Sociobiography Case Study

Growing up, I had a different experience than others. I grew up as a military brat, which allowed me to move to different parts of the globe and exposed me to different cultures. I think that because I grew up with this life, it allowed me to be a part of many sociological experiences. I was born in the United States, South Dakota to be specific, and have also lived in Arizona, California, and Washington. I have also lived in two other countries, Japan and Italy. Of course living in another country comes with the culture shock. I moved to Italy in 2000 so the memories are not as fresh as they used to be in my head. But I can remember my first experiences when I first got there. I remember waking up at abnormal hours in the middle of night because of jet lag. We stayed above a restaurant, which is where my real Italian food experience came from. To this day, no Italian food restaurant in the United States can compare to the taste and authenticity of the food in Italy.

When I have to compare the time I spent there in a sociological perspective, I would compare it to an interactionist and functionalist perspective. It would be interactionist because symbols are used everywhere. Whether it had to do with sports, nationality, or government, if you spent enough time in the area you became acquainted with these symbols whether you were American or Italian. The functionalist perspective is valid here because where I lived was a not a big city, so because it is a military city, it relies on its military community to contribute to its economy by visiting its stores and eating at their restaurants. It creates a closer and good standing relationship with the military families who live there with the people who are native to the country. In Japan, you could compare the same perspectives. But in terms of similarities, the cultures were completely different. Instead of visiting the swap meets or street markets in Italy, you would go to the fish mart or some kind of festival that was going on in Japan. I think that Japan’s culture is a lot more visible than anywhere I have seen before.

Though the relationship with the military in the area is good, they are a lot stricter with the consequences. For example, if you happened to get into a car accident and fluid from the car such as oil got into a farm field, the person in the accident would have to compensate the farmers for their crops until their field was pure again. Also, there is no 100% fault in a car accident, so you also want to remain more aware while driving. Sociology is part of everyone’s daily routine, whether they realize it or not. It could be getting ready for you day on the news, or driving on your way to work, it could simply be the exchange of currency for money to get your morning coffee, to running through the drive thru on your way home from work. I have only just begun in how to identify current sociological patterns that happen around me, but as my studies continue I hope to be able to learn more about them and what else the world has to teach me.