- In your opinion, is America great in comparison to other nations?
- Did you agree with the author's examples of what makes us unique? Explain why or why not.
- Do you feel that the author left out any examples of American exceptionalism that you would have included?
- In what ways does this article demonstrate the sociological perspective?
- Why does D'Souza so easily utilize the sociological perspective when describing our society (why might it be easier for him than for you)?
Monday, October 5, 2015
Due Thursday, October 8, 2015
Read the article, What's So Great About America and respond to the following in a well organized essay (2 page minimum):
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ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I do believe America is great compared to other countries. In America, you have the freedom to choose the life you decide to live. You are allowed and encouraged to create your own destiny. That is the type of freedom you are naturally given in America. In other countries like India, your life is already pretty much planned out for you when you're born. Chances are you’ll have the same job as your parents when you grow up and will marry someone with the same religious and cultural ties as you. This is how life is in India. I agree with the author’s examples of what makes us unique. Yes, we have a lot of freedom in America and in some other countries, they aren’t granted half the freedom we have. However, the ways these other countries live are their culture and the way they were brought up to live. One unique example the author used which I felt was a critical part is how America acts in war. America doesn’t shoot to kill innocent civilians, they only try to target specific war zones. They also dropped food out of airplanes for the innocent and hungry. You don’t hear of any other countries doing this. America has a good reputation when it comes to fighting and has for a long time. I feel that the author covered American exceptionalism very well. One thing that he left out is that all religions and race are allowed in America. It doesn’t matter if you're Jewish, Christian, or don’t practice a religion, everyone has the same right and is treated the same in America. This article demonstrates the sociological perspective by showing how people get along with each other and don’t abuse their freedom and everyone is living peacefully. The society people live in plays a big role on how the people act. If people are being overpowered by the government then they aren’t going to be as happy since they are basically being ruled. However, if the government doesn’t abuse their power, and keeps everything under control, then the people in the society will be much happier and everything will go smoothly. D’Souza easily utilizes the sociological perspective in our society because he came from India which is a totally different place to live than America. He got to witness two different types of lifestyles and be around two different societies of people. He got to see how each society, acted and lived. America, to him, was a much better lifestyle with way more opportunities provided than India. In India, your whole life is pretty much planned for you when you are born. You don’t have the freedom to choose your destiny in life. D’Souza’s life in India was not bad by any means, he grew up with both parents, and had some money. They weren’t rich but they had money to get through. D’Souza went to Arizona and Dartmouth College. He became a writer which is something you can do in America but is hard to do in India. He then became a senior domestic policy analyst and worked in the White House and then met his future wife around that time. D’Souza was African American and it goes to show that no matter, your skin color, you are treated the same as everyone else in America. Everyone is treated equally and have the same rights. D’Souza would have never had these amazing opportunities if he stayed in India and never moved to America.