Psychology helps people understand their self-esteem, politics entails governance and polling matters, while biology relates to life issues. However, sociological imagination by Mills provides scope for knowing the complex social world that supersedes our ordinary imagination and experiences. Although Mills’ concept was not initially recognized, it is applied in the modern society to provide knowledge on various issues affecting the humanity. The theory forbids individuals from regarding their personal experience as their own creation but seeing the problems as those created by the society. In other words, if one individual is suffering, then there are many others undergoing the same all over the world. For instance, I have been raised in a poor family, but sociological imagination discourages me from only focusing on the negative side of poverty, but instead encourages me to take the challenge with an open mind. This essay will apply C. W. Mills’ sociological imagination concept to explain the issue of poverty problem I have been experiencing.
Personal Explanation
I was born 26 years ago in Princeton, a small city in Missouri. Although it is small in size and population, it is rich in geographical beauty. I was raised in a nuclear family, where my mum was a housewife, and my father worked in a local hog farm as the overall manager. Although I considered myself lucky, since I had both my parents living together in an environment where single parents raise most children, life could not be considered easy. Poverty was the norm of the day since my dad was only paid a small amount of money, yet he had four of us to support. He was always overwhelmed, and at some point in life, he had to seek a second job to increase his financial status.
My elder brother and I joined a local public school, which was considered an education center for the low-class citizens. Moreover, having Christmas gifts and birthday celebrations was a luxury. In most cases, we even forgot our birthdates because it was just a typical day. Our misfortune blossomed when my father was diagnosed with stage III stomach cancer. With my dad bedridden and unable to pay his usual bills, my brother and I had to look for an income. When my dad died on July 31, 2016, I realized what poverty meant.
Smith and I became employed as casual laborers in a small grocery store. Although the state’s law forbidden us from working, we had to labor more hours to earn a living and pay our bills. My mother still had to stay at home and take care of our two young sisters. Despite the challenges, we remained focused and continued with our education. We knew that only academic excellence could raise our financial status and attained high grades throughout our high school terms. As a result, my brother joined a prestigious university in the country, and he is set to graduate this year as a doctor. I am also lucky to be enrolled in one of the good colleges in the city.
Sociological Imagination
Society classifies individuals into different categories, such as the poor, the middle class, and the wealthy. Some people might argue that some may rise to better income level from poverty, but in reality, nobody chooses their economic status. Although most individuals are able to work hard to earn more, it is impossible to choose whether to be poor or rich. It is the society which determines a persons’ present and future financial status.
Sociological imagination helps the public to distinguish the social levels from personal circumstances. Once an individual is able to differentiate the two, the or she can make personal decisions which can serve him best due to the larger social forces people face. Being that I was raised in a poor home does not mean that I will stay in poverty. Instead of focusing on looking for money, I changed my perception and decided to put all my effort into education. Although schooling was not instantly paying, it was a long-term investment that was promising in my perception. The social troubles impacted my success by helping me to find solace in studying. In other words, I became empowered to understanding what reduces poverty levels. Although social imagination is sometimes misunderstood due to providing excuses to people, every person should account for their actions.
Conflict theory best describes my initial situation by illustrating that society is full of competition, and people have to contest for the limited available resources. According to Keirns et al. (2018), the world is composed of people from different social classes who have to compete for the few available opportunities. Institutions such as education, religion, and government have to keep more resources, thus promoting unequal social structure. Individuals who obtain more resources use their influence and power to maintain their social class, while those who are allocated little possessions have to struggle to find their way to the wealthy class.
In this regard, the level of poverty that I experienced was caused by the state. The government made education expensive when my parents were still schooling. They could not afford the school fees of the good institutes, and eventually, they dropped out. As a result, they only got employed in jobs which were not well-paid. However, this motivated me to work hard to surpass the level of education my parents achieved.
Data/Statistics
Numerous people are experiencing high levels of poverty across the United States. Based on the study conducted by Dotson and Foley (2016), students who perform well in class originate from families who can cater to their needs. Besides, the black people are more exposed to poverty compared to other races. A survey performed in 2018/2019 showed that poverty levels decreased to 10.5% from the initial 11.8% witnessed in 2018 (Semega et al., 2020). Despite the previous high levels of poverty, current research shows that the gap between the poor and the rich decreases, and many people can cater to their needs.
Conclusion
In conclusion, poverty is a social issue that has affected many generations. Conflict theory illustrates the case as a societal problem that avails limited resources to people, giving them no option but to compete. However, there is no fairground for competition as the rich use their power and authority to manipulate the wealthy institutions to protect their interests. Concurrently, the lower class struggles to climb the social level. Sociological imagination offers hope to the less fortunate by encouraging them to understand that their situation is not their creation but a societal problem. One must not take advantage of the Mills’ concept to explain their position, but instead employ it positively to overturn their present misfortunes. Hence, poverty should not prevent a person from achieving the set goals
References
Dotson, L., & Foley, V. (2016). Middle grades student achievement and poverty levels: Implications for teacher preparation. Journal of Learning in Higher Education, 12(2), 33-44.
Keirns, N., Strayer, E., Griffiths, H., Cody-Rydzewski, S., Scaramuzzo, G., Sadler, T., Vvain, s., Bry, J. & Jones, F. (2018). Introduction to sociology. OpenStax. Web.
Semega, J., Kollar, M., Shrider, E. A., & Creamer, J. (2020). Income and poverty in the United States: 2019. United States Bureau. Web.