Personal Narrative: Social Imagination

Over the last fifteen years, I have grown mentally and socially. I credit my growth to my ability to analyze and understand the world for what it is. Social imagination is the use of information to understand the world and ourselves for who we are. Possessing the quality of mind that can develop reason and the capacity to shift perspectives are the basis of social imagination (Mills 2000). As I mentioned in reflection one, I came to realize that my way of thinking is what helped me overcome living a poor lifestyle. Understanding social imagination means understanding yourself; being aware of factors that give to your personal history and having the ability to develop reason to understand the world better. The fresh fruit of social imagination

It took roughly five years for me to overcome my troubles and deal with the issues that had a hold on me, the “fruitful distinction that's the essential tool of social imagination” (Mills 2000:11). My troubles at that time were based on thinking that I needed a certain amount of money and a degree to before I could leave. Additionally, I had to deal with the fear of letting go of people who had a negative impact on my life (this turned out to be the hardest of my troubles). Most of my troubles and issues remained through my early motherhood stage, and they were never truly handled when I left. I was at a point in my life where I was tired of just being. I was tired of being the one people turned to; tired of being in the mix of alcohol and drugs, I was just tired of being in that lifestyle. When I finally left, I had a couple of hundred dollars and a cosmetologist

It feels good to know that I have not fully limited myself and my thinking to that of a trapped person. According to Mills (2000), a trapped mind does not have the quality of mind essential to grasp the exchange of man and society, nor the biography and history of one’s self or the world. Writing this essay was great for me internally and was needed for me understand that social imagination is an important to personal growth. I now understand that one must have a social imagination to evolve with the changing times of this world; to understand structures of society, to deal with personal troubles, but more importantly, to break the cycle of disadvantage. For me, this means breaking the cycle of poor mindsets and lifestyles within my