George Ritzer describes McDonaldization as “the process by which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as the rest of the world”. McDonaldization is the idea that our society is becoming more efficient and more fast paced. Rational systems can be defined as “unreasonable, dehumanizing systems that deny the humanity, the human reason, of the people who work within them or are served by them”.1 Today there are many types of businesses that are increasingly adapting the same values and principles of the fast-food industry to their needs. Rational systems are dehumanizing our society and seem to be even more irrational than convenient. “Almost every aspect of today’s society has been affected by McDonaldization including the restaurant business, education, work, healthcare, travel, leisure, dieting, politics and the family”. McDonaldization is turning our society into one which is built upon convenience and gaining the most for our money in the fastest way possible. The significant success of McDonalds, and of McDonaldization as a whole, is due to four basic elements- efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control.(Ritzer, p.12) The first dimension of McDonaldization is efficiency. Efficiency means choosing the optimum means to a given end. Efficiency does have its advantages for both consumers, who get what they want quickly and with little effort, and for workers, who can perform their tasks...
In today’s world, technology and current norms drive a large portion of everyday life that the vocabulary becomes a common universal language. For example, if you don’t know or understand something, just “google” or ask “siri” about it, write a “blog” about a recent experience, or witnessed the latest “post” that has received over 1.6K “likes”. George Ritzer describes the same thing with the fast food restaurant McDonald’s in his video “The McDonaldization of Society”. He defines McDonaldization as the process by which principles of the fast food restaurant have begun to overflow and dominate all aspects of our world.
sociologist George Ritzer argues that the relationship between McDonald’s and our society runs even deeper. Beyond its commercial propaganda and symbolism, Ritzer says, McDonald’s is a potent manifestation of the rational processes that define modern society.
For some, abortion is a touchy subject like politics and religion. In America, abortion has always been a controversial topic of discussion. The Supreme Court in the case Roe vs Wade case set the way of guidelines and the right for women to have an abortion if she chooses. In 2015 abortions is still an ongoing debate amongst religious groups, politicians and normal citizens. People that are for the rights of women to abort are often criticized and ridiculed for standing up for their personal beliefs. There are people who have conditioned their minds to think that women should not be allowed to have abortions if she was not raped or a result of incest, which I strongly disagree with that type of thinking. However, it is the law of the land, it is a women’s right to choose and she has to live with the psychological effects of her choice.
Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy before birth; it causes the termination of the embryo or fetus inside the women. There are two different types of abortion, a spontaneous abortion, which is also known as a miscarriage, and an induced abortion, where the embryo or fetus is purposely removed from the women’s body. The topic of induced abortion has been widely debated for hundreds of years. The issue of abortion was argued way back in the time of the ancient Hebrews. In the United States it became illegal around the mid 1800’s and not until the 1960’s was the argument for the right to abort brought back to the table. In 1973, the Supreme Court case “Roe vs. Wade” made abortion legal. The case stated that abortion was legal in the first trimester (three months) of pregnancy (O’Brien par. 17). Since that day over 30 years ago, there have been many cases in which abortion has been disputed. Congress has passed many laws restricting abortion rights, including in cases such as Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services and Stenberg v. Carhart (O’Brien par. 18). There are many other cases like these and each time is seems more likely that a woman’s right to choose could be overturned (“Reproductive Rights” 26). There are many different ranges of beliefs about the morality of abortion, whether or not one should have an abortion, and under what conditions the termination of pregnancy is acceptable. Many argue at what point in the process of pregnancy a human person comes into existence. People disagree about whether anything from an ovum to a fetus is a form of human life. No person knows this information, but it is debated among the two major sides on this issue. The first side are those that believe abortion should be forb...
' 'McDonaldization of Society'...is the current exemplar for future developments in rationalization.' Ritzer (2005) introduced Weber's (1958) theory of rationalization in which Weber believed that the modern society is being rationalized. Ritzer (2005) then specified 5 essential components in the theory. Those are efficiency, predictability, calculability, substitution of non-human for human technology, and control over uncertainty. He noted that McDonaldization is not only influencing the operation of the fast food industry in America, but also the other aspects of society, including family, travel and leisure, and even to the rest of the world.
Abortion is unlike any other subject debated today; millions of women have aborted a child, and the loss, pain, and emotional need to justify what was done, both on the part of the mother and on the part of her loved ones. Abortion is a gut-wrenching debate that has been going on for centuries, and does not plan to cool off anytime soon. The Supreme Court case in 1973, Roe vs. Wade, placed abortion on the map for the United States. The result of the Roe vs. Wade case legalized abortion to protect women’s health, however the good intentions of the ruling opened the doors for people to take advantage of the case outcome. Approximately 1.06 million abortions took place in the United States in 2011, which goes to show that women maybe abusing the privilege of the rules set in place to protect their health and practicing abortion as a form of contraception. Abortion is not only a dangerous procedure for women to endure, however it is also unethical to abort a child. Abortion is immoral because life begins at conception, people need to live with the consequences and not take the easy way out, and there are other available options.
Abortion is one of America’s most controversial subjects. The participants in this debate have fixed beliefs on the matter at hand. On one side of the debate are people who believe in pro- choice. They argue that choice of a woman is more important than an unborn fetus. They point out that an unborn child is not on the same level of importance as the mother. Also, the pro-life group declares that choice is the sole purpose behind their argument. They believe that if a woman cannot chose to abolish a pregnancy, then she looses one of her basic human rights. The other side of the debate is the pro-life group. Their main concern is that the fetus is a person; therefore, having the same human rights as the mother. As a result, when states pass laws that enable abortions, these states are legalizing murder. When considering an individual’s ethics and values, killing is morally wrong. Therefore, the termination of unborn children is wrong, as well. Abortion, the unethical expulsion of an embryo or fetus, in order to purposely end a pregnancy, should be forbidden because human life begins at conception, economics is not a justification for abortion, and an unwanted child does not justify abortion.
Abortions should not be considered lawful considering the fact that abortions increase a women’s chances of having certain cancers and diseases, will cause more teenagers to be involved in sexual activity, and because abortion is simply murder. Instead of using abortions as a drug used to relieve the responsibility of having to take care of a child, women should accept the fact that unplanned pregnancies happen. Other methods such as birth control can be used before hand to prevent situations like this from happening.
One of the most controversial issues in this day and age is the stance people take on abortion. The two main positions that people take are either of pro-choice or pro-life; both sides, although polar opposites, tend to refer to both the issue of morality and logical rationale. The pro-life side of the debate believes that abortion is an utterly immoral practice that should be abolished. On the contrary, abortion should remain a legal procedure because it is a reproductive right; its eradication would not only take away the pregnant person’s autonomy, but would also put more children in financially unstable homes and the adoption system, and would cause an increase in potentially fatal, unsafe abortions.
When society thinks about the local McDonald’s, they probably do not think “innovation’. That is because everyone has become accustomed to the many novelties that McDonald’s has introduced over the years. Some people do not even know that McDonalds was the leader in innovation being the first major international fast food restaurant, with the first drive-through window. What many people do not realize is that McDonald’s continues to drive innovation in fast food. Some times the innovation is well advertised, but other times they are designed so that customers will never even notice (Ritzer, 2004).
Before I get more into the subject of abortion, you must first understand what exactly abortion is, and how it is defined. An abortion is a procedure to end pregnancy. (1) It typically is a surgery that removes the embryo or fetus and the placenta from the uterus. (1) This procedure is done by a licensed health care professional. (1) Now while abortion is defined as terminating the pregnancy, if the pregnancy happens to end itself then it is known as a miscarriage. (4) Now that we know more about what abortion is, why is such a big debate in today’s society? Well, unfortunately, abortions have become increasing popular with women in today’s society. Women tend to choose the option of abortion when they have an unwanted pregnancy, whether it was by accident or the family just did not want another baby. There are many other reasons for why women choose abortion, they include: rape, age, amount of income, and health. Aside from this, abortion is currently legal in the United States although different states have different regulations. Abortion has been l...
Is Mcdonaldization Inevitable? George Ritzer’s, Mcdonaldization of Society, is a critical analysis of the impact on social structural change on human interaction and identity. According to Ritzer, Mcdonaldization “is the process by which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as rest of the world” (Ritzer, 1). Ritzer focuses on four foundations of Mcdonaldization: efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. These are the commandments of any rationalized corporation. However, they are not carried out from the point of view of the consumer. Efficiency, for example, may entail the placing of great inconveniences upon a consumer for the sake of efficient management. Calculability may involve hiding certain information from the consumer. Predictability and control may involve a company's ability to predict and control consumer behavior, not the consumer's ability to predict what kind of product or control what kind of service he gets. Ritzer calls such breakdowns "the irrationality of rationalization." Ritzer points out the irrationality of rationality, as all of the supposed benefits of Mcdonaldized systems backfire: waiting in long lines, suspect quality, little or no customer service, little or no customer service, the illusion of large quantities for low prices, and severely limited selection of choice. Throughout Mcdonaldization of Society, Ritzer describes Mcdonaldization as largely negative and often destructive. While Mcdonaldization is rapidly taking over American society and spreading to the rest of the globe, it is not something unjustly imposed on the American people. The consumerist culture of America has groomed the public to seek efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. These principles grow in importance and value in contemporary America. Even when given the choice to avoid a Mcdonaldized establishment or product, people will flock to it. I agree with Ritzer’s analysis of a Mcdonaldized society, but I feel that Ritzer has failed to provide any real solutions to the Mcdonaldization process. I will support Ritzer’s analysis of the Mcdonaldization process, but also show that it is inevitable and essential in the American society to have a rationalized system. Ritzer stresses that “Mcdonaldization” does not just refer to robotlike assemb...
In today’s market, McDonalds faces numerous challenges such as fierce competition, a more health conscious customer, and the continual need for improved customer satisfaction and menu. McDonalds needs to go through some changes in order to remain ahead in the fast-food industry.
Mr. Thompson, one of the franchisees who started his own McDonalds career in the 1990s speaking of the founder of McDonald 's corporation, Ray Kroc said: “He opened up the door for so many other people to be able to have entrepreneurial careers with McDonald 's” (Lynch). The fast-food culture was not just a square peg in the square hole of that time, but also a life raft to many. The chain was an avenue for so many people to make a living. One in every eight Americans has worked in a fast food restaurant, especially McDonalds. Franchising was an opportunity for others to succeed together with McDonalds and other fast food chains. McDonalds was not the first fast food chain, but it was the first to go ubiquitously nationwide, and globally American. This was not just because it exploited a new cultural reality, but because of its deep-seated value for humanity and diversity. It didn’t cash in but created the culture
The source gave a whole list of why abortion should be legal and at the same time why it shouldn’t be legal. They also talk about how the mother has the choice to do what she wants because it’s