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The Inequalities Of Groups In Cady's Social Conflict Theory

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Social Conflict theory is a sociological theory that argues that society is made up of different groups in society that are all competing for power and scarce resources. The theory focuses on the inequalities of groups such as such as race, sex, class, and age. These inequalities may determine one's social status resulting in conflict. This theory was originally derived from Karl Marx who is considered the "father" of conflict theory. Karl Marx believed that society was made up two unequal groups of people: the people who have all of the power (haves) and the people who are striving to attain the power (have nots). Marx believed that power derived from money, and the more money one had the more control someone had. Karl Marx believed that if the lower class (have nots) would revolt against the upper class ( haves), we …show more content…

In the movie, Cady is a 16 year old girl who just moved from Africa and does not yet understand any of the social norms and the unspoken rules of the high school she moved to. On Cady's first day, she meets and befriends Janis and Damien who are both considered to be "have nots" because of inequalities such as attractiveness and sexuality. To help Cady understand how to avoid what they consider "social suicide", Janis Ian draws a map of the cafeteria that explains the difference between each social group that exists in the school. Janis Ian classifies these groups as, "You got your freshmen, ROTC guys, preps, J.V. jocks, Asian nerds, Cool Asians, Varsity jocks Unfriendly black hotties, Girls who eat their feelings, Girls who don't eat anything, Desperate wannabes, Burnouts, Sexually active band geeks, and the worst. Beware of plastics". This concept relates to social conflict theory because it is dividing each group into a social class based off of the inequalities of each group such as race, ethnicity, class, religion, and

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Karl Max developed conflict theory that suggests that people are in competition with one another over resources, power, and inequality. The criminal law aspect of the theory can be defined as a theory that assumes that society is based primarily on conflict between competing interest groups and that criminal law and the criminal justice system are used to control subordinate groups (Bohm & Haley, 2009). Examples of the competition between groups can include but not be limited to the rich against the poor, management against labor, whites against minorities, men against women, and adults against children (Bohm & Haley, 2009). Conflict theorists assert that social order is maintained by authority backed by the use of force (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2006). They assert that the privileged classes hold legal power and use the legal system to make others obey their will.

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In Mean Girls, the interaction between Cady and her new classmates implies that culture will affected the ways in which they communicate, like the power distances between the different cliques. American high school is a high power distance culture because some cliques are given higher power than other cliques based off of certain personalities and characteristics. For example, all of the power is concentrated on the plastics because of their physical attractiveness and wealth, resulting in the rest of their peers treating them as if they are royalty. This gives the plastics the opportunity to hold a dominance over the rest of the cliques. Beneath them may be the Jocks, then the JV jocks, and then the preps and so on and so forth.

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In the 1940s and the 1950s the conflict theory was ignored because sociologist thought it was solely economic. Today, sociologists see that conflict is found between many different groups in society. (Crossman) According to the conflict theory, inequality is the result of those who are wealthy, typically those in the upper one percent, which impose their mode of social order on the rest of the general society. In result, society is constantly competing for limited resources.

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Journal Entry #3 Conflict Theory and Mean Girls The conflict theory is a theory suggested by Karl Marx, and this theory claims that conflicts will happen when status, and power are unevenly distributed between the groups in society. With the conflict theory it has two primary classes. The bourgeoisie who represents the people in society who have the wealth, and the proletariat the people in society who are considered to be the poor, working class people. A perfect example of the conflict theory would be from the movie “Mean Girls.”

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The film Mean Girls is an American comedy movie for teens that illustrates the mainstream high school experience in the west. The main character, Cady Heron is a sixteen-year-old girl who is a new student at bob school in Illinois. Cady moved from being home-schooled in Africa, and therefore is unaware of the environment and lifestyle at a public high school. Cady then meets Daemon and Janis, who are part of an outcast group. Janis and Damien expose Cady to the norms of their school, talking her through cliques, and most importantly introducing her to “the plastics”, a group that Janis and Damian hated.

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In the movie Mean Girls, Cady Heron was an innocent homeschooled girl that grew up in Africa and who recently moved to Illinois with her parents. Cady started attending public school since her parents wanted her to socialize. She became friends with Damian and Janis; they taught her everything she needed to know about the ‘plastics’. Regina George, Gretchen and Karen were part of the plastics (a clique of girls who were incredibly popular in high school). Regina is known for being arrogant and manipulative with her friends and parents; she always received what she wanted.

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The two compiled a map of North Shore High and how Cady will survive it. A big part of the map was the cafeteria and where all the different cliques sat. Cady was warned about a certain clique called “the Plastics”, she was told they are the worst people she would ever meet. The Plastics are the popular clique at Cady’s new

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There is no doubt that the film Mean Girls is full of conflict. Director Mark Waters did an excellent job at presenting how conflict can transpire and spread between females. The conflict that occurs in Mean Girls can easily be seen through the main characters Cady and Regina, however, conflict does not only takes place between the two of them but the entire school as well. Conflicts that arise throughout this film can be explained through power and power currencies, conflict styles and tactics, assumptions and triggering events, and forgiveness and reconciliation. Each conflict allows there to be understanding as to why the conflict took place and how it got as destructive as it did.

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Home assignment #3 Educational system reflect social inequalities. And my analysis include sociological conflict theory like a key. And economical factor that affect educational, professional and social progression. Social conflict theory sees social life as a competition and focuses on the distribution of resources, power, and inequality. Social conflict theory is a macro-oriented paradigm in sociology that views society as an arena of inequality that generates conflict and social change.

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Marx believed that the class struggle forced social change. Marx’s theory is based on a class system

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In the following, I will use the conflict theory, which operates on the macro-level, as well as the symbolic interactionist theory, which focuses on the micro-scale of society, to explain the influence of globalization and the associated phenomena of inequality and conflict on the individual and society. The conflict theory approaches society on the macro-level. It was established by Karl Marx, who believed that social conflict stands at the center of sociocultural realities. His evolutionary theory came to be known as one of the most significant early contributions to sociology. Marx emphasizes the idea that “society is based on the struggle for scarce resources” (Module 1, 2015) and asserts that inequality and unequal conditions set forth forces that may end in conflict, which in turn contributes to change.

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Class conflict, Marx believed, was what encouraged the evolution of society. To quote Marx himself, The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one

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Conflict theory states that tensions and conflicts arise when resources, status, and power are unevenly distributed between groups in society and that these conflicts become the engine for social change. In this context, Marx’s conflict approach was developed in 19th century by Karl Marx (1818-83) .Marx argued wealth and power were unequally distributed in society and sought to explain how one minority group (1% ruling-class) in society maintained its dominance over the majority (working-class). Weber formulated a response to Marx’s theory. Weber saw that conflict didn’t overwhelmingly involve the economy, but that the state and economy together set up conditions for conflict. In this essay I will discuss the views of Conflict Theorists on

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