Sociological Imagination Analysis

In the introduction of the “The Sociological Imagination”, Charles Wright Mills’ discusses the importance of the intricate relationship between private matters and public issues as well as the changing role of sociology within the social sciences.

He defines the Sociological Imagination as a way for “us to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society” (C Wright Mills 1959, p. 6). Expanding on the idea that by living, we contribute to the way society is shaped even when we ourselves are a product of that same society.
- He believes that the sociological imagination can act as the new common denominator in society as it can provide the basis of knowledge and understanding that the rigid form of physical sciences …show more content…
4). He intends to prove that it is necessary for individuals and social analysists to accept the sociological imagination because they are often the reciprocate of social changes and without that understanding it often leads to deeper troubles of alienation within an ever-changing society. Through this idea, individuals become aware of their role in the sociological imagination which can empower them through their own agency and give them comfort in knowing that their own private issues are tied to a societal system instead of an individual flaw. Additionally, individuals become aware of the influence that social pressures have upon their own decisions and ambitions. For example, women in developed countries have less children than those in developing countries and although this seems like an individual decision, it is in fact shaped by the society she lives in.

Lastly, C Wright Mills expands onto the important role of sociologists within social science. He analyses that people “yearn for facts, they search for their meanings, they want `a big picture' in which they can believe and within which they can come to understand themselves” (C Wright Mills 1959, p.17).
- People have begun to move away from gaining knowledge from contemporary literature and has instead turned to social and historical reality because it gives them secure and factual knowledge, in which his purpose is to show that social science can change people’s perception of the world and how they can perceive their own

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