Meme and Explanation

Meme For Chapter Four

This meme illustrates habituation, as itinfluences gender roles and status in society. Habituation is the frequent repetition of action until it becomes a pattern performed effortlessly and in the same manner (Griffiths, et al. 85). This meme shows how gender roles and status have been defined in society through habituation, in that women have traditionally worked on domestic roles such as cooking and cleaning. On the other hand, men have been dishabituated with domestic roles, including cooking. Society deems cooking as a habit that does not suit men as it does for women. In addition, habituation ascribes roles and status to people based on their biological appearance, where they come from, and whom they relate with.

For instance, it is almost obvious, or a habit that a big brother tends to be protective of his sister, a host in a party tends to provide drinks, and so on. It is a concept in social construction, where reality – societal standards, are shaped by human actions (Griffiths, et al. 85). Those who fail to conform with society standards, or rather the habituation, usually face role conflict. According to Griffiths et al., “role conflict when one or more roles are contradictory” (86). That is why in the meme, the man (bro) cooking is insinuated as someone who is suffering because he is cooking. Society expects him to marry a woman (her) who ascribes the role of cooking to reduce his suffering since that is what generations before him have been doing.

Meme For Chapter Seven

This meme concerns the power elites, who, according to Griffiths et al., are “a small group of wealthy and influential people at the top of society who hold power and resources” (140). The meme stereotypes rich politicians as not corrupt, which on the flip side regards economically underprivileged people or non-elites as prone to stealing public funds. According to Griffiths et al., “crime is often associated with the underprivileged” (140). This is a consequence of power elitism, where the societal standards are flawed to favor a small portion of the population, often the elites, such that they are favored and compared to the majority non-elites. These observations follow the popular saying that “the rich get richer, the poor get into prisons.” Power elitism also happens because the rich have resources to conceal their bad actions, such that they can go a long way with criminal activities unnoticed compared to the poor.

That is why the meme suggests that society should elect rich politicians because they will not embezzle funds. From a conflict theory perspective, the criminal deeds by the power elites are concealed because, in most cases, they are the lawmakers. They can manipulate such laws to favor them and allow getaways with bad and punishable actions. According to Griffiths et al., “the rules of society are stacked in favor of a privileged few who manipulate them to stay on top” (140). The manipulation of laws by power elites results in an “imbalance based on class power,” which in the end affects the delivery of services in the criminal justice system. The crime and social class have been evident in the US for many years but was most pronounced in the 1980s when Blacks were profiled in the crackdown for cocaine. According to Griffiths et al.(140), police seemed to use more force when arresting blacks who used crack than whites who used cocaine (both are cocaine in different forms). It reveals that an individual’s socioeconomic status, to an extent, defines their relationship with the criminal justice system, such that the law is harsh on the poor (power non-elites) and lenient to the rich (power elites).

Reference Griffiths, Heather et al. Introduction To Sociology 2E. 2nd ed., Openstax – Rice University,