6 Opinion based questions!

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  1. Is gender itself a social problem, or is it only gender inequality that is a social problem? What evidence can you use to support your answer?
  2. What is “hegemonic masculinity?” What forms did hegemonic masculinity take in your high school? Think about your current college life. What similarities and differences do you see with hegemonic masculinity in college, as opposed to your experiences in high school? Do you think there should be a concept called “hegemonic femininity?” What might it look like, and what forms did it take in high school and now in college?
  3. Do you think most people today consider pornography a social problem? How might the Internet have changed peoples’ views on the acceptability of pornography? Is there a sexual double standard related to pornography? What benefits are there to pornography?
  4. What is sexual script theory? How does gender relate to hook up culture, especially in terms of sexual scripts? How could we analyze the phenomenon of hooking up from a functionalist perspective? What are the potential functions and dysfunctions of hooking up?
  5. Sociologist David Popenoe, co-director of the National Marriage Project at Rutgers University, has argued that the modern family is failing in its primary social functions: sexual regulation, procreation, and socialization of children in a stable, economically productive and emotionally supportive unit formed by the lifelong union of a man and a woman. He calls this the “decline of the family.” Other scholars, however, suggest that the modern family is in a state of adaptation (rather than decline). Which of these arguments do you feel best characterizes the modern family (adaptation or decline)? Which of these arguments do you think most Americans would use to characterize the modern family? Explain your position.
  6. Try to imagine 100 years in the future. What do you think the “typical” family will look like in 100 years? What might the functions of the family be in 100 years? What types of social problems might families be experiencing in the future that are also common today, and what problems might they face that are not yet common for families now?