Teenage Independence

In class this past week we've been talking a lot about when you are finally a teenager and when your are finally an adult. There were many very different opinions in class about when your finally an adult ranging from 18 years old to 25 years old. I noticed that each and every single person had their own opinion on when one was an adult. Some thought it was when you have no more driving curfew, some thought it was when you were able to buy alcohol, and some thought it was when you were able to rent a car. When Sal put a timeline on the board of all the ages where we thought you gained independence the class as a whole was only naming the nurture part of it. The part that were rules or laws, not what has been given naturally to us such as our first tooth or ones first gray hair or wrinkle. In society we are judged by what age we are not by what age we act. There are some 14 year olds that are mature enough to drive a car but then again there are some 16 year olds who can legally drive a car but are too immature to handle the responsibility of doing so. I feel that people shouldn't be judged on how old they are but judged on how mature they are and what they can learn from their elders and can set an example to ones younger than themselves just like in that one island off of the pacific coast. Teenagers are often judged too harshly on being a teenager but not every teen fits that stereotype of a crazy irresponsible individual. Society should that note of this and not judge a person on how old they are but how mature as a person they are and how they can receive and give back to their community.

Masculinity

In class this past week we've been talking alot about masculinity. In todays society alot of men are trying to put on this "tough guise" to show their masculinity. Even boys, small children are trying to do this. they are trying to put on a show to make themselves look tough to others and be respected. many of the people who dont show their masculinity through this disguise are often ridiculed and made fun of. words are being tossed at them such as fag and wussy and much more vulgar words. many boys are being influenced by the media. WWE for instance shows very graphic images and videos of huge jacked men throwing each other through tables and bashing each other over the heads with metal chairs. many boys watching this start to imitate the wrestlers and thats where they try "putting on a show" to display their toughness. yes, to me a real man does display a sense of independence and toughness but not to the extent it is going on today. if boys and men really want to show how manly and tough they are they should be more intact with their true feelings and take off that silly little disguise of toughness they put on.

Socialization Agents

Groups that shape us to who we are today. These groups influence everything in our daily lives from what we wear to school to what we believe in. The thing is, we don't even think about these groups as often as we should and what kind of affect they have on our lives as well as my own. To me, there are 3 very distinctive agents of socialization that have the greatest impact on my life.
What i think is probably the most important agent is Family. As soon as we are born we are brought into this world with our whole family, mom, dad, brother(s) or sister(s). These people right away love us and this is something really special. In my own life my family is very big on soccer so ultimately my favorite sport is soccer and that is what i have grown up playing as my main sport.
A second very important socialization agent is School. Around the age of 3-5 we are brought into preschool or kindergarten. And from there it does not stop sometimes as late as your mid twenties. In school we are taught many of the basic skills such as math, reading, and writing but there are somethings that are not part of the school agenda that we learn as well. These would be the latent lessons, such as patriotism and consumerism. In my life for as long as i can remember my first class of the day would start off by standing up and reciting the pledge of allegiance.
The third most influential group on a persons life as well as my own would be the Work group. As we grow up we see that one of our even both of our parents have a job and work to provide and support the family. The work that they do defines who they are whether they are a fire fighter, police officer, or a teacher. And in these select jobs comes hard work and dedication. In my own life i was always taught to always work hard and that nothing comes easy especially since my father came from Italy at 14 years old and worked from the bottom up to be where he is now as a grocery store owner. His work values have rubbed off on me creating me as the person i am today.

Growing Man

In class this week, we've been learning about socialization and how we are dependent on each other to survive and grow in this world today. One day, on the board, Sal drew a diagram of a baby on the left side, and then an adult on the right. He then went on to teach that as a baby we are ruled by emotions, instinct and training. As we grow up to become adults we depend on others to help us along they way. In the short reading, Human Instinct, there were many examples on children that had other interactions with humans and others who didn't. One story that struck me as very odd was the child who was raised in the wild. What was very weird about this was his ability to survive being brought up by the wild animals. When being observed, he would run around on all fours, growl, scratch, and hunt and eat live uncooked meat just like an animal would do. This shows how the environment a child is brought up in has a lot of effect on their behavior. Through other people, and in this case animals, we become a human, socialization.

What Am I?

In class the other day, Sal was telling us a story about how he was in Italy. Before his experience there he always considered himself as an Italian, his family was Italian and he had an Italian heritage and Italian in his blood. But that all soon changed. While he was in Italy, he was speaking to this one man and Sal said that he as well was Italian, the man laughed and said no your not your American. At first Sal was very confused because he had always considered himself to be an Italian but the man then said your grandfather might be Italian but you are an American. And once that was said Sal looked at himself and saw what he was wearing different from the rest of the people there. I can relate greatly to this because I also have Italian heritage. Both my mother and father were born and raised in Sicily. So naturally I had always considered myself to be Italian although being born in America. Like Sal, when I went to Italy to visit family, I was known to them as their American cousin. To them I wasnt Italian, I wasnt born there, I havent ever lived there, and I was not used to their customs and ways of living. Not many consider themselves to be American when asked what they are and this is because of our ancestory. So with this in mind, what are you?

My Subculture

Many of us are part of our own sub cultures. Some based on race, ethnicity, interests, and hobbies. In shs there are many sub cultures that make up our one big shs culture. Many shs students are part of different sub cultures such as band, soccer, football, baseball, and many of our clubs that are offered. Together all these mini sub cultures make up one big culture which is shs. A sub culture i would relate myself to is italian-american. there are many mores, folkways, symbols, tabboos, language, and values that i have. A more that is in my life is family is the most important thing in my life and nothing comes between. A folkway is going to church every sunday, yes it is a religious purpose that we follow but i am not obliged to going. A symbol that relates to me and my family is the italian horn that i wear and the italian flag, showing pride. the language that is most commonly speaked in my family is italian. Values that me and my family follow are hard work and dedication and that family comes first.

Hand Gestures

In class the past few days, we've been talking alot about cultures and how we interact with other cultures. One thing we have been learning about with cultures interacting with each other is culture shock which is when people from different cultures see and think when they are thrown into another culture. One example of this is when people use hand gestures to communicate with each other. Since I come from an Italian family I am very familiar with seeing people talking with their hands. These hand gestures we make to each other can be shocking to different cultures because one gesture for us might mean a different gesture for them. In my family alot of the people speak by putting all 5 of their fingertips together and rock it back and forth. In some different cultures this may mean something else like in japanese it could come off as talking about money. What some things mean for us could and probably do mean something different for other people from different parts of the world.