Seventeen

One of the criticisms of the Lynds' work by Munsonians had to do with intentionality. What did they intend to do in the Middletown studies? This is related to the theoretical frameworks we talked about in class.Looking at those four models, what do you think was the theoretical framework used by the film makers (Jeff Kreines and Joey Demott) in "Seventeen"? What was their intention in making the film?

Taylor, Kimberly A.:
I can see parts of both conflict and critical theory in this film. Conflict theory because the film emphasizes the conflict and change within the school system rather than the order and maintenance. I think the directors also had a goal to arrive at a more realistic portrayal of social reality. They did not chose the elite students, they chose the opposite side of the spectrum and showed the disruption of race and class within the students' lives. It also fit the numerous major questions and topics for investigation from out handout. I can also see Critical theory at work as well. Critical theory's goal is to unmask sources of oppression and to promote understanding of causes and consequences of oppression. I think the directors did this as well. Viewers could also clearly see the answers to the questions posed in the major questions and topics for investigation in the Critical Theory column. So I'm on the fence with this one.

Wei
While I agree that most of us see a clear pattern of conflict theory in Seventeen, I am not quite sure whether a framework of critical theory is used or not. This documentary provides a realistic portrayal of the conflicting social reality of the lower-middle-class teens including interracial dating, underage drinking, drug use, and so on. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that its goal is to "unmask sources of oppression, to promote understanding of causes and consequences of oppression, and to encourage participation in liberation."

To my understanding, a documentary producer (or the viewer) might be very critical but a documentary film should be filmed and presented in a neutral, calm, and non-radical way. In this film, although the producers intentionally chose a group of "problematic" students in Southside, I don't see that the producers took any substantial stance of the critical theory - neither did they reveal "how positive and negative meanings and identities are constructed", nor did they explore "to what degree and how can the oppressed achieve autonomy." They even did not define explicitly what constitutes the conflict.

I might be wrong but I guess a little more discussion would be helpful.

Hooper, Leah D.:
I agree with seeing both Conflict and Critical Theory. Again, as has been stated, we truly are not aware of the actual intentions of the film makers but the product supports either/both of these theories.
I appreciate having the "rest of the story" to know where people are now. I would LOVE to talk to them, though. What an interesting documentation of that time in your life.

Freistat, Sally E.:
After much thought and reflection on our classroom discussions, I think the theory applicable most to "Seventeen" was conflict theory. Based on what we know of the directors, their public intent was to capture high school life in a video yearbook. The public assumed the directors would select high school achievers, those who understood and played the the "rules." Instead, they choose to follow students who broke all the rules. Perhaps the intent of the directors was to scandalize the project however I think they were trying to demonstrate how high school experience is not the same for all students and how the system of public education negatively affects students. The directors made some interesting decisions when choose what to record. For example, we saw Lynn and her friends in Home Economics class and her demonstration of disrespect for the teacher and the class. We did not see Lynn at work. Perhaps she excelled at work and was an entirely different person. Including this in the documentary would have created a much different persona than the one we got to know.

Link
http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9B04E1D91639F935A35751C0A963948260

Country Boys

Remember the metaphor Chris used? "I am the lock--my mother is the key." What do you think he meant by that?We talked about the 3 primary institutions of socialization--family, church, school. How do you think these three entities play out in the lives of Chris and Cody?

Wei:
I was deeply touched by this provocative documentary which shows the struggle of two Appalachian boys and their interaction with the family, school, church, and the society at large. Before I watched this video, I would never imagine that life is such a misery in these impoverished and forgotten corners in the States. For Chris, life is never easy - being diagnosed with behavioral disorder, living in a trailer, having an alcoholic father, parents arguing, mother leaving, struggling for daily necessities... All these hardship of life made him feel hopeless and isolated from the community, although deep inside he is a very ambitious boy. The "lock" refers to this dilemma. And his mother, who was always there talking to him, supporting him, and reminding him of his commitment, became the "key" that helps him to cope with this situation. As Chris stated clearly on the PBS website: "She (mother) wants to see great things about me. So she tries to get a lot out of me. She pushes me. You know how they push people to their limit? She tries to see if she can push me past that limit, so that way I succeed. If I fail at one thing, I'll succeed at another. She tries to keep herself optimistic about me."

Craig Bailey:
Chris and his mother are very close; she is the one person that seems to really understand Chris, and she is willing to call him out when he falls short of what he is capable of accomplishing. She is the key that can open his potential. He may see himself as a lock because he has grown up in a family environment that has probably been embarassing for him to cope with. He strikes me as someone with very good superficial social skills. His social skills are not used for connecting with other people; instead, they are used to protect him from being known by others. His mechanism for coping has been to withdraw and remain on the sidelines; unnoticed, with thoughts and feelings best left hidden. But when we see Chris with his mother, we see the guard being dropped...the lock opened.

Wei:
I agree with you on the "mechanism of coping." For Chris, family is more important than school. Although his home is a shabby and unpeaceful place, it is still providing a shelter and a confort zone for him - a place to vent, to hide, and to learn, a place where he can always find his own identity. His mother, who is the only person in the family he can truly communicate with and get support from, is the "key" to the "lock" of his mind. Chris' strong commitment to the family can be seen when he skipped school to help the family move to the new trailer. I don't think that was something he and his mother would like to see but they had no choice. Also I feel that by doing this Chris was trying to hide away from his newspaper commitment when he felt unsure if he could make it or not. School could have done better by offering a helping hand if they sensed this earlier.

Wei:
In elementary school, Chris was diagnosed with a behavior disorder that limited his functioning severely enough that he qualified for Social Security's Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. However, from the movie I hardly see that he was severly suffering from his "behavior disorder." I don't know exactly what is the criterion or definition for it. To me, Cody demonstrated more disorderly behaviors than Chris did - nipple piercing, unruly personality... He is just luckier than Chris that he has a caring grandmother, a supportive girlfriend and her family, and a pastor friend who shares his interest in music with him - a good supportive socialization system that keeps him on the right track. Unfortunately, this is something that Chris doesn't have.

Jim Jackson:
It was my understanding that Chris was diagnosed at a very early age. At one point he states that if he is ever tested again, they would probably find that he does not have the disorder and the checks would stop. I think he alluded to that being a concern of his mother's. She appearantly knows the system and how to work it in her favor.

Documentary link: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/countryboys/

Sociological Theories

I. Functionalism (e.g., grounded theory)

• Focus: Order and equilibrium
• Goals: Identify social system components (the maintenance/transmission of order and equilibrium)
  
• Assumptions: Social systems must carry out certain functions to survive; Equilibrium is normal; disorder & conflict are pathological
  
• Concepts: System, functions, goals, adaptation, integration, institution & structure, norms, values, cultural rules, social equilibrium, and order
• Levels of Analysis: Macrolevel (groups, collectivities and their relationships)
• Research topics: Categories/structures that organize/constitute social system; Interrelationship to maintain order
  
• Critique: Too static: trying to justify the status quo
  
• Contributors: T. Parsons, C. Levi-Strauss, A. R. Radcliffe-Browne, B. Malinowski, R. Merton, E. Shils, E. Durkheim
  

II. Conflict Theory (e.g., resistance theory)

• Focus: Conflict and change
• Goals: realistic portrayal of social reality including explanation of change, social disruption, conflict)
  
• Assumptions: contradictions are inherent in social organizations and caused by inequality of resource distribution; functionalism fails to explain the dynamism of social systems; conflict and change are normal; conflict is dialectical
  
• Concepts: Same as in functionalism, plus legitimacy, consciousness, domination, coercion, subjugation, contradiction, dialectic, correspondence, ideology, strain, deviance, change, and adaptation
  
• Levels of Analysis: Macrolevel (groups, collectivities and their relationships)
• Research topics: Causes and consequences of conflict; power exercised; sources of societal inequality; social transformation
  
• Critique: vague definition of conflict constituants; no answer to conflict-order/stability relationships
  
• Contributors: K. Marx, G. Simmel, R. Dahrendorf, L. Coser, M. Weber, P. Bourdieu
  

III. Interpretive Theory (e.g., the metaphor of lock and key in Country Boys; interactionism)

• Focus: The constructed nature of social meaning and reality
• Goals: understand how people construct and act upon meanings
  
• Assumptions: Meaning is constructed of social interaction, changes in interaction due to different perceptions; reality is based on interpretations, changes according to the actors and the context
  
• Concepts: Self, self-concept, mind, symbols, meaning, interaction, role, actor, role taking, role making, role expectations, construction of reality, discourse, scripts, texts, communication
  
• Levels of Analysis: Microlevel (individuals and small groups in interactions with each other)
• Research topics: meaning-human behavior relationship; symbols that structure human interactions
  
• Critique: Remains at microlevel; no connections to determinants in external social structural variables
  
• Contributors: H. Blumer, G. H. Mead, R. Park, C. Cooley, R. Turner, E. Goffman, M. Kuhn, H. Garfinkel, A. Cicourel, H. Becker, J. Dewey
  

IV. Critical Theory (e.g., viewers' choice of Appalachian 2 case studies; transform society through education...)

• Focus: Origins of social, political, and economic oppression
  
• Goals: Unmask sources of oppression, promote understanding of causes and consequences of oppression, encourage participation in liberation
  
• Assumptions: conventional social theory is a bankrupt construction of ruling elites for them to oppress the society with hidden/disguised power; social life operates at multiple levels of meaning
  
• Concepts: Resistance, human agency, oppression, hegemony,, domination, subordination, subjectivity, political economy, consciousness (false/true), stratification of power by race, social class and gender, ableness, sexual orientation, deconstruction)
  
• Levels of Analysis: Macro and microlevels (integration of individual interaction with macrolevel social analysis). Meaning as found in interactions and texts
  
• Research topics: Sources of inequality and oppression, individual experiences within social organizations, the format of oppression, construction of positive/negative meanings/identities
  
• Critique: Lack of objectivity and neutrality in favor of advocacy stance toward toward the oppressed
  
• Contributors:T. Adorno, M. Horkheimer, H. Marcuse, H. Gadamer, M. Foucault, J. Habermas, H. Giroux, M. Apple, P. Freire, M. Fine, L. Weis, P. Wexler, P. McLaren, J. Dewey, I. Illich