Essay 1 asks you to use sociological perspectives and concepts in the first half

Essay 1 asks you to use sociological perspectives and concepts in the first half of the course to explore significant and specific examples from your everyday life. Essay should be at least 2000 words.
For the first essay, focus on the following themes: sociological imagination, social interaction & social self, social structure, culture & media. Key concepts include: social contexts, looking-glass self, presentation of self, labeling, collective identity, status, class, public sphere, mass and social media.
It shouldn’t be hard to think of specific examples of events, situations, experiences, stories, and observations from your everyday life. It often helps to focus on specific social contexts (e.g. classroom, workplace, or home), social interactions (e.g. with teachers, co-workers, parents or siblings), and individuals (family, friends, strangers) involved. It also helps to compare and contrast different social contexts (e.g. high school vs. EWU, past job vs. current job, your home vs. friend’s home). For example, I could write on cultural differences between my Dutch high school and American university, using concepts like sociological imagination, looking-glass self, and social construction of reality.
Write 1-2 paragraphs on each of the themes. I recommend that you start by carefully describing your everyday life example in some detail. Then consider how you initially interpreted your example before using at least 1 sociological theme and 1 relevant concept to think about your example in more depth. You might want to write 1 paragraph on your example and 1 paragraph on interpreting it with your sociological imagination per theme. Make sure that you clarify what each theme and concept mean before using it to make your argument. If you quote the text, add what it means to you in your own words.
Organize your essay with an introduction, 4 body sections, and a conclusion. Your introduction should include a general discussion of the themes and how you want to use concepts to explore examples. Body sections should first describe your example and then use a theme/concept to interpret its sociological meaning. The conclusion should briefly review main points before considering how using sociology to study everyday life has led to new insights or life lessons.