Religion

The main focus in Theories was religion. I feel that religion can be such a touchy subject in certain situations. There are so many different religions in the world and so many different beliefs that it’s hard to find what the real truth is. I agree when Durkheim would say that religion plays a large part in society. I agree with him that a person’s religion plays a big part in the way they act and live. Most sociologists would see religion as a forceful thing but Durkheim would see it as a good thing and would help with society

Religion can help some through a very tough time, like when a loved one dies you want to believe that that person will be going to a better place. Religion can also help someone realize that there is a reason to life and help you have a meaning for life. Another place that I have noticed that uses religion a lot is in the criminal systems. People who do serious crimes look to god to heal them and make them holy again.

I watched a video a few years ago about religion and I automatically thought about this video when we were talking about religion is class. This video brings up so many topics and makes you rethink almost everything. He makes points about things not being solved and not making any sense of what religion really is. This video is only four minutes and I highly suggest everyone watches it and have listen to the questions he is asking and the topics he is bring up. This is a great video for a young mind like myself be I still am trying to find what I believe. Many people my age grow up believing what their parents believe in and do not allow themselves to explore the many other religions that are out there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTTGU4yXO3Y

Fetishism of Commodity

I have taken other sociology classes and we always somehow bring up Karl Marx. I mean why wouldn’t we, he is a great sociologist with great theories and thoughts. One theory that really caught my eye was Fetishism of Commodity. An easy way to explain Fetishism of commodity is by thinking of a garage sale, in a garage sale you have buyer and a seller. The word commodity means buying and selling of goods and services. There is this obsession of constantly needing to buy and sell. As a seller you want to make the most money that you possibly can and once you get that money you want to buy the newest and coolest things just to feel like you fit in. By constantly making yourself become obsessed with selling and wanting to make money you will almost lost yourself in materialistic things. You would allow yourself to be known as your status and not your own self. The way I see it is we see the money and not the time and effort put into the product. For example if you have a block of wood you will see it has nothing but if you take the time and effort of making it into a table, will you be proud? No, you would see money signs because you can sell it and make money off of it. This also can mean that if you go to the grocery store you buy the groceries there is now a relationship between you and the owner. When you give your money to the store you are giving money to the owner.

 A great example of Fetishism can be when the new Grand Theft Auto game came out. People took of work the next day just to stay up to go buy the game. There were lines lined up outside of game stores. This also is a great example of a want, and not a need. This shows an Obsession for a materialist item.

 I posted below a video of a group of people being obsessed with the latest trends and objects. The video is of black Friday. This shows how out of control things can get when it comes to materialistic things!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBk32OUxCnU

The Materialistic World

I feel like the best topic for me to blog about is materialism. Materialism is in everyone somehow or another. I would say that I can be materialistic at times. Saying that I like to have money but I am willing to work hard for it. But I could never see myself owning $400 dollar jeans that just seems ridiculous to me. It’s okay to casually want to go to a nice dinner but to want something over something you need doesn’t seem right. Some people have the privilege of being materialistic by having lots of money. While others almost wish that they could be materialist just because they may have nothing at all.

Tocqueville like many other socialist says that materialism is very problematic in society. He says numerous times that people are turning into aristocrats more and more these days. The things people look up to are usually people with money and the people who have it “all”. But we need to realize is that we need to stop living up to what everyone elses lives live.  Yes, in this society people do need to have money to survive but we should live by the smaller amount of money. I’m almost positive that people can live with jeans from Old Navy other than Gucci. It is made from the same material and probably looks and feels the same as Old Navy. This society has a constant hunger for new things and to have the next best things. And to have new things it will eventually have a costing to the environment.  I posted a video that gives a visual example of what I am trying to say. What kind of world would we be in if we took away all the materialist items? Well, the movie which is advertised in the YouTube video below. I would love to see this world without the rich celebrities and other materialistic people.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_z3NDXtm64