“It is the political task of the social scientist — as of any liberal educator — continually to translate personal troubles into public issues, and public issues into the terms of their human meaning for a variety of individuals. It is his task to display in his work — and, as an educator, in his life as well — this kind of sociological imagination. And it is his purpose to cultivate such habits of mind among the men and women who are publicly exposed to him. To secure these ends is to secure reason and individuality, and to make these the predominant values of a democratic society.” MenMindHumansWellsKindEndsReasonPoliticalPurposeValuesIndividualSocialTermImaginationIssuesTroubleHe ManHabitMen And WomenTasksScientistDemocraticIndividualitySecureVarietyExposedDisplayTranslateEducatorDemocratic SocietySociologicalHabits Of Mind Book:The Sociological Imagination Source: The Sociological Imagination
“Fashion is primitive in its insistence on exhibitionism, which withers in isolation. The catwalk fashion show with its incandescent hype is its apotheosis. A ritualized gathering of connoiseurs and the spoilt at a spotlit parade of snazzy pulchritude, it is an industrialized version of the pagan festivals of renewal. At the end of each seasonal display, a priesthood is enjoined to carry news of the omens to the masses.” EndsShowsFashionNewsMassVersionsIsolationDisplayPrimitiveGatheringFestivalsRenewalHypePaganParadesPriesthoodInsistenceOmenFashion ShowSpoiltCatwalkExhibitionismApotheosis Author:Stephen Bayley
“Was it possible that a bustling display of energy might only be a camouflage for a spiritual vacuum? The thought so impressed me that I mentioned it next day to the French purser, at whose table I was sitting. He nodded his agreement. "Stevenson is right," he said. "Indeed, if you will pardon my saying so, the idea applies particularly to you Americans. A lot of your countrymen keep so busy getting things done that they reach the end of their lives without ever having lived at all."” IfsSaidIdeasEndsDoneMightSpiritualNextEnergySittingTablesBusyAgreementDisplayImpressedNext DayPardonVacuumsThings DoneCountrymenGetting Things DoneCamouflage Author:Arthur Gordon Webster
“Traveling across the United States, it's easy to see why Americans are often thought of as stupid. At the San Diego Zoo, right near the primate habitats, there's a display featuring half a dozen life-size gorillas made out of bronze. Posted nearby is a sign reading CAUTION: GORILLA STATUES MAY BE HOT. Everywhere you turn, the obvious is being stated. CANNON MAY BE LOUD. MOVING SIDEWALK IS ABOUT TO END. To people who don't run around suing one another, such signs suggest a crippling lack of intelligence.” PeopleMayMadeEndsStatesRunningAmericaMovingTurnsReadingEasyUnitedHalfUnited StatesStupidHotSizeObviousLoudDozenDisplayCautionStatuesZoosSidewalkHabitatCannonsBronzePrimatesGorillasSan DiegoSuingLife Size Book:Me Talk Pretty One Day Source: Me Talk Pretty One Day