Reference no: EM133418389

Case Study: Mills distinguished between personal troubles on the one hand, and, on the other hand, social issues. For example, it is one's personal individual trouble if one develops a dependency on drugs. The cause of the dependency can be looked for in the personal sphere, such as the individual's attitude, habits or physical make-up. But it becomes a social issue once we identify that large groups of people suffer from addiction and a term such as opioid crisis starts being used. The cause of the social crisis isn't necessarily found in the personal actions and circumstances of the victims, but instead, the cause may be found in a structural or systemic issue that plagues our society and is beyond the control of the individual. Gaines' text is a clear application of Mills' description of the sociological imagination.

Questions:

1. Give ONE example that can be both a personal trouble and a social issue.

2. Describe the personal trouble and the social issue and how your examples are connected. Use the terms agency and structure in your answer.

3. Reflecting on Gaines' text, describe what is it about the society in which the four young people lived that contributed to their suicide.

3. For prompt 1 and 2 - [Do not use any of Mills' or Donna Gaines' examples such as unemployment, divorce, or teenage suicide but think of your own examples].