Norms vs. Individuality
I thought I would paste my blog entry from my other site:
Norms are the set of rules which define the way people should think, feel, and act. Norms are generally unstated and oftentimes people do not openly and verbally acknowledge their existence until they are broken. For example, it is common knowledge that one should wear matching socks- not one red and one orange, etc. However, I (and I hope you) don't walk around town staring at people's socks to ensure they are obeying this norm. Though, just as soon as someone does venture outside with un-matching socks, I certainly notice it!
Norms don't always apply to everyone and every situation. They vary with person and situation and across cultures, which I find very interesting. Here in
Norms are used as social control, per say. They do, as previously stated, define the manner in which all people should think, feel, and act. Social control has two dimensions- positive and negative sanctions. If someone breaks a norm, generally a negative sanction ensues. Trust me- if John woke up tomorrow morning and decided to wear shorts and cowboy boots, I would tell him I don't think so buddy! If my secretary completes her tasks on time and tries to be cheerful, she is "going with the flow" and deserves a positive sanction of Thank you, Terry, I appreciate your hard work and your positive attitude. Note however that for every eight negative sanctions, there is only one positive sanction. If you honestly step back and think, that's sadly quite true. How many times do we compliment another on his or her dress, mannerisms, etc? On the flip side, I walked past a well-dressed young lady around two weeks ago. I was on my way back to my office and she was perhaps headed to her last class for the day. She was wearing the most adorable and comfortable looking sweater with pinstripe black pants and boots. I said hello to her and she smiled. Before she passed me, I commented that I like her sweater and where did she purchase it. She looked at me like I was the devil and asked me did I want something. It was then my turn to be astonished. She thought I had an ulterior motive for complimenting her dress. So, there are pros and cons to everything but then, you knew that already I hope!
So, what do norms have to do with individuality? Well, what did our brilliant founding fathers create our constitution to protect? What does each soldier protect and defend? Freedom to be an individual. We are granted the freedom of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We are granted the freedom to voice our opinions, the right to bear arms, and so on. We all know our given freedoms within the bill of rights.
However, do we really have those freedoms? Remember when I said that norms are utilized as social control? Ah yes that- well, if I want to walk outside tomorrow morning wearing my birthday suit, do you think I would be allowed inside the classroom? I would probably be arrested. If John Doe chose to sit in class and pick his nose, would people associate with him? No, of course not- he would be alienated and maybe, just maybe, some brave soul might approach him and tell him You are not allowed to pick your nose in public. He could retort with says who? I have the freedom to do what I want.
I of course believe that we as Americans really are a free people. We truly do live day to day with more freedoms than the majority of the world is allowed. But it's an interesting thought and one that was put in my head by my sociology professor. We discussed norms for three class periods during which time we headed into the conversation of how norms affect our individual freedom. So that's my two cents for the day! Now I will finish my essay on the Federalist Papers No. 10. Love you all mean it lots!
New Blog
For those of you whom I was close to here on tBlog, I just wanted to let you know that I moved to blogspot. Here is the link to my new blog!
Shades of Scarlett
Take care and see ya around!
Scarlett