poverty rates since the workers are unable to buy food and clothing. Therefore, the capitalist system in the labor market has denied workers a decent living condition (Luna, 2016). Workers live in extreme poverty since they do not have enough money to fulfill their basic needs.
The sociological imagination is the ability to see the things that happening in the social world and interpret them to solve social problems (Scott, 2013). Another definition is that social imagination is the act of moving out of personal view and applying a new way of thinking. Therefore, in solving social problems, one needs to connect the problems with social structures. As a result, one will understand the current pattern of life, the factors that shape the current situation, and how the future will look like.
On history and biography, Mills means that to understand the social world and solve the current social problems, one needs to apply sets of concepts. For example, to understand individual life, one needs to conduct a historical inquiry and understand the social practices in different spans of time (Scott, 2013). Note that the social structure is made of various structuring properties. Thus, when analyzing history, one understands the social processes and historical scene. The historical perspective will help one know the course of life.
Troubles are personal problems, and only a single person feels the troubles. On the hand, an issue affects society as a whole, and they arise from the arrangement of social structures. Mills makes the distinction so that people can gain sociological imagination- the ability to differentiate between personal troubles and public issues and ultimately, make personal choices. Issues help people become aware that one cannot solve the problem alone, but society needs to offer help (Scott, 2013). One understands that the trouble is rooted in society, and therefore, one must consider the social setting.
References
Luna, V. M. I. (2016). The persistence of Poverty in Capitalist Countries. Economía
Informa, 400, 67-82
Scott, J. (2013). C. Wright Mills and the sociological imagination: Contemporary perspectives.
Cheltenham: Elgar.
