Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

1. Do you agree with Jeanne Flavin’s argument about the cultural stereotyping of black women and paternalism underlying US policies on poverty and female reproduction? What do you make of the example she mentions regarding the punitive measures taken in some states against women who take illegal substances during pregnancy? Do you see such measures as culturally biased against poor black women or color-blind?
   
   2. What do you think of Kathleen Gerson’s description of involved fatherhood and egalitarian households? Are you currently in such a family situation? Did you come from a background in which involved fatherhood and egalitarian domestic arrangements were the norm or considered unconventional? Do you think that contemporary post-recessionary attitudes have changed for the better towards involved fatherhood and what is your opinion of the term “house hubbies”?
   
   3. E. J. Graff uses a very illuminating metaphor for the institution of marriage: “Marriage has been a kind of Jerusalem, an archaeological site on which the present is constantly building over the past, so that history’s many layers twist and tilt into today’s walls and floors. Many people believe theirs is the one true claim to this holy ground. But marriage has always been a battleground, owned and defined first by one group and then another” (349-50).
   
   This metaphor of an archaeological site is particularly useful for illustrating the various different cultural meanings attached to the institution of marriage over the course of human history. It is useful for showing that marriage has not always conformed to the traditional 20th and 21st-century Western notions of the union and legal sanctification of a man and woman in love. Until fairly recently, marriage was not for love, but rather for the exchange of property and financial negotiations between the two families of the married couple. Marriage prior to the nineteenth century was largely a lifelong business transaction between two families, and love and intimacy between the betrothed would be a fortunate consequence of this transaction.
   
   Graff was writing this article at a time when gay and lesbian marriages had not yet been ratified by the Supreme Court, and thus she argues in it that civil marriage must be a right of same-sex couples. Without the rights conferred by marriage, same-sex couples would not be able to have their bond “be marked and recognizable for the institutions around them” (349). Today, we are lucky that the groundbreaking Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that all states must allow same-sex marriage, thereby ensuring that gays and lesbians will be able to enjoy the same rights and recognitions as heterosexual married couples.
   
   Did Graff’s explanation of the historical variability of the cultural meanings of marriage expand your understanding of marriage? What do you make of her interpretation of contemporary marriage as the civil union of two people in love, regardless of their sexuality, who are then able to be recognized by key institutions (IRS, the state, hospitals, employers, health and life insurers, banks, pension programs, etc.).
   
   4. What type of feminism (liberal, radical, or socialist) are you most in agreement with and why? Does the description of the three strains of feminism in our Weekly Sessions enhance your understanding of what feminism means? How does your new understanding of feminism compare to your previous understanding?
   
   
   5. Do you agree with Rosalind Gill that much of our contemporary media culture is characterized by an emphasis on femininity as a bodily property? Do you think that women are subject to more cultural pressures to have a “sexy” body than men? What do you make of cultural standards of the “sexy” body—do they conform to a narrow vision of attractiveness or do you think there is room for diverse body types?
   
   6. Do you think that the pay gap between men and women, as well as childless women and mothers is evidence that US society is in need of additional reforms in favor of gender equality? Have you experienced gender discrimination in the workplace or observed it among people you know, and if so, how has it been manifested?
   
   7. What are your thoughts on the rise of neoliberalism and the decline of public services in the US? Do you think that the government should be more involved in regulating employers’ discrimination against parents? Do you believe the Scandinavian model of state-funded family programs to be better than the more neoliberal policies of the US?

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

What is the medicalization of deviance? Give an example of a behavior that people once understood in moral terms and now understand in medical terms. What difference does it make if people use moral or medical terms to define deviant behavior?

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

This discussion board is about propaganda. Find a piece of propaganda (it can be recent or something older), and post it here (either as an image or as a link), then answer the following questions:

1. Who produced the propaganda, and in approximately what time period?

2. Why do you think they produced the propaganda?

3. What makes this a piece of propaganda?

4. Do you think the use of propaganda you've chosen to showcase is ethically appropriate or not? In other words, do you think propaganda can ever be used positively, and if so, does the example you chose do so?

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions; 

The term queer refers to identities that radically challenge heteronormative identities and    practices regarding gender, sexuality, embodiment, and notions of family. Dominika Bednarska’s    essay,    “Passing Last Summer,” describes her    experience as    a queer, disabled woman whose    sexual relationships do    not conform to    established social categories and readily recognizable    patterns of gender, sexual orientation, and sexual behavior. The queerness and mutability of    Bednarska’s sexuality    challenges hegemonic    ideas about the  fixed    and categorizable status    of sexuality held by both straight and LGB communities. In dialogue with Bednarska’s  essay    and/or    external sources, discuss your    stance    on the    fluidity    and mutability    of gender, sexual behavior,    and sexual desire.

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

This paper would expand on the attachment and would expand upon why opioid addiction is believed to be the most detrimental to American society which should be backed up with facts and some critical thought as well.

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

Review the 5 attached sources. Carefully read each of the sections.

After you've reviewed this information, answer the following questions. What are the problems with cyberbullying and how does this relate to youth Suicide and Violence Prevention? Discuss these problems with cyberbullying. Are there problems or unintended consequences that you have thought about relative to cyberbullying not mentioned on the website? Discuss these as well.

In total, you should discuss at least 4 problems and/or unintended consequences with cyberbullying. What are some specific educational/prevention strategies that can be implemented with children, teens, and college students? How can parents get involved in this discussion? Discuss at least 3 educational solutions and/or prevention strategies to raise awareness and to stop cyberbullying.

In a 2-4 page paper, discuss the problems and unintended consequences of cyberbullying and specific educational and/or prevention strategies (see trigger questions above). You should use and include an additional resource (textbook or on-line article) to add to the body of information and to perhaps gain another perspective.



The reaction paper should include introductory and concluding paragraphs and the body of the paper should be at least 5-6 paragraphs. Your paper should be free of grammatical, spelling, and typographical errors and should be written according to a scholarly standard. You should include at least one (1) additional textbook or website reference (other than these articles) and cite the reference using APA style.

To Summarize: 
-intro praragraph
-5 to 6 paragraphs in body discussing 4 problems or unintended consequences of cyberbullying AND 3 educational solutions/prevention strategies. 
-conclusion paragraph
-cite from one additional source, not just the 5 listed articles. Cite that additional source with APA style

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

What does the research by Margaret Mead in New Guinea lead us to conclude about gender? 

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2015/09/07/Sorry-Steven-Spielberg-Superhero-Movies-Aren-t-Going-Away-Anytime-Soon

tell me how superheroes shaping the hegemonies being transmitted to our culture

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

For this assignment, you are expected to observe communication taking place in a business such as a
retail store, a coffee shop, etc.
Your task is to observe how the salespeople react to different customers and how communication takes
place between salespeople and managers. Observe their verbal as well as nonverbal interactions. Plan
to spend 15-20 minutes observing.
Next, write a 2-3 page paper (double-spaced) in which you discuss the following. In your analysis, I
expect you to draw upon the vocabulary that you have been introduced to in this course so far; your
analysis will reflect your understanding of key terms, concepts and communication models discussed.
Some questions to consider in your analysis (but do not feel that you have to limit yourself to these):
· What communicative aspects got your attention and why?
· What was the communication context?
· What roles did the participants take?
· What kinds of feedback did you notice?
· What did you notice about the non-verbal messages? The verbal messages?
· Given the setting, what noise was present and how did it affect the interaction?
· What could you infer about the relationship and the nature of the communication (given that
you might not have been able to hear everything)?

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Paper Instructions;

2) Analyze the movie: After watching the movie, you will write a 4-6 page review, consisting of:

a) intro paragraph noting the relevance of the movie to the course

b) one page description/summary of the contents of the film

-How was the story presented?
-------i.e. flashbacks, sequential, from a particular character's point of view, etc.

-What was the intention of the film and/or filmmaker?
-------Was this intention fulfilled or met?

-Did the way the movie was produced and presented affect the content?

-Were there specific scenes or occurrences, which stood out as being essential to the development of the story and/or to your understanding of it?

-Major substantive points of the movie?

-Any secondary points made?

-Any 'unintentional' results of the movie?

c) 0.5-1 page in which you discuss how popular culture themes were constructed in the movie use at least 3 examples

d) 1-2 pages in which you use at least 4 sociological/pop cultural concepts covered in this course to analyze the movie (cite class materials as you do so)

e) Analyze which issues emerged as the strongest...as the weakest?

f) Briefly compare the popular culture themes in the movie you watched for this assignment to another movie you have previously seen that had similar themes.

The paper should be typed, double-spaced, 12-point font, 1” margins.  Remember to include a citation for the movie, in proper APA format, and make sure your name is on your paper.

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Instructions:
The Body Ritual Among the Nacirema:

Read body ritual among the nacirema.pdf  

On the posted due date, students are to upload a 1 ½ page (typed, double-spaced with a 12 pt. Times New Roman or Courier New Font and 1- 1/1/2 in margin) to the Horace Miner article.    You will respond to the following items: 

1) What was the author trying to teach us? 

2) How would you describe the Nacirema to a stranger; and

3) Given that the original story was written in the 1950s, how would you change the story to describe the Nacirema people today, and why?”

4) Which two concepts or theories covered in the course material do you find most relevant to this article, and why? Be sure to place the concepts in bold print and briefly describe them.

Questions and Topics We Can Help to Answer
Instructions:

Easy Rider is the classic cult film from the 1960’s. A road movie that embodies the feeling of being a hippie as two friends head cross-country to Mardi Gras. A controversial period film by Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda with some classic music from a generation of wanderers.

Please respond to the following using brief essay responses. 

What to address:
Famous deviant behavior scholar and author, Alex Thio, often commented that the film Easy Rider influenced US and global drug culture, by changing the way we define, view and even participate in drug culture.  Do you agree with Alex Thio on this point, that any single aspect of culture could be so influential?  Why or why not?  Be sure to think about the nature of a film in full (i.e. the script, the music, cultural overtones and the wardrobes).  Not that you do NOT need to see the film to answer the question above.   

How to format your papers:
typed
double-spaced
1 1/2 in margins
12 pt. Times or Courier Font
Responses are typically 2 to 4 paragraphs in length each, but there is no set length.
Integrate (describe and discuss) a minimum of 3 concepts and/or theories into your response, and cite as needed using ASA, APA, MLA, Chicago or Harvard styles. Be sure to place all of the concepts and theories from the text in bold type in your paper.