SOC100H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Ethnocentrism, History Of The Jews In Europe, Symbolic Interactionism

• School: UTM
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC100H5
• Professor: Jayne Baker

Document Summary

Race: a social construct used to distinguish people in terms of one or more physical markers, usually with profound effects on their lives. (brym and lie 2012: 145) Reflection of what we know from geneticists of race and sociologists who study race. Social construct: an idea or concept that has emerged from society. Race is an idea, a construct (symbolic interactionist perspective) An idea that there is a profound effect on individual s lives. An idea of looking at individual and making meaning (people derive meaning from physical markers) All evidence suggests there is no biological component to what we think of race. There is a belief that skills and performance skills are different with each race. There are no genetic markers to define race. Race is not linked to biology but an idea prescribed to biology. Because we live in a racialized society, we have a history of searching for racial differences and attributing performance differences to them.