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Conversation 2:

Listen to a conversation between a student and her sociology professor.

Professor: So, Rhonda, I take it you wanted to talk with me about the draft of your paper? Herbert Spencer. That’s quite an ambitious subject.

Student: Well, yes, but I just…I don’t get it. I mean, I worked really hard on it, a understood his ideas pretty well.

Professor: You did. I don’t think any of my comments were directed towards your understanding of Spencer’s theories, were they?

Student: Well, maybe not. I guess. But, well, in a couple of places, you wrote “and…?”, and I guess I just don’t get what you meant.

Professor: Yeah, I should have been clearer. The thing is, it’s not so much what you included,it’s what you didn’t. I mean, basically you haven’t presented much more than what’s in the textbook. I mean, like here, ok, ideas on individualism, ideas on competition, popular early 20th century then falls out of favor. See, this is all correct, but it’s basically just a list of facts, so when I wrote “and…?”, I was asking why, why was he popular in the early 20th century? Why did he fall out of favor?

Student: See…the thing is, when you asked us to choose a sociologist to write about, well, I didn’t really know anything about any of them, so I just picked one, you know, and then I got to reading about his theories and well, I realized I don’t agree with a lot of them, but I was trying really hard not to let that show in my paper, you know, to be objective and all.

Professor: Ah, well, perhaps you are trying a little too hard. Being objective doesn’t mean you are not allowed to be critical.

Student: Oh, okay.

Professor: There’s no requirement that you agree with what Spencer says. In fact, I want you to think critically.

Student: Oh, I do. I just…I mean, I didn’t want to politicize everything, you know.

Professor: But you don’t have to to make a point. A better way to go about it is to provide a little historical perspective. Look. What were the two questions I asked you just a minute ago?

Student: Why was he popular and then became unpopular?

Professor: Exactly. See, in any field, particularly the social sciences, people, theories, they come and go. And there’ll always be people who agree with them and people who don’t.

Student: Okay. So you mean I should like incorporate other people’s reactions to Spencer’s theories? Like what was it about the early 20th century that made a lot of people go along with them and what changed later on?

Professor: That’s it. It’ll help your audience get a handle on Spencer’s ideas, which were pretty complex. Plus it provides a kind of framework in which you can present your own point of view. You can’t very well take sides or expect your audience to if you haven’t presented those sides.

at exhibit.

Student: You’d go? Ah, that’ll be great!