sociological perspective – analyzing either a song or a TV show, book, or movie. You will only choose 1 of the options below. Each paper must follow APA format and must be a minimum of 750 words. Look through the entire directions before choosing your paper assignment. Ensure that the media you are choosing to analyze will contain what you need to complete the paper. Choice of media will be a crucial first step to completing a solid paper. If you have questions always let me know.
there is two choices
these choices are also in the pdfs attached
Choice one –
Music Analysis Paper
As you get trained as a sociologist, you cannot help but look at the world critically. You begin to
question things in your everyday life, view things from a fresh lens, and achieve a better
understanding of the deep functioning of society. Many things that we do every day play a vital
role in forming our understanding and perspectives. Similarly, music is a regular part of our lives.
A very famous saying says that “your playlist defines you.” As sociologists, we do not agree or
disagree with this phrase, but we dissect it. Any song, its lyrics, music, and much more can be
studied sociologically.
Music is central to cultural life and therefore also often perceived as central to social life. The
study of music has also concerned scholars in adjacent disciplines, particularly musicology,
cultural studies, and economics. In the landmark Distinction, Bourdieu argued, “nothing more
clearly affirms one’s ‘class,’ nothing more infallibly classifies, than tastes in music” Sociologists
of music have accordingly been concerned with the importance of musical taste for signifying
status and distinguishing cultural hierarchies. Sociologists have also been concerned with the
socio-demographic correlates of musical preference, how musicians and the music industry
organize to provide music and influence taste, and the education and working conditions of
musicians. Music is a part of many cultural traditions and is both reflective of the current culture
and a mechanism used for change.
When listening to music from different Historical time periods you can often determine different
aspects of culture. Music has been used to influence social movements, to entertain, and to
comment on current social conditions. Music during war time will often discuss the sadness of
loss or push toward the ending of the war. Music is used to bring happiness and to push for
social change.
Task and Purpose:
For this paper you will choose a song that is/was popular and will be useful to make
commentary on the current social world. You will likely need to listen to the song multiple times
or even search for the lyrics to help to gather the meaning from the song. Song choice will be
crucial here.
Listen to the song without seeing the lyrics. Write down notes regarding your overall impression
of the song, its meaning, and how you believe it might influence society. Pay close attention to
sociological topics we have covered in class such as income inequality, gender, race,
LGBTQ, culture, war, deviance, socialization etc.
After your initial thoughts you will want to do background research. Discover the lyrics and the
meaning of the song, search about the writer, composer, singer and producer. Doing
background research helps us understand the context of the song and all of the processes of
song making. When reading the lyrics can you find other Sociological concepts that you did not
see initially? Does the song change for you at all? If you can find the writer/ artist’s description/
meaning of the song do you find it to be the same as yours?
Introduction:
● Briefly and Objectively analyze the song’s meaning. Provide the overall message, genre,
and target audience. Discuss any cultural significance and connections such as
language or norms.
○ Analyze what the song means and/or what the sing is meant to mean (sometimes
artists intent things other than what is taken by the audience)
● Provide enough detail to understand the comparisons you are about to make. Assume I
am unfamiliar with your music choice.
● Include a detailed thesis. The thesis statement must clearly identify how that particular
song shows evidence of the specific concepts you will discuss. You will identify these
Sociological Concepts in the order they will appear in your paper.
Body paragraphs:
● Each paragraph will have a topic sentence and full development.
● Body Paragraphs should include:
○ Interpreting Symbolic Elements- Select 2-3 terms/ concepts from the course that
you can use information from the film as examples in your analysis.
■ How are these concepts displayed in the Song?
■ If we were to look at the three theories of Sociology (Structural
Functionalism, Conflict, or Symbolic Interaction), what theory do you think
best represents this song? Why?
○ Analyzing Small Group Interaction- You will research the group or singer that
released the song. You will want to know the dynamic of the relationships in their
lives when they released or wrote the song so you can tie these events in. You
are looking for ways that the group’s experiences affected how or why they would
write the song (a child on the way, loss of a loved one, big relationship ending
etc.)
■ As you include things, ask yourself, “Can I make a connection between
these events and why this song was written?” because that’s primarily
what I’m asking you to be doing.
○ Analyzing the Social Structure- research what was occurring in the world when
the song was released or when it was most popular (this may not be at the same
time and the reason for it being popular long after release could be due to these
social factors). You want to make connections to the larger social world. Do NOT
just list things that happened at the time. Think about what things would have an
effect on why a song was popular or not.
■ As you include things, ask yourself, “Can I make a connection between
this and why this song was written or how it was received?” because
that’s primarily what I’m asking you to be doing.
● Include a definition of the term/ concept prior to giving examples of that term. Make
reference to how your examples are reflections of that term.
● Each paragraph should be dedicated to responding to one of the sections above and
evaluating a specific idea/ term/ concept.
Conclusion paragraph
● Wrap up your ideas and reiterate your thesis, without repeating yourself.
● Explain the way that applying the sociological imagination and analyzing the song
through a sociological lens changes the song for you.
● End by explaining the importance of applying the sociological imagination and using a
critical sociological lens to the everyday world.
Perspectives Defined:
1.Functionalism-approach that emphasizes the contributions made by each part of society
2.Conflict perspective-approach emphasizing the role of conflict, competition, and constraint
within society.
3.Symbolic interactionism-approach that focuses on the interactions among people based on
mutually understood symbols.
Hints:
● There are not any songs that are a “bad” choice. You can sociologically analyze any
song. However, there are songs that will be easier to analyze than others.
○ A “good” song for this assignment is one with a good amount of lyrics, enough
themes that you think you can incorporate lots of sociology (clear social or
political message), and songs popular enough that there’s enough outside
sources to research about it.
● Technical requirements: 750-1250 words, APA format: double-spaced. proper in-text
citation of course materials is expected as well as a complete reference page.
○ Works Cited doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t using the research throughout
the paper and citing what facts you got from what sources. Use direct quotes
and or paraphrase a source but always cite at the end of the sentence.
■ Ex: “This is my sentence about the 60s culture” (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
■ Ex: 60s culture sentence in a paraphrased form (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
● Make sure to include Sociology terms and theory in your paper! Be explicit in your
use of sociology. Just mentioning a sociological concept is not enough, explain what it is
and how it fits (this is how I know you’re using the concept correctly).
● It is expected that you do outside research to respond to this prompt accurately. Make
sure that you properly cite whatever outside sources you use! Not doing so is plagiarism,
even if you do not mean it. You must cite in the BODY of the essay where you use the
information, using in text citation, AND in the references. Do not use wikipedia as a
direct source.
● When writing in an academic, objective manner, do not use the first person (I, me, my,
we, us, ours) or the second person (you). This also includes addressing the reader, since
this is the second person. For example, do not use the phrase “Consider the situation at
Burger King…”
○ In the conclusion when specifically asked how this has impacted your opinion the
use of the first person is acceptable.
● Do not “meta write,” or write about writing. For example, “I did not know what to write
about, so I searched Netflix for an hour.”
● A good analysis will:
○ Incorporate and accurately discuss the most relevant course content
○ Be well organized and articulate so that sentences are fluent (flow)
○ Be free of grammatical errors.
○ The best analyses will have a clearly stated thesis around which the entire paper
is structured and a complex argument that focuses on a specific conceptual
theme prominent in the theorist’s work.
As you get trained as a sociologist, you cannot help but look at the world critically. You begin to
question things in your everyday life, view things from a fresh lens, and achieve a better
understanding of the deep functioning of society. Many things that we do every day play a vital
role in forming our understanding and perspectives. Similarly, music is a regular part of our lives.
A very famous saying says that “your playlist defines you.” As sociologists, we do not agree or
disagree with this phrase, but we dissect it. Any song, its lyrics, music, and much more can be
studied sociologically.
Music is central to cultural life and therefore also often perceived as central to social life. The
study of music has also concerned scholars in adjacent disciplines, particularly musicology,
cultural studies, and economics. In the landmark Distinction, Bourdieu argued, “nothing more
clearly affirms one’s ‘class,’ nothing more infallibly classifies, than tastes in music” Sociologists
of music have accordingly been concerned with the importance of musical taste for signifying
status and distinguishing cultural hierarchies. Sociologists have also been concerned with the
socio-demographic correlates of musical preference, how musicians and the music industry
organize to provide music and influence taste, and the education and working conditions of
musicians. Music is a part of many cultural traditions and is both reflective of the current culture
and a mechanism used for change.
When listening to music from different Historical time periods you can often determine different
aspects of culture. Music has been used to influence social movements, to entertain, and to
comment on current social conditions. Music during war time will often discuss the sadness of
loss or push toward the ending of the war. Music is used to bring happiness and to push for
social change.
Task and Purpose:
For this paper you will choose a song that is/was popular and will be useful to make
commentary on the current social world. You will likely need to listen to the song multiple times
or even search for the lyrics to help to gather the meaning from the song. Song choice will be
crucial here.
Listen to the song without seeing the lyrics. Write down notes regarding your overall impression
of the song, its meaning, and how you believe it might influence society. Pay close attention to
sociological topics we have covered in class such as income inequality, gender, race,
LGBTQ, culture, war, deviance, socialization etc.
After your initial thoughts you will want to do background research. Discover the lyrics and the
meaning of the song, search about the writer, composer, singer and producer. Doing
background research helps us understand the context of the song and all of the processes of
song making. When reading the lyrics can you find other Sociological concepts that you did not
see initially? Does the song change for you at all? If you can find the writer/ artist’s description/
meaning of the song do you find it to be the same as yours?
Introduction:
● Briefly and Objectively analyze the song’s meaning. Provide the overall message, genre,
and target audience. Discuss any cultural significance and connections such as
language or norms.
○ Analyze what the song means and/or what the sing is meant to mean (sometimes
artists intent things other than what is taken by the audience)
● Provide enough detail to understand the comparisons you are about to make. Assume I
am unfamiliar with your music choice.
● Include a detailed thesis. The thesis statement must clearly identify how that particular
song shows evidence of the specific concepts you will discuss. You will identify these
Sociological Concepts in the order they will appear in your paper.
Body paragraphs:
● Each paragraph will have a topic sentence and full development.
● Body Paragraphs should include:
○ Interpreting Symbolic Elements- Select 2-3 terms/ concepts from the course that
you can use information from the film as examples in your analysis.
■ How are these concepts displayed in the Song?
■ If we were to look at the three theories of Sociology (Structural
Functionalism, Conflict, or Symbolic Interaction), what theory do you think
best represents this song? Why?
○ Analyzing Small Group Interaction- You will research the group or singer that
released the song. You will want to know the dynamic of the relationships in their
lives when they released or wrote the song so you can tie these events in. You
are looking for ways that the group’s experiences affected how or why they would
write the song (a child on the way, loss of a loved one, big relationship ending
etc.)
■ As you include things, ask yourself, “Can I make a connection between
these events and why this song was written?” because that’s primarily
what I’m asking you to be doing.
○ Analyzing the Social Structure- research what was occurring in the world when
the song was released or when it was most popular (this may not be at the same
time and the reason for it being popular long after release could be due to these
social factors). You want to make connections to the larger social world. Do NOT
just list things that happened at the time. Think about what things would have an
effect on why a song was popular or not.
■ As you include things, ask yourself, “Can I make a connection between
this and why this song was written or how it was received?” because
that’s primarily what I’m asking you to be doing.
● Include a definition of the term/ concept prior to giving examples of that term. Make
reference to how your examples are reflections of that term.
● Each paragraph should be dedicated to responding to one of the sections above and
evaluating a specific idea/ term/ concept.
Conclusion paragraph
● Wrap up your ideas and reiterate your thesis, without repeating yourself.
● Explain the way that applying the sociological imagination and analyzing the song
through a sociological lens changes the song for you.
● End by explaining the importance of applying the sociological imagination and using a
critical sociological lens to the everyday world.
Perspectives Defined:
1.Functionalism-approach that emphasizes the contributions made by each part of society
2.Conflict perspective-approach emphasizing the role of conflict, competition, and constraint
within society.
3.Symbolic interactionism-approach that focuses on the interactions among people based on
mutually understood symbols.
Hints:
● There are not any songs that are a “bad” choice. You can sociologically analyze any
song. However, there are songs that will be easier to analyze than others.
○ A “good” song for this assignment is one with a good amount of lyrics, enough
themes that you think you can incorporate lots of sociology (clear social or
political message), and songs popular enough that there’s enough outside
sources to research about it.
● Technical requirements: 750-1250 words, APA format: double-spaced. proper in-text
citation of course materials is expected as well as a complete reference page.
○ Works Cited doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t using the research throughout
the paper and citing what facts you got from what sources. Use direct quotes
and or paraphrase a source but always cite at the end of the sentence.
■ Ex: “This is my sentence about the 60s culture” (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
■ Ex: 60s culture sentence in a paraphrased form (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
● Make sure to include Sociology terms and theory in your paper! Be explicit in your
use of sociology. Just mentioning a sociological concept is not enough, explain what it is
and how it fits (this is how I know you’re using the concept correctly).
● It is expected that you do outside research to respond to this prompt accurately. Make
sure that you properly cite whatever outside sources you use! Not doing so is plagiarism,
even if you do not mean it. You must cite in the BODY of the essay where you use the
information, using in text citation, AND in the references. Do not use wikipedia as a
direct source.
● When writing in an academic, objective manner, do not use the first person (I, me, my,
we, us, ours) or the second person (you). This also includes addressing the reader, since
this is the second person. For example, do not use the phrase “Consider the situation at
Burger King…”
○ In the conclusion when specifically asked how this has impacted your opinion the
use of the first person is acceptable.
● Do not “meta write,” or write about writing. For example, “I did not know what to write
about, so I searched Netflix for an hour.”
● A good analysis will:
○ Incorporate and accurately discuss the most relevant course content
○ Be well organized and articulate so that sentences are fluent (flow)
○ Be free of grammatical errors.
○ The best analyses will have a clearly stated thesis around which the entire paper
is structured and a complex argument that focuses on a specific conceptual
theme prominent in the theorist’s work.
choice 2 –
Media Analysis and the Sociological Imagination Paper
Sociology is the study of social behaviors and their impact on society.The themes of
sociology are found in everyday culture including films.Many of the ideas we have covered in
this course have unlimited potential to speak to our contemporary world. I’m hoping that
analyzing books, films, or TV shows will be a creative and interesting way for you to synthesize,
evaluate, and apply the knowledge you have learned throughout your study of classical and
contemporary sociological theory. The analysis can also allow us to assess the continued
relevance of these theories as we watch representations of social phenomena come alive.
Students will analyze the contents for specific sociological perspectives and examples. Analysis
papers are the demonstration of a student’s ability to make connections between class topics
and popular media. The goal of the analysis paper is to explain how specific sociological
elements are present in an in-depth manner. Analysis papers are NOT a summary. Examples
from the film are used to provide evidence of specific sociological factors, NOT a review. A
brief synopsis of the film may be included in the introductory paragraph
Task and Purpose:
Choose one TV show, a movie, or a book that you feel is popular and reflective of today’s
current world. You will watch/ read this media as a discerning consumer of media, critically
watching for some of the issues we have addressed in the class so far or will address in the
following chapters. Ask yourself how this reflects the sociological concepts we have covered in
relation to race, class, gender, socialization, culture, deviance, or family that we have
covered in class. Objectively describe your piece of media, and then write up your analysis in an
objective, scientific manner that both describes and analyzes using sociological theory. Be sure
to define specific concepts and describe how examples from the movie, TV show, or book
illustrate the particular concept you are discussing. Create a strong argument and structure for
your paper that applies theory.
Your discussion of examples should present a clear and concise picture of a social world that
your reader has no experience of, such that anyone reading your paper can clearly grasp your
argument and your use of the film, book, or event as an illustration.
Introduction:
● Briefly and Objectively summarize the TV show, movie or book: Describe the main
characters including demographics, their names and actions.
○ Provide enough detail to understand the comparisons you are about to make.
Assume I have not seen the media.
● Include a detailed thesis. The thesis statement must clearly identify how that particular
TV show, movie or book shows evidence of the specific concepts you will discuss. You
will identify these Sociological Concepts in the order they will appear in your paper.
Body paragraphs:
● Each paragraph will have a topic sentence and full development.
● Select three-four terms/ concepts, theoretical perspectives from the course that you can
use information from the film as examples in your analysis.
○ How are these concepts displayed in the Media?
○ How does this media help us to understand these topics?
● Include a definition of the term/ concept prior to giving examples of that term. Make
reference to how your examples are reflections of that term.
● Each paragraph should be dedicated to evaluating a specific term/ concept.
● Is there a sociological perspective (Structural Functionalism, Conflict, or Symbolic
Interaction) that is best used to interpret your media?
Conclusion paragraph
● Wrap up your ideas and reiterate your thesis, without repeating yourself.
● Explain the way that applying the sociological imagination and analyzing the film through
a sociological lens changes the film for you.
● End by explaining the importance of applying the sociological imagination and using a
critical sociological lens to the everyday world.
Perspectives Defined:
1.Functionalism-approach that emphasizes the contributions made by each part of society
2.Conflict perspective-approach emphasizing the role of conflict, competition, and constraint
within society.
3.Symbolic interactionism-approach that focuses on the interactions among people based on
mutually understood symbols.
Hints:
● These papers are not expected to be “reviews” in the strictest sense, though they may
incorporate certain features of traditional analyses. Because they are “tests” of your
comprehension and mastery over theoretical principles, your papers must be analytical,
academic, and sociological.
● Technical requirements: 750-1250 words, APA format: double-spaced. proper in-text
citation of course materials is expected as well as a complete reference page.
○ Works Cited doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t using the research throughout
the paper and citing what facts you got from what sources. Use direct quotes
and or paraphrase a source but always cite at the end of the sentence.
■ Ex: “This is my sentence about the 60s culture” (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
■ Ex: 60s culture sentence in a paraphrased form (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
● Make sure to include Sociology terms and theory in your paper! Be explicit in your use of
sociology. Just mentioning a sociological concept is not enough, explain what it is and
how it fits (this is how I know you’re using the concept correctly).
● It is expected that you do outside research to respond to this prompt accurately. Make
sure that you properly cite whatever outside sources you use! Not doing so is plagiarism,
even if you do not mean it. You must cite in the BODY of the essay where you use the
information, using in text citation, AND in the references. Do not use wikipedia as a
direct source.
● When writing in an academic, objective manner, do not use the first person (I, me, my,
we, us, ours) or the second person (you). This also includes addressing the reader, since
this is the second person. For example, do not use the phrase “Consider the situation at
Burger King…”
○ In the conclusion when specifically asked how this has impacted your opinion the
use of the first person is acceptable.
● Do not “meta write,” or write about writing. For example, “I did not know what to write
about, so I searched Netflix for an hour.”
● A good analysis will:
○ Incorporate and accurately discuss the most relevant course content
○ Be well organized and articulate so that sentences are fluent (flow)
○ Be free of grammatical errors.
○ The best analyses will have a clearly stated thesis around which the entire paper
is structured and a complex argument that focuses on a specific conceptual
theme prominent in the theorist’s work.
Sociology is the study of social behaviors and their impact on society.The themes of
sociology are found in everyday culture including films.Many of the ideas we have covered in
this course have unlimited potential to speak to our contemporary world. I’m hoping that
analyzing books, films, or TV shows will be a creative and interesting way for you to synthesize,
evaluate, and apply the knowledge you have learned throughout your study of classical and
contemporary sociological theory. The analysis can also allow us to assess the continued
relevance of these theories as we watch representations of social phenomena come alive.
Students will analyze the contents for specific sociological perspectives and examples. Analysis
papers are the demonstration of a student’s ability to make connections between class topics
and popular media. The goal of the analysis paper is to explain how specific sociological
elements are present in an in-depth manner. Analysis papers are NOT a summary. Examples
from the film are used to provide evidence of specific sociological factors, NOT a review. A
brief synopsis of the film may be included in the introductory paragraph
Task and Purpose:
Choose one TV show, a movie, or a book that you feel is popular and reflective of today’s
current world. You will watch/ read this media as a discerning consumer of media, critically
watching for some of the issues we have addressed in the class so far or will address in the
following chapters. Ask yourself how this reflects the sociological concepts we have covered in
relation to race, class, gender, socialization, culture, deviance, or family that we have
covered in class. Objectively describe your piece of media, and then write up your analysis in an
objective, scientific manner that both describes and analyzes using sociological theory. Be sure
to define specific concepts and describe how examples from the movie, TV show, or book
illustrate the particular concept you are discussing. Create a strong argument and structure for
your paper that applies theory.
Your discussion of examples should present a clear and concise picture of a social world that
your reader has no experience of, such that anyone reading your paper can clearly grasp your
argument and your use of the film, book, or event as an illustration.
Introduction:
● Briefly and Objectively summarize the TV show, movie or book: Describe the main
characters including demographics, their names and actions.
○ Provide enough detail to understand the comparisons you are about to make.
Assume I have not seen the media.
● Include a detailed thesis. The thesis statement must clearly identify how that particular
TV show, movie or book shows evidence of the specific concepts you will discuss. You
will identify these Sociological Concepts in the order they will appear in your paper.
Body paragraphs:
● Each paragraph will have a topic sentence and full development.
● Select three-four terms/ concepts, theoretical perspectives from the course that you can
use information from the film as examples in your analysis.
○ How are these concepts displayed in the Media?
○ How does this media help us to understand these topics?
● Include a definition of the term/ concept prior to giving examples of that term. Make
reference to how your examples are reflections of that term.
● Each paragraph should be dedicated to evaluating a specific term/ concept.
● Is there a sociological perspective (Structural Functionalism, Conflict, or Symbolic
Interaction) that is best used to interpret your media?
Conclusion paragraph
● Wrap up your ideas and reiterate your thesis, without repeating yourself.
● Explain the way that applying the sociological imagination and analyzing the film through
a sociological lens changes the film for you.
● End by explaining the importance of applying the sociological imagination and using a
critical sociological lens to the everyday world.
Perspectives Defined:
1.Functionalism-approach that emphasizes the contributions made by each part of society
2.Conflict perspective-approach emphasizing the role of conflict, competition, and constraint
within society.
3.Symbolic interactionism-approach that focuses on the interactions among people based on
mutually understood symbols.
Hints:
● These papers are not expected to be “reviews” in the strictest sense, though they may
incorporate certain features of traditional analyses. Because they are “tests” of your
comprehension and mastery over theoretical principles, your papers must be analytical,
academic, and sociological.
● Technical requirements: 750-1250 words, APA format: double-spaced. proper in-text
citation of course materials is expected as well as a complete reference page.
○ Works Cited doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t using the research throughout
the paper and citing what facts you got from what sources. Use direct quotes
and or paraphrase a source but always cite at the end of the sentence.
■ Ex: “This is my sentence about the 60s culture” (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
■ Ex: 60s culture sentence in a paraphrased form (Author’s Last Name,
page number)
● Make sure to include Sociology terms and theory in your paper! Be explicit in your use of
sociology. Just mentioning a sociological concept is not enough, explain what it is and
how it fits (this is how I know you’re using the concept correctly).
● It is expected that you do outside research to respond to this prompt accurately. Make
sure that you properly cite whatever outside sources you use! Not doing so is plagiarism,
even if you do not mean it. You must cite in the BODY of the essay where you use the
information, using in text citation, AND in the references. Do not use wikipedia as a
direct source.
● When writing in an academic, objective manner, do not use the first person (I, me, my,
we, us, ours) or the second person (you). This also includes addressing the reader, since
this is the second person. For example, do not use the phrase “Consider the situation at
Burger King…”
○ In the conclusion when specifically asked how this has impacted your opinion the
use of the first person is acceptable.
● Do not “meta write,” or write about writing. For example, “I did not know what to write
about, so I searched Netflix for an hour.”
● A good analysis will:
○ Incorporate and accurately discuss the most relevant course content
○ Be well organized and articulate so that sentences are fluent (flow)
○ Be free of grammatical errors.
○ The best analyses will have a clearly stated thesis around which the entire paper
is structured and a complex argument that focuses on a specific conceptual
theme prominent in the theorist’s work.