The Sociological Perspective

“When a society is industrialized, a peasant becomes a worker; a feudal lord is liquidated or becomes a businessman. When classes rise or fall, a man is employed or unemployed; when the rate of investment goes up or down, a man takes new heart or goes broke. When wars happen, an insurance salesman becomes a rocket launcher; a store clerk, a radar man; a wife lives alone; a child grows up without a father. Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both.” (Mills P.1)

The quote above gives a few simple examples of what C. Wright Mills meant by the connection between history and the biography of the individual; whether it is the welder during the Industrial Revolution in the early 18th century; the poor when the Great Depression hit in the 1940's; the soldiers who sacrificed their lives and generals who made decisions that changed the course of history when the great world wars took place. Within each of these historical contexts there were individuals that made choices, no matter how gargantuan or minute the outcomes, that made an impact on society then, and for the next generations to come; in other words, Mills said it best, “We have come to know that every individual lives, from one generation to the next, in some society; that he lives out a biography, and that he lives it out within some historical sequence. By the fact of his living he contributes, however minutely, to the shaping of this society and to the course of its history, even as he is made by society and by its historical push and shove.” (Mills p.2) Right now in there are individuals going about their day and contributing to society either through actions, the words they speak, or even the things that...

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...bs for people than it has taken away. However the case may be, technology has also opened new routes for society to follow, one can see the influences just by looking around; Apple, Android, and Microsoft are just a few big names out there dominating the world and play a role in my life as an individual and society as a whole each passing day.

As I mentioned briefly, technology has opened new routes to society and the individual, it has impacted my life because, although my future isn’t written yet, there's plenty of opportunities that await for me as I’m following my pursuit into the field of technology. Since the advancement will only go forward to better things, society shall continue to grow virtually and in reality as well.

Works Cited

C. Wright Mills, “The Promise [of Sociology]”

Excerpt from The Sociological Imagination (originally published in 1959)