Sociological Perspective (Essay #2)

Sociological Perspective
Name
Institution
Sociological Perspective
The twentieth century was characterized by many notable events that left a mark in political, economic and social structure of nations, around the world. These events happened on the period dated January 1, 1901 and ended on December 31, 2000 (Goloboy, 2008). Among the most memorable events that left an impact in the sociological structure is war, industrialization, immigration and technological innovations. These events, with their impacts, have helped prepare for the twenty-first century.
War has sadly been the most prominent occurrence of the twentieth century affecting the world. The First and Second World Wars had profound social effects. Soldier’s deployment to foreign lands and subjection to harsh environments during the war meant exposure to diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis. Veterans also suffered psychological effects from the war. Mortality rates increased and the men who were the casualties of the war left their women as the breadwinners (Cook, n.d.). Interaction through war also saw to the adaptation of new skills and increased competency in English language. The roles of women took a turn with most seeking employment to cater for families. They ventured into industrial jobs, which gave them an experience of the independence breaking the traditional perception of a woman's place in the society, and this encouraged numerous women to seek social equality (Cook, n.d.). Intermarriages between visiting servicemen and the local women were common and with this came the prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases. Sporting events such as boxing matches offered another opportunity for social interaction and cultural exchanges. This was also the period of the baby boom as birth rates increased with the birth of 76 million ‘baby boomers following the servicemen return at the end of the war (Cook, n.d.). The war was an important event in the past century because it is responsible for the large-scale entrance of women to the workforce
Global industrialization has been evident in the twentieth century, as countries all over the world have become industrialized. This has helped increase employment by creating job opportunities. Employment has also affected and improved the living standards of the people. It has also resulted in urbanization as people move into the cities near the factories that they work in. This consequently brings the outcome of regional imbalance as cities become over populated due to rural- urban migration (Goloboy, 2008). General health has improved in most countries due to accessibility of hospitals and increased incomes making health care affordable. The growth of manufacturing companies has allowed cities to flourish and greatly influenced improvement of infrastructure in the world due to the need of transportation of products. Some of the negative effects include impacts on the environment as increase in factories has led to its pollution and congestion in cities. Industrialization has also been responsible for women rights. This is as a result of their contribution in labor unions where they pushed for better working conditions. Women workers in cities are also exposed to education as they learned to be self-sufficient and independent. They began to prioritize education and work over marriage because they had less pounding pressure to get married for support or social status. Industrialization was also responsible for the amendment that gave women the right to vote creating equality. Industrialization is an important change in the past century since it encouraged global competition and ensured good quality of products and fair pricing of goods due to mass scale production of goods (Goloboy, 2008).
Immigration has prevalence in the twentieth century as most people moved for various reasons including searching for new opportunities, advancing in education and job transfers. Immigration leads to occupational division of labor and displacement of jobs (Macdonald and Sampson, 2012). Immigration has greatly affected people’s culture where some cultures have been dropped while others have emerged. The scope of interaction and socialization process has expanded and this has given rise to multiculturalism. Immigration is associated with social ills, although it is believed to lessen crime and drop in concentrated poverty. Immigration has in the past century resulted in intermarriages and largely been responsible for creating peace and harmony among nations, ensuri...