Academic Authorings: sociology

Showing posts with label sociology. Show all posts

Friday, April 15, 2011

Labor Relations: Giant, Safeway Joint Union Labor, Contract Negotiations

As the case would have it, the Safeway and Giant food employees are part of the same union, the United Food and Commercial Workers. Every four years, a new labor and benefits contract must be negotiated between the Union and the Safeway and Giant executives. The sign advertising for part-time workers, I came to realize, was for ‘just-in-case’ peace of mind whereby if a new labor contract wasn’t settled upon quickly, an army of temporary workers would be available to fill the place of the full-time store workers who would be on strike. What ultimately happened was that a new contract was settled upon with relative ease, and all the affected grocery stores opened back up right on schedule. Hence, any potential temporary workers never saw a minute of floor time.
As far as the new labor contract goes, Safeway and Giant workers must pay a greater healthcare deductible ($300 vs. $200), and must pay $15 per week to receive full health care coverage for their entire family, beyond the deductible. On the contrary, starting salaries and yearly raises for all job taxonomies increased (“Safeway, Giant Workers Ratify New Contract”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/ article/2008/04/01/AR2008040101060.html).
Analysis
The fact that there is a labor dispute or contract negotiation at all is evidence of some class conflict. In quite a classic example, the interests of the grocery store workers are at odds with those of the grocery store owners. The existence of a labor contract in the first place is clear proof of a capitalistic arrangement, for capitalism is “a configuration characterized by the exploitation of the many for the benefit of the few,” and is described as “the drive for wealth through ever-expanding profit by the owner class” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 5). What the Safeway/Giant executives, the owners, seek to achieve with each labor contract renegotiation is a trimming of costs for the sole purpose of improving the company’s bottom line. The conflict of interest is that the workers seek to earn higher wages and more comprehensive fringe benefits, such as healthcare. Life experience, both from an individual and societal perspective, for these two groups (the workers and the owners), therefore, is shaped evidently by “the power relation among groups,” as Africana theory points out (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2).
In the above context, hiring a stash of temporary workers in the event of a true labor dispute, therefore, seems like a criminal act. Pat and Jill describe this “reserve army of labor” as a means by which the owners can “keep the price of labor down” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 6). It is obvious that the wages and fringe benefits combined that Safeway/Giant workers earn presently amount to more than $12 per hour for each worker, which is why paying temporary workers $12 per hour is actually a short-term bargain for these major grocery chains which consume over 50% of the grocery foods market in this region (“Safeway, Giant Workers Ratify New Contract”).
I spoke to a Giant Food worker named Charlie who told me about his involvement in the Union’s negotiation process. He insisted that the topics on the table in the upcoming contract negotiation (healthcare and wages) were of particular importance to him, and he told me several stories about friends of his who had become ill and relied on the healthcare insurance that they received from Giant Food to survive for years while coping with their illness. When I asked what motivated him to get involved, he named three sources: 1) Seeing his friends and their families suffer from a major illness and bump up against their Giant Food healthcare insurance cap, 2) Having to cope with meager annual pay raises, and 3) The movie John Q. This clearly is a man who Marx would have been proud. Charlie’s efforts to advocate on the behalf of his fellow workers and friends are an attempt to reduce the alienation that Safeway/Giant store workers face as a whole. Essentially, he is attempting to enhance the cooperative experience that the entire group must endure on a daily basis by improving home life via better fringe benefits. All of this, ultimately, seeks to reach the one end that Marx and Gilman consider the resting point of all society: the joy of collective work or of work in general.
Conclusion
While management-union disputes seem to have evolved into a social fact as a result of their frequency, it is clear that a level of equilibrium still has yet to be reached. Most obviously, Safeway and Giant executives announce this disparity with huge signs advertising for part-time workers to undercut the ordinary staff that may, heaven forbid, want a little something more. Africana theory describes “equilibrium” as “the healthy relationship between power and difference in which groups are relatively equally empowered and the interaction among them is marked by negotiation rather than domination” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2). The latter half of this paradigm seems to be upheld, for the existence of the union as a voice for the workers ensures negotiation rather than total domination. On the contrary though, both groups are not equally empowered. The Safeway/Giant management still wields the power to hire temporary workers to take the place of full-time workers in the event of a strike. In essence, the grocery companies, to an extent, can afford not to agree to a new labor contract. This kind of action would put full-time workers, the ones who need their salary, out of work until it hurt so much that they had to give in eventually. Thus, equilibrium clearly has yet to be reached.
To create a level playing field between the union and the grocery chain executives, an enhanced set of rules or codified law would need to be written. Specifically, an effective document would disallow Safeway/Giant from hiring temporary workers in the event of a labor dispute. The idea behind a strike is to hurt a company into giving its workers what they want. If Safeway/Giant can hire temporary workers to fill the places of striking employees, then clearly the grocery chains exert greater power, and distresses equilibrium. Only when the workers act collectively to preserve their jobs and their livelihood, will a true balance of “power and difference” be closer at hand (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2)

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Mui, Ylan Q. "Safeway, Giant Workers Ratify New Contract." The Washington Post. 2 Apr. 2008. 30 Apr. 2008 .

Responses by Sociological Theorists to the Film Maxed Out

Critical Social Thought and the Film Waitress

Critical Social Thought and Waitress
Waitress is a 2007 film that focuses on the life of a small-town diner waitress named Jenna. Working at Joe’s Pie Diner, Jenna is an artistic pie guru, making new, original pies daily from scratch. Simultaneously, she is controlled and manipulated by her deadbeat husband, Earl. While Jenna is trying to save up enough money to run away from Earl, she discovers that she is pregnant. An affair with her doctor, a married man, quickly complicates her life even further as the film explores countless themes central to the world of critical social thought. I will explore the themes of critical social thought, seeing-through, cause for justice, and cause for change, while addressing the filmmakers’ intentions with the film.
Seeing-through, formulating a principle of justice, and strategizing for change.
To begin, Jenna and her fellow waitresses view the world from a Marxian standpoint in that work equals money, equals life. They believe that they live in an unfair world where, as waitresses, they’re forced to work their feet off for mediocre pay, just to stay alive through the purchase of commodities. The interests of the diner’s owner, in this case, are at odds with those of the diner’s waitresses who would prefer better working conditions, greater compensation, and more dignity. Jenna develops dreams of opening her own pie shop, and winning a small fortune in the regional pie baking contest. In the southern US, where the film is set, Jenna’s husband Earl maintains an archaic mindset that socially places men above women. This macrosocial identity that Earl grew up with shapes his microsocial interactions with his wife, and propels him to treat her as a lesser being. Seeing through the perspective of Jenna brings to light the macro structure that helps shape the social world she faces: the status-role.
Earl became a different person after he married Jenna, and at one point in the film his fear of being alone emerges as he tells Jenna, “you’re the only person to ever belong to me” (Waitress, Jeremy Sisto). Earl forces his wife to have sex with him and to prepare his dinner for him. He rationalizes that Jenna needs to “treat him like a man” each night because he provides her with everything she needs, such as clothes, food, and shelter, despite the fact that she works full time and that he takes her paycheck from her each week to do with as he pleases (Sisto). His true insecurity emerges when he discovers that his wife is pregnant, and forces her to promise him that she will always love him first, and the baby second, all the while proclaiming that jealousy is below him. These are just a few examples of the expectations placed on Jenna because of her position in their relationship.
Jenna’s controlling husband will not allow her to participate in any baking contests, and won’t let her drive a car, even while she’s pregnant. He does this because he doesn’t want Jenna going anywhere other than between work and home, and so he makes her take the bus. An intense hatred within Jenna continues to build as the film progresses, and as a consequence, Jenna at one point even considers selling her newborn baby for money that she can use to run away from Earl. Earl harnesses his power on the premise that he is the man in the relationship. As is the state of present sociological affairs, this premise is no longer sufficient to maintain power in a mixed-sex relationship, however Earl is able to effect his reign regardless.
Status role emerges in Waitress in another light as well, however. Once Jenna learns of her own pregnancy, she is quick to swear her waitress friends to secrecy from telling her supervisor. She expects that if her supervisor finds out that she’s pregnant, she will be fired. The expectation here is that, as a pregnant woman, Jenna won’t be able to do her job as quickly, and so the supervisor will need to satisfy the expectations of his own role by finding a replacement for her.
In essence, the producers of the film wanted to portray an image of a poor, increasingly desperate woman who is bound to relationships with both her husband and her work. Marx would have been proud of Jenna, however, for she enjoys her work, and finds joy in baking pies that all the diner’s customers can enjoy. In slight contrast to Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s standpoint that work should produce joy and independence, Jenna’s work only produces joy, and no independence. Her marriage is the limiting factor to her independence, for even her own wages are kept from her in an 1800s fashion.
The filmmakers also did justice in shedding light on the strictures that some women face in their relationships with male counterparts. The illustration of the status-role in this film was very classic, with Jenna’s husband always trying to assert his dominance and use her to make him feel more secure about himself. The producers’ real objective, though, was to emphasize the principle that all human beings should be treated with equal respect and opportunity. Near the end of the film, Jenna finds the courage to leave her husband, and her employer tells her that she can keep her job for as long as she wants. I felt the film thrust upon me the notion that Jenna shouldn’t have to be afraid to walk away from her husband, and that she shouldn’t need to worry about losing her job just because she’s become pregnant. In fact, it is these members of society that need the most care, rather than neglect as they are often served. This was the true message the filmmakers delivered, and it was done so magnificently.
A social care system similar to France’s, for example, is really what individuals like Jenna need. Working as a waitress provides her with a minuscule income, all of which she’s not even allowed to keep because her husband takes it away. Besides the physical needs necessary to the sustainability of life, Jenna also needs emotional support. With a jerk of a husband, she is deprived of the nurturing and caring experience any person needs to cope with the hard things in life. Ultimately this deprivation is what leads her to have an affair with her doctor. There exist one or two characteristics of Jenna’s life that, if removed, would make it much more bearable. Her husband is a product of American society that has gone bad, and whom cannot connect with the larger whole that follows a more social ethic. Jenna’s happiness is determined by her status-role in both her marriage and her job. The change necessary here is to eliminate the source of Jenna’s unhappiness, primarily her husband Earl. Patricia Lengermann and Gillian Niebrugge call will and desire “people’s capacity for agency, for knowing their own minds” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 3). Jenna is stuck in the rut that is the status-role, however, and cannot command her own will and desire.

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Waitress. Dir. Adrienne Shelly. Perf. Keri Russell and Sisto, Jeremy. DVD. 20th Century Fox, 2007.

Michael Moore's Film Sicko and Jane Addams, Conclusion

Conclusion
Addams would be strongly in favor of universal healthcare because it promotes a greater social ethic. Cultures, in this case the United States, tend to resist substantial changes that occur all at once. In the same way presidential hopefuls gain momentum and support, a social movement to transition America into a universal healthcare system would need to come about. With the help of politicians and other persons with power, a gradual shift toward a more equal healthcare system could begin. Firstly, I agree with Addams’ perspective on this issue because universal healthcare promotes a better social ethic. Secondly, Moore’s documentary revealed that in countries already using a universal healthcare system, healthcare is delivered just as timely and with as great or greater quality as it is here in the United States. There would unlikely be a degradation of healthcare service in this country if everyone was entitled to an equal amount of it. For these two reasons it is quite obvious that Addams would follow what is, in my opinion, the proper course of action.

References
Addams, Jane. 1902. Democracy and Social Ethics. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).

Michael Moore's Film Sicko and Jane Addams, Analysis of Social Issues

Analysis of social issues and potential change.
The vertical, social structure of stratification limits the ability of working-class and unemployed people to get adequate health care. Those who can afford adequate coverage and treatment oftentimes feel that they are doing the right thing by providing only for themselves or their family. Their belated ethics tells them to look out for number one, and in consequence, they “may...ignore duties to community, to sacrifice the rights of other people for the interests of one’s family, [and] to fail to see that one’s family can be kept safe only if one’s community, state and nation are safe” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 5). While this form of apathy or selfishness, the individual ethic, is common, it was better suited to “[an earlier] mode of societal organization of material production” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 5).
To assess the issue of healthcare, a better social ethic must be advocated. This new standard “must take account of [the] way material production is organized-which is in combination; that is, that production has been ‘socialized.’ Goods and services now produced by people working together. The complexity of relationships requires an ethic that takes account of that complexity” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 3). What simpler way is there to assess the complexity of these relationships than with a system as straightforward as universal healthcare. Equal treatment for everyone is guaranteed, regardless of any preexisting conditions, whether they be financial, social, health, or other. But, as Addams says, in order for each person to adopt a social ethic like this one “requires an expansion of [one’s] circle of caring, [the] circle for whom one feels responsible” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 4). This is necessary because the only means of achieving universal healthcare is through hiking taxes.
A strategy that Addams might suggest is the formation of a social movement. In order to attain equity, Addams keeps that “a valuable side of life pertaining to” one group of people should not be sacrificed for the benefit of another group (Jane Addams 1902: 57). Healthcare falls under Addams’ emphasis on the equality of ‘will and desire’, just one of several ‘valuable sides of life’ she identifies. Patricia Lengermann and Gillian Niebrugge call will and desire “people’s capacity for agency, for knowing their own minds” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 3). Healthcare, therefore, is an attribute of what Lengermann and Niebrugge call the “right to participate in decision making” (“Class Notes Addams,” Page 3). Many people would prefer universal healthcare over the healthcare system presently in place, and their right to participate in decision making could be emphasized through a social movement.

References
Addams, Jane. 1902. Democracy and Social Ethics. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).

Michael Moore's Film Sicko and Jane Addams, Description of Addams' Social Theory

General description of Addams’ social theory.
Addams’ social theory is comprised of many points of view, a few of which are particularly applicable to the notion of universal healthcare. First is Addams’ concept of the neighborly relation. This idea is best defined as, “the condition in which the sociologist attempts to understand a social world not as an outside observer but as a participant living side by side with the people whose lives are her or his concern” (Patricia Lengermann and Gillian Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.,” Page 1). The application of this perception is best tied into the varying concepts of belated ethics that the issue of healthcare brings out in people. Belated ethics is best defined as, “rules of right relation among people suited to an early mode of societal organization of material production and now out of harmony with the present organization” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 5). The two types of belated ethics most clung to when it comes to healthcare are the Family Claim and the Individual Ethic.
If a person works hard and earns enough money to provide for her/his own healthcare, then why, some ask, should these people need to provide any assistance to anyone else in obtaining their healthcare? The individual ethic provides a mental qualification for successful individuals who can provide for themselves, not to provide for others. Like being ethical if one care’s for one’s own self, the family claim provides that one is ethical if s/he cares for her/his own family. People who believe and act on these forms of inappropriate ethics, Addams follows, are not following the social ethic. The social ethic is achieved when “orientation to right relationship with others” is gained, assuming that “each individual actor identifies with the large, heterogeneous, even anonymous community of which he or she is a part” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Addams,” Page 4). This ethic is already followed by many countries, in terms of access to healthcare. What the United States lacks, and what Michael Moore emphasizes, is that the social ethic in this country is different, or deficient, to an extreme which limits our citizens’ abilities to see through issues to the greater good inherent in change.

References
Addams, Jane. 1902. Democracy and Social Ethics. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).

Michael Moore's Film Sicko and Jane Addams, The Situation

Addams and Sicko

II. The situation and what is taken for granted.
Moore’s documentary begins by capturing the plight faced by many American families whose occupations or finances do not afford them adequate or comprehensive health insurance. There is no universal healthcare system yet in the United States that affords each citizen the same, equal access to healthcare services. In several European countries, as well as Cuba, universal healthcare has been an integral part of the culture for over half a dozen decades. The people in these countries take for granted unlimited access to medical care and needed medications, with the added comfort of never having to worry about a bill or how they’ll pay for their care. The people in these countries grow up with the understanding that they are paying a large amount of tax money which goes to providing care for themselves and others. And, while they may take very good care of themselves, hardly ever needing to visit the doctor, they realize that there will be a time when they will need an extraordinary amount of care.
Presently in the United States, when a person with limited or no health insurance visits the doctor, they take for granted the huge bill that will soon arrive. Even people with excellent coverage can still pay high deductibles and face enormous bills if their treatment requires multiple visits (and, therefore, multiple deductible charges). In essence, the largest issue that comes about as a result of this type of healthcare/insurance system is that people cannot always afford to become healthy again. If an hourly-wage worker becomes ill, s/he is more likely to still go to work than to go to the doctor. This is because going to the doctor not only racks up a large tab, but even costs them wage money that they’re not earning because they’re at the doctor. Ultimately, a vicious cycle ensues. On the contrary, in countries with universal healthcare systems the government will work with your employer to still pay you your regular wage, in addition to providing free and unlimited healthcare. In this way, a person is not excessively burdened financially, and can afford to take time off from work to get better.

References
Addams, Jane. 1902. Democracy and Social Ethics. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).

Michael Moore's Film Sicko and Jane Addams, Introduction

Addams and Sicko
I. Brief introduction of argument.
Jane Addams believed that the defining discovery of her time was that of “the power to combine.” The most obvious illustration of “the power to combine” is seen in an assembly-line style factory in which workers combine efforts in the form of departments to more efficiently complete work. An example more applicable to the application of Addams’ theory in the context of healthcare is the power to combine and form a social movement. While social movements can be entertained by sole individuals, the changes that Michael Moore, in his documentary Sicko, advocates for the institution of US healthcare will require the concerted action of a large group of persons. Addams would support and likely lead such an organization in working toward this cause because the notion of universal healthcare in itself promotes a greater social ethic. Equally as much, it is a tirade against the practice of belated ethics, specifically the family-claim and individual ethic.

References
Addams, Jane. 1902. Democracy and Social Ethics. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press.
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams as a Critical Social Thinker, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Conclusion

Newly formed tradition in American society suggests that each person should obtain a debit card, credit card, ATM card, discount shopping card, etc. Yet, predatory and targeted marketing, like that revealed in Maxed Out, does a great job of everything but explain the fine print. Most people aren’t aware that the first time they’re late on a credit card payment, their contract gives the card company the right to raise their default interest rate to, in most cases, at least 28.99%. At that rate, a laptop computer bought on credit today, and paid in monthly installments on a minimum-wage income might never be paid off. People take care of themselves first, with food, shelter, and gas; debt payments are often the last obligation to be fit into a household’s already stretched budget.

There seems to be an overwhelming level of inequality and unfairness in the empire that is money lending. Consumer ignorance is taken advantage of regularly because there is nobody to step in and ask the hard questions. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Once people find themselves in a hole they realize they can’t dig out of, they resort to filing for bankruptcy and occasionally killing themselves. Marx suggested a violent uprising to deal with problems of this nature. Perhaps an uprising of some kind, perhaps of a more figurative kind, is what is necessary for the principal of justice at stake here to be addressed: Should lenders be allowed to take advantage of financially uneducated persons without ensuring they fully understand what it is they’re committing to? I would recommend that a commission or law-making body of some kind be tasked with addressing this issue, however this has already been done and it yielded no finite results. The reason it was unsuccessful, as Maxed Out illustrates, is because of bureaucracy. To address the issue of inequality and the absence of equilibrium with regard to the American political arena, would require an entirely separate paper.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860 – 1935), Response to Maxed Out

The principal focus of Gilman’s theory is concerned with the inequality between men and women that has evolved over time. She is in dialogue with Marx with regard to her first aphorism, that “all human beings, male or female, are capable of and need fulfillment in work” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman,” Page 1). Gilman’s second contribution to sociology, however, veers from Marx’s idea that capitalism is the root of alienation, by saying that the sexuo-economic relation is to blame for the inability of both men and women in today’s society to enjoy work to the same extent.

Finding fulfillment in work, to Gilman, is only feasible if the following two conditions are met: joy and independence (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman,” Page 2). Independence, specifically, entails the ability to consider oneself an embodied subject by thinking and acting on one’s own. Explicitly, Gilman emphasizes that a person, regardless of sex, must be able to claim their human-born right to autonomy. To deny someone that is to confiscate their livelihood, according to her.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Subsequently, Gilman names the human practice of excessive sex distinction as the culprit for the “gender division of labor” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman,” Page 2). In particular, she points out that “We are the only animal species in which the female depends on the male for food, the only animal species in which the sex-relation is also an economic relation” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman,” Page 2). While in recent years there seems to have developed a tendency away from this trend, at least in the United States, this statement almost wholly depicts the present state of global sexuo-human affairs.

The film Maxed Out illustrates this androcentric culture and its gender division of labor, and the exploitation of women therein. Historically, there have been many fewer women than men working in the finance and banking industries. Not until recently have women been able to tap into this once exclusive club, and make their impact. In the film, a woman who works at Harvard University told of an instance where she delivered a presentation which outlined the flaws of the credit lending industry at present. When asked why this system has never been fixed, a man in the back of the room answered the question instead. This man, said the Harvard employee, was clearly a man of power and high status within the banking community. He announced that the reason the credit lending industry hadn’t been fixed, is because then a large segment of lending companies’ clientele would become omitted. Essentially, this man admitted that the goal of credit card companies is in fact to exploit the weak and in doing so make the company, its stockholders, and its executives, richer. Fundamentally, the long-rewarded, stereotypical macho male persona emerged, and it clearly couples well with the opposite stereotype that women tend to be more gentle and less conniving, or at least are oppressed to the extent that that is how they appear. Historically, it seems, the opinions of women, a product of their true personalities, have been subjugated by their male counterparts, which can claim partial responsibility for the difficulty that women have faced when trying to enter the financial workforce.

Gilman stresses that each person must maintain his or her autonomy, which clearly has been denied to women in the past. At another point in the film, however, a panel of spokespersons for the financial industry delivers to Congress a presentation about why lending practices shouldn’t be changed. This is where the stereotypical personality of a woman—that being a caring, whole-hearted person—is exploited for the benefit of the credit lenders. This panel of financial representatives was mostly women, a clear contradiction of the current gender makeup of the industry. Nonetheless, these women seem to have been exploited, and their soft voices and seemingly caring demeanor made all the difference in Congress’s decision to side in favor of the major lending companies. Gilman’s point that society has been developed for the benefit of men and for the denial of female autonomy still holds true today, it appears.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response

Africana Theorists: Anna Julia Cooper (1858 – 1964), Ida B. Wells-Barnett (1862 – 1931), W.E.B. DuBois (1868 – 1963); Response to Maxed Out

Africana theory, while the product of several contributors, is firmly seated in the concept of equilibrium. Defined, equilibrium is “the healthy relationship between power and difference” of opposing groups, and is marked particularly by the presence of negotiation and equal empowerment (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2). Put plainly, this means that when two parties come to the table, it cannot be predicted ahead of time with reasonable certainty who is likely to come out on top. Africana theory attempts to frame all interactions between owners and workers in the context that “society and individual life experience is shaped by the power relation among groups” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2).

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Within the context of Maxed Out, there is clearly no equilibrium to be found, whatsoever. Power changes hands often between groups involved with lending and owing. When a person goes into major debt, there seems at first to be nothing that he or she can do to relieve their problem. As soon as it appears that the lending companies have gotten an unbreakable, perpetual hold on a debtor, he or she can file for bankruptcy and all at once every bit of power has been transferred to the other side of the table. With so little consistency, and rampant legal and practical loopholes, it seems that a striking blow to equilibrium is just around any corner. Maxed Out, itself, is a small attempt aimed at achieving equilibrium.

A breakdown of what is considered the four power resources that affect outcomes offers further insight. 1) Access to material goods: The lending companies have access to vast amounts of cash, teams of attorneys, and even the belongings which debtors have purchased on and off credit, including any collateral. 2) Control of ideas and definitions (ideology): While either party can claim to know what is right, the rules and regulations that govern any relationship between debtor and lender are the sole discretion of the lender. 3) Control of interactional norms and behaviors (manners): The norm is for a consumer to use a credit card, then pay the monthly resulting bill, or a portion of it; however this is where a debtor begins to have some discretion because he or she can choose not to pay the bill. 4) Passion or emotion: When a debtor beings to feel the pressure or potentially other serious psychological consequences or amassing debt, he or she actually has more discretionary will power in this category than any other (For power resource titles (1-4): Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 2). In some cases, as was shown in Maxed Out, people are sometimes driven to the point of suicide. More commonly, however, consumers who haven’t previously filed for bankruptcy choose to exercise their power to take that route. Considering that each of the four points above should come close to striking even ground, there is clearly an ailing relationship between power and difference when it comes to lending companies and their patrons.

Another concept in Africana theory is that of the veil. The veil is the condition which results from a subordinates’ expectation to view the dominant world “from its margins,” while the dominants “are free to ignore all activity in the world of the subordinates” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes The Africana Theorists,” Page 3). In a sense, the borrowers in Maxed Out see bills in their mail, and the same companies on television, giving them insight into a company’s entire world. On the contrary, a lender (dominant) rarely looks into the life of a debtor (subordinate) to try to understand what conditions have made it difficult for him or her to rise from debt or pay bills on time. Even when they’re paying $2 in interest for every $1 in principal, it’s not often that the proletariat receives the luxury of an understanding bill collector.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response

Jane Addams (1860 – 1935), Response to Maxed Out

Similar to Marx, Jane Addams also sees the importance of collective work. In fact, she labels it “the distinguishing discovery of our time” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams,” Page 1). People come together in numerous ways, however, including socially. Addams outlined a number of ways people interact with each other, and how they justify their actions in doing so. These societal standards or modes of individual behavior are referred to as ethics. When combining collective work and ethics, Addams’ true focus is best summarized as “the ongoing adjustment between the organization of production and the organization of ethical codes governing social interaction” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams,” Page 1).

One exemplar of ethics is the social ethic. The social ethic refers to a person’s ability to feel “orientation to right relationship with others,” but based on the assumption that “each individual actor identifies with the large, heterogeneous, even anonymous community of which he or she is a part” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams,” Page 4). The social ethic requires people to possess a desire for heterogeneous culture and a willingness to act in order to make it a reality. As such, this is a particularly important concept in the realm of lending and borrowing, predominantly with regard to the notion of responsibility. Just as important, though, is the neighborly relation, or the means by which Addams insists a point of view must be obtained in order for a person to fully comprehend the situation and act accordingly. The idea of the neighborly relation is summarized by Pat and Jill as “the condition in which the sociologist attempts to understand a social world not as an outside observer but as a participant living side by side with the people whose lives are her or his concern” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams,” Page 1).

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Beginning with Addams’ notion of the neighborly relation, one need not look too hard at Maxed Out to see a perfect example. Through the film, several young men and a young lady, all employees of a debt-purchasing, pioneer company, talk about their jobs as debt collectors. They describe the thrill or rush that comes as a result of successfully collecting. Addams might be proud that these people are able to find joy in their collective endeavor to collect debt, however she wouldn’t be particularly fond of the means by which they go about getting it. These debt collectors call not only the debtor, but that person’s family, friends, and co-workers, and harass each one in an attempt to embarrass the debtor to enough of an extent that they will finally be guilted into beginning to pay their bill.

There is an inconsistency with this method of collecting, though. The debt collectors are for the most part not people who are in debt themselves. And in fact, most of them probably don’t understand how it feels to have massive debt riding on their shoulders. Yet, they call up the poor Proletarians and make their life hell. An older person’s chemotherapy could be the cause of their indebtedness, and yet despite their clear inability to pay, they may receive obscene, threatening phone calls at all hours of the day. From Addams’ perspective, the debt collectors shouldn’t harass or point fingers until they themselves are in the same position. In order to fulfill the neighborly relation, both the debtor and the collector must be on the same level. Most debt collectors might be inclined to go a bit easier with future clients if they truly understand what circumstances each person faces.

On the other hand, though, it could be suggested that debtors who face this terrible harassment deserve it. Addams’ social ethic cites that one’s circle of caring must expand to take into account others in the community (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Jane Addams,” Page 4). Excepting those people who, for reasons of crisis, are forced to enter into debt, people that voluntarily enter debt or practice irresponsible spending habits are in a sense negatively affecting the community around them. Once someone enters debt, they place a heavy burden not only on themselves, but on their family, friends, and co-workers. Stress, depression, and any number of other psychological phenomena can also plague an indebted person, creating even greater grief on the society as a whole. Thus a seemingly moot point is reached with Addams, for a person should not have to endure relentless taunting, but simultaneously should not consciously plunge into debt.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response

Karl Marx (1818 – 1883), Response to Maxed Out

Karl Marx explored a plethora of ideas during his time, however his main focus, and that which is most readily seen in Maxed Out, is this idea of the duality of substructure and superstructure, and its applications to capitalism. As the foremost premise, Marx believed that it was the essential nature of human beings to enjoy participating in collective work. He saw the depravity of this experience as a crime against the fundamental being of human nature.

The economic substructure, to Marx, is the defining structure of society. The economic and material relationships formed and maintained in the substructure, are what shape the superstructure, or the “secondary and dependent set of institutions and ideas” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 4). The superstructure, then, is comprised of society’s most basic institutions such as government, religion, and education. How the link between substructure and superstructure is formed then, is “through human activity as people take the formative experience of the economy into their life in the family, politics, religion, [and] education” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 5).

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

The substructure, in essence an economic foundation of society’s organization, is an economic arrangement that can take more than one form. What Marx analyzes during his lifetime is the resulting effect on the superstructure, that the substructure, when organized as capitalism, has. What Marx determines is that when capitalism is in fact the mode of substructural organization, then alienation is like to result, something he describes as “a distinctive malaise of the human personality” (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 1). Put simply, this is the inability to experience pleasurable, collective work.

Maxed Out introduces a new class of individual who has become eternally indebted to credit card companies or other lenders. These people are slaves to the monthly minimum payment they face on their enormous-and-growing liabilities. In this way, partially, the poor continuously grow poorer. In analyzing this phenomenon, it helps to take a look at the Marxist model of capitalism. That is, the Proletariat trade their commodity, that being their physical bodies and their capacity to provide labor, for money, that they then use to purchase other commodities off which to live. So what you see with the Proletariat in America is not that they have much of a problem with providing labor and receiving money for doing so. It’s that instead of only using their money to purchase other commodities off which to live, lenders have provided credit which can also be used to purchase those commodities. What ultimately happens is that the working class buys commodities on credit, but because they are on credit, they’re not truly owned by the worker. The worker owns a liability to the lending company, and if that obligation isn’t met in some small form each month, then the purchase commodities can be revoked.

Clearly, a disparity exists. From a Marxist perspective, it’s when the credit enters into the equation that a problem arises. The standard equation of capitalism is disrupted, and because capitalism is the organization of the economic substructure on which our culture operates, all other aspects of social life are affected as well. Referring back to the interrelation of substructure and superstructure, because the substructure in America is disturbed, many institutions of the superstructure are also displaced. The female debt collector depicted in Maxed Out said that, in attempting to collect on overdue bills, she often calls family members or neighbors. In this way, the institution of family is disrupted. On a separate note, the fact that many Americans borrow an exorbitant amount of money and have a difficult time repaying it puts a strain on the economy and government. Specifically, making monthly minimum payments of mostly interest serves only to make the rich richer and the poor poorer.

To complete the discussion of Marx, it’s essential to remember his assertion that, as the chief economic substructure, capitalism is the source of alienation. Alienation, he says, causes a person to become “separated from the basic qualities of humanness,” that being primarily the right to find joy in collective work (Lengermann and Niebrugge, “Class Notes Karl Marx,” Page 6). What Maxed Out does a magnificent job of illustrating is the wide-ranging effects that a capitalistic market, with predatory entities such as credit card companies, has on the ability of individuals to maintain control of their life, and live out the maxims that Marx has set down as essential to being human.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction

The film Maxed Out is a documentary by filmmaker James Scurlock that attempts to depict the present state of lending services and debt in the United States. Scurlock’s focus is not limited to any particular debt instrument, but encompasses lines of credit, mortgages, credit cards, and predatory lending practices. The purpose of the film seems to be to shed some light on the inequalities facing the American Proletariat with regard to financial instruments, debt instruments in particular. An undereducated American lower-class is being taken advantage of by major corporations, and simply because these individuals do not know any better, they are being turned into slaves, metaphorically speaking.

In essence, the United States has become a country where credit card use is a traditional practice, and going into debt is considered entirely normal. Most Americans experience at least the debt associated with a home mortgage. However, what’s being encouraged more and more in recent years is the use of credit cards. Americans are encouraged by their credit card companies, their friends, television commercials, and even the mass media which displays particular attitudes, to use their credit cards freely, and to charge even the most diminutive of expenses. Credit card use has become especially commonplace this day-and-age and Americans take that luxury for granted. In this country, it is expected that every type of expense will be charged to a credit card; in doing so, Americans expect to pay interest on the money that they borrow. What most people fail to realize, however, is the truly grandiose scale that interest payments take on in proportion to the amount of principal that they borrow. And so, some people become enslaved to the credit card companies, and must struggle each month to make the monthly minimum payments. “Where is the justice?” one might ask. What this implies, however, is that there is justice to be found, when in truth a more appropriate question is, “Is there justice?” The theories of four critical sociologists (three and one group of sociologists – Africana) will be applied to the film Maxed Out to examine the reaction each might have to the implications presented.

Other posts on sociology and Maxed Out:
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Introduction
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Jane Addams Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Karl Marx Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Africana Theorists Response
Sociological Implications of Maxed Out, Conclusion

Works Cited
Lengermann, Patricia and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. 2005. “Class Notes The Africana Theorists, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Karl Marx, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
---. 2005. “Class Notes Jane Addams, Spring 2008 American University, Washington D.C.” (https://blackboard.american.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_ 2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_43370_1%26url%3D).
Maxed Out. Dir. James Scurlock. Perf. Mark Mumma, Ronald Reagan. DVD. Magnolia, 2005.

Academic Authorings