Unit 4: Community
Essential Questions: What is the relationship of the individual to the community?
Does the individual impact the community or vice versa?
You should respond to TWO posts from your classmates by 8am Thursday 1/4/18.
Essential Questions: What is the relationship of the individual to the community?
Does the individual impact the community or vice versa?
You should respond to TWO posts from your classmates by 8am Thursday 1/4/18.
1. The community is essentially a fortified castle within a sprawling, diverse kingdom. An individual can either be born into a community, or join one. They do not even have to have physical locations for gatherings. Internet forums can be communities in this sense. The community has the power to instill ethics, traditions, customs, religions, and philosophies of life into its members. They are in a way carved to the community's standards, bearing their banner of membership, whether it be the cross, the varsity letter, the t-shirt, or any other article stating allegiance to a community. Peer pressure plays a massive role, as human beings are psychologically inclined to join the group with the most resources in order to survive. Individuals may be pressured to do something against their will if it is necessary to gain acceptance into a community.
ReplyDelete2. The individual himself can bring his person-hood into the ranks of a community. The person may have his own skills to be utilized for the benefit of the others. For example, one with great musical talent can start a music tutoring program in the local library, benefiting the entire community of the town. The community can be enriched by the charisma of the individual, or be destroyed from within by a parasite.
The thing about communities is that it really is a survival of the fittest. Humans are always part of some cliques. Not to mention that if there is an understood strong leader, the individuals that make up that community may fear him or hear. You said that "peer pressure plays a massive role", and I agree because if someone goes against the established quota, the entirety of the community suffers the consequences, not individually.
DeleteMoreover, change in communities can be difficult to accept. Since they revolve around common interests, and if the majority of the interests are shared by a common group of people, it would be harder for minorities to come out. In 2017, Belleville hosted a Chinese New Year event at the town hall but attendance was low. Something new popping up would take a while to become successful.
In a community, an individual is subjected to more restriction than being a part of a society. Communities stress common interests and family-like bonds. There are virtual and physical communities. In America, there are some places you may visit or pass by and feel like you are in a different country. For example, Pennsylvania has a distinct Amish community in Lancaster county. In that area, motor horse carriages are used for transportation and lifestyles are very traditional. They do not like to be or have anything of theirs photographed without permission either.
ReplyDeleteThe bottom line is, if someone goes against the order in a community, he or she is outcasted, discarded, or disgraced. No one -- community or society-- is free. Rules will forever bind us, some less direct than others.
Influence in a community is limited to common interests. Even if he or she had some influence, it does not affect outside parties significantly. There is an understood leader. As a result, depending on what type of community it is, individuals may be influenced negatively or positively (gangs, fandoms, internet buddies, etc.) Community events are hosted to establish a societal attribute. In diverse communities, it is harder to do so because everyone is part of their own cliques.
I would like to add on your statement that people will feel different depending on where they are. Each community is special in their own way. This makes it hard for those who have to move to new homes. They are leaving behind their own community and have to adjust to a new one. Furthermore, they also hope to be accepted into their new community. People may fall in love with their new communities or eventually return to an old one.
DeleteI disagree with a community being restricting and an individual going against a community is outcasted. The individuals of a community generally have similarities, such as nationality, but the different skills each individual possesses is what makes the community prosper. If everyone in the community was exactly the same, it will be difficult for a community to function.
DeleteAlthough I agree that in a community an individual is subjected to more restriction and order, I feel as though it is up to the individual to do as they please. As much as a community plays a crucial role and support in an individual's life, it is entirely up to the individual to decide if they want the community to impact their justification and reasoning for their choices.
Delete1. An individual is bound to serve his community in any way that they physically and mentally can. Whether their task is getting a job, going to school, or cleaning up their environment, people constantly serve their community with time and a desire to improve their surroundings. Working allows a person to have increased financial stability, which makes a person more better off and more able to buy things. This process increases revenue, and therefore helps the community they live in. With the expansion of the internet, our community has become the world, and we are all stewards of the planet. We can now visit any corner of the earth, and our worldview has expanded far beyond our homes. This, however, is a powerful form of mob mentality, and the drawback of this that if someone goes against the community or goes against the status quo,they are usually ostracized and forcibly removed from their family and home.
ReplyDelete2. The individual impacts the community with the actions that they commit. For example, if people in a community begin to commit violent crimes, their neighborhood will become a more crime-ridden place, and violence would increase drastically among the townspeople. However, if citizens decide to act calmly and civil-like, their neighborhood will become more peaceful, and more people will want to live there because of it. People often and together in order to fight a just cause, and their actions impact their surroundings and the place in which they live. Without the individual, the community would not exist. It would be just a bunch of empty buildings and lost computer screens. Humans are created to improve their situation, and a good start is helping within their own family and community. Change begins with ones self, and because of this, the population shapes the community they live in.
Reply to number 1
DeleteI feel that you are describing socio-economics in the terms of society as a whole. While it is true working will benefit both community and society, it will more benefit society as a whole, since you are a functioning cog in the machine of labor. I do not believe the world is one united community, rather, it is made up of communities that unify into a stable society. The problem is that peace is determined by the friendly co-existence with other groups. For example, the tension and violence in the Middle East is due to distinct communities fighting with each other due to ancient disputes.
Upon analyzing the relationship between an individual to the community, I could not help but find that it seemed akin to that of a friendship. In the community is a group of people the individual could find himself relating very well to; a group where similarity plays a key role, much like with friend groups. To elaborate, most friendships are established between people as a result of a discovered interest in common. But communities, as the link had said, does not seem to tolerate any sort of diversity within its members. If the individual were to not get along or agree with the community and its own even system in terms of traits, it would ultimately fall out. Therefore, the individual could affect the sustainability of it--for himself and possibly for others--greatly.
ReplyDeleteThe individualism of an individual is formed within a community, by all this is in the community. I feel like one would fall out of a community if he/she were to be affected by another community that has a “different way” or by one that recently came from a different community. Also in many cases, an individual won’t accept for her/him self to fall out because they will feel that they have the best views and opinions and so they will make the changes to the community. I feel as if it is more likely for one to change what he/she doesn’t like in a community than to fall out. But it is possible , such as in the case of traveling elsewhere for the unfitting lifestyle.
DeleteI agree that if an individual were to not get along or agree with the community then that person would eventually be a falling out. I disagree with what Jena stated above that "it is more likely for one to change what he/she doesn’t like in a community than to fall out. " I think leaving the community is the more likely action to happen because it is the easiest. If you are constantly surrounded by people who do not understand you and your interests a fall out can occur and it would make sense to leave and find a community that has more in common with you. Trying to change what you do not like about a community can sometimes take years to achieve or you might never achieve it. However, sometimes if you clash with a community you just become a recluse. For example, in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, Boo Radley clashes with his community because they believe he is crazy and violent but Boo does not leave his community, he just stays locked away in his house. Sometimes it is just easier for an individual to just stay where they are and not interact with their community.
DeleteBecause individuals in a community share similar interests, an individuals relationship to his community is merely companionship or a close bond. People in the community hold responsibility to properly care of one another. As they welcome others with alike interests, the community grows. In this new age of technology, communities are able to form both physically and virtually. The internet has provided an opportunity for certain persons to be apart of a clique.
ReplyDeleteInfluence plays a major role in communities. As people share their common ideas with one another, they exchange information. However, because everyone has common interests, communities do not allow diversity. An individual can heavily impact their community. If a certain person has different opinions than the others, the community would eventually break apart because of that certain person's influence.
I do not agree that communities do not allow diversity. In fact, many communities pride themselves in their diversities. Communities should be strong and accepting of diversity. For example, Belleville is filled with people of various backgrounds and different ideas. I also do not think one person's contrasting ideas is enough to break up an entire communities.
DeleteI agree that a community is determined by the shared values of everyone in it. However, I do not believe that it will break apart if an individual does not have common interests. Instead the individual would conform by eventually developing the same interests and values as the community.
DeleteIn accordance with your first paragraph, I would like to correct some of your info mentioned. You had connected the relationships in communities to modern technology, but under the understanding that what you are referring to is between cross-state, country, or world, I believe that is not entirely true. That would be a society, whereas communities are between physically (geographically) close members. But besides that, I agree with everything else you had stated.
DeleteFurthermore, I have to argue against the concluding sentence of your second paragraph. From what I had understood with the information on communities, they would be rather uncaring and maybe even ruthless when it comes to a scenario where someone else in their group disagrees. They seem very tight knit, and may even be rather relieved at and even closer together now in a stance for the exclusion of said member, not broken apart.
The relationship of a single individual may seem insignificant, but it is actually the opposite. Every individual of a community shapes the direction the community will go in. For example, if a town’s population is a jewish prevalent community, holidays such as Hanukkah will be celebrated more than Christmas or Kwanza. A town’s residents dictates the changes that should or not happen, such as uniforms implemented in the surrounding schools. Without each individual input, a town’s direction will go nowhere and will not prosper.
ReplyDeleteThe community an individual is surrounded in heavily influences what kind of person the individual will be. For example, if you grow up in a religious household, tendencies such as going to church will be more prevalent in your life than a person who grew up in an atheist household. In your communities you tend to develop the same habits of the people around you, such as the way you dress, speak, eat, etc. Communities also form your political and ethical views. For example, my cousin from Malta and my cousin from the Philippines hold very different views due to the communities they grew up in. My Maltese cousin is very liberal while my Filipino cousin is more conservative. Once an individual leaves their community, other communities’ customs seem foreign. Going to Canada for the first time I experienced a cultural shock due to the excessive kindness of strangers, compared to the hostility in the States. Without a community, a person will have no identity. A community provides a person the comfort and familiarity that is craved since birth.
Whether good or bad influence, people would eventually want to break away and experience another life. For example, the Amish live very secluded and traditional lives. In Lancaster county, you would see motor horse carriages and large farm houses. I was surprised to find out that if someone does something disgraceful, the entire Amish community will shun you. There is a TV show called "Breaking Amish" that documents the lives of those who left their Amish ways to live in NYC. Some of the ex-Amish returned to their homes in PA. Some found the old comforts and familiarity abstract to them, but some missed them. I think that no matter where one may go, he or she will always have their traditions rooted in them. After all, communities are families.
DeleteAlthough I agree with your statement that the communities can influence people's tendencies, I do not believe that it determines the kind of person the individual will be. We are all born into a predetermined community- one that we did not choose but because of our family, we are a part of. The ideals of this community are the first that we are introduced to and for the earliest years of our lives are forced to follow. However, as people grow, they can decide to go against this set of believes- away from what their community instilled in them. For example, a person growing up in a very religious household may choose to eventually abandon that faith for his/her own believes. Although the ideals of a community are prevalent to an individual's life, the ability to choose communities can help shape us into people with different mindsets than those of our original community.
DeleteCommunities do aid in determining the personality characteristics that a person will have because it is human nature to pick up things such as accents and mannerisms from the people who surround them. However I do not believe an individual resident of the community creates as much impact on it as the whole does. An individual can go into a town having ultra conservative repulican views and walk out having strong liberal views if the people that make up a community are democrats. Each individual input is not truly necessary for the town to prosper, it only takes the majority to create the community's direction.
DeleteAn individual is greatly impacted by the community they are raised in. For example, some one raised in a community of obnoxious people may act similarly. Accordingly, They will also pick up on the language used through out the community. A community may also affect the well being of a person. For instance, growing up in a community where crime rates are high will put people in constant danger. Likewise, an individual can impact a community in various ways. A person can work to improve the community through volunteering or pushing for change. They can also affect the community negatively by causing uproar or contributing to the crime rate. In brief, the individual and community both impact each equally. However, the individual may choose to not become involved in their community.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I would rather not place my full bets on a child conforming to a society he grew up in. From my own experience, not all children will adapt to the same mindset, or at least are susceptible to change still as they grow. And just like how a person raised within ideas can come to think different, those who are the opposite can come to the think the same even without being born into the beliefs or traits. And you did come to mention this in your final sentence, so I know you do understand. But communities, I feel, resist change as much as possible. Those who leave are either exiled or choose to leave without even considering an attempt to change the community's mindset.
DeleteI do not believe that the individual and the community impact each other equally. While an individual's actions do impact its community, it is not an equal partnership. People can choose not to be influenced by their community, and it is not something that it always forced on the person. Causing uproar can be stretched to include protesting things that the individual may find unjust. It does not always have to be violent or lead to exile.
DeleteI disagree that communities and individuals impact each other equally. A person can influence others in the same community by sharing ideas. This one person can then affect others and possibly the entire community. Therefore, I believe an individual can heavily impact his community.
DeleteThe individual could create more of an impact towards their community compared to their effect on society. Communities are significantly smaller from larger societies. I believe society could represent a state or country and communities represent small towns or cities. One simple person may not partake in national issues, but they could surely contribute their time to suggest help or aid their town’s problems. Individual involvement towards helping a town helps one’s community to grow. For example, school clubs offers volunteering for young students to help either improve the appearance of their community or aiding their fellow citizens. The relationship between an individual and their community are symbiotic. Communities cannot improve properly without the individual’s time and effort to participate in its developments. The individual’s lifestyle and social interactions could either be positive or negative depending on the state of the community’s environment. What’s most important in a community is the value of similarities. Communities sometimes lack diversity which could influence a bias in an individual’s views on politics, religion, etc. Individuals raised in a community of similarities hold certain beliefs and may be stubborn to accept differences when faced with diversity. However, what makes the community stand strong is the basis of its population having the same mindset.
ReplyDeleteAs the old saying goes, you can't change others, but you can change yourself. That in effect can ripple to change thousands of people. An individual with considerable power rises to the top because of this law of individual, family, community, nation, and world. By leading a way of life, one can amass support based on the like-mindedness of others. This "wolfpack" has considerable power not because of its influence, but the standards of the individuals which strengthen others in the pack.
DeleteI believe that there are very different mindsets within a community but it is not recognized due to the individuals (who have different opinions) who don’t bother to make a change within their community, so they force themselves to adapt to it. A community can still be strong with different opinions, because different options promote change and development
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ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, because a community is more exclusive than society, an individual is influenced by the community and not vice versa. A community is more exclusive because it is a group of people that share values, ideas or believes. Communities include family, friends, religious groups and communities via Internet.Due to this common mindset, the members of a community might feel a pressured to trust the influences of those around them. Whether it is through language, actions or clothing, members of a similar community will act in a way that mirrors other members. Communities influence the way people view many topics such as religion, politics and ethics. People are born into certain communities and that can influence their point of view but also make them go against the believe of that community. For example, often times, individuals born into a very strict and religious household, may want to get away from it and live a less-spiritual lifestyle.Despite having a community that you are born into, individuals can choose the communities that they are a part of. However, even when choosing, they are bound to have that certain community influence them.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the individual is influenced by the community, but I feel as though the relationship can be vice versa as well. It takes a single individual to impact the community and set precedent for what may be followed. For instance, the term "trendsetter" comes to mind because before the community is able to follow a certain trend, it takes an individual to go against the community's norms which then in turn influences the community.
DeletePiggyback riding off Christina's reply, I do agree that an individual can also influence a community. Christina mentioned the word "trendsetter" which reminds me of a ripple effect. It takes one individual to set a new trend--set a new standard or belief for the community to believe. However, I do agree with how you noted some communities maintain certain aspects, inclining the individual's dissossication and departure from the latter.
DeleteAn individual affects the community just as much as the community affects the individual. An individual may be impacted by others in their community such as neighbors, loved ones, coworkers, and strangers on the street. Moreover, their connection to people is not as important as the actions and words that stay prevalent in an individual's life. The individual, however, may impact the community as well. In many instances, volunteering and community service have been able to benefit a community by the actions of a single individual. In addition, it is just as easy to harm the community as well by committing crimes or depriving a community of freedoms and supplies. During storms, many communities come together to help protect individuals that may be at risk such as the elderly and children. In this case, an individual may be able to provide a community with shelter or perhaps supplies that they altogether lock like groceries. They share supplies with each other as well as generosity which in turn shows a relationship that benefits both parties, the community and the individual.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with you when you say that an individual's connection to people is not as important as actions in a person's life. People constantly forget the things that people do for them, but they never forget how they made them feel. Having connections with people is an essential part of the human experience, and forming relationships helps to form a community itself. An individual needs other people to provide a community with shelter, and this too requires relationships and connections with other people.
DeleteI agree with the positive relationship between a community and an individual stated in your post. Families who has never spoken a word to each other unite during natural disasters. Communities are formed for specific causes, such as hurricane relief, and it's such a powerful force that helps both individuals and the community. I wholeheartedly agree that the communities and individuals have great relationship based on your example !
DeletePersonally, I agree that people in a community support each other. Especially during difficult or troubling times, people comfort and become caring of one another. They protect others either through their actions, and create a closer bond. This strong bond builds strength to the individuals in the community.
DeleteThe relationship of the individual to the community is a give and take. While the individual contributes to the function of the community, the community influences the individual and shapes the individual throughout the course of their life. It is inborn human behavior to feel included or a part of something greater than itself. This yearn for a sense of belongingness is seen in school systems, sports and religion. What the individual is truly yearning for is a family. For this, the individual relies heavily on the community,
ReplyDeletethings like food, shelter, career are sought from a community. The interplay resembles the relationship a father has with is children. The children absorb the fathers passions
and interests, similar to a community influencing an individual with its political and religious views. This paternalistic relationship has a huge effect on the individual because it affects the the future and essential characteristics that make up the individual. The community has more of an effect on the individual the vice versa because to be a part one a person must share a likeness with the rest of the community. The individual autonomy does not have much affect on the community as a whole because they will ultimately conform.
I agree that humans yearn for a sense of togetherness, which is found in communities. While the community may have a paternal influence on the individual, I believe that a community has a more brotherly influence. Parents may have a stronger authority over their children, whereas brotherhood has mutual respect and understanding. I believe that the hierarchy that is found between a parent and child cannot compare to the togetherness between siblings, which is found in a community.
DeleteCommunity can be described by what surrounds you from culture to people. I think of a community like a bubble that contains individuals that are linked by a specific relationship. The community one lives is what creates individuality. Without the community, individualism can not be achieved because one extracts values and goals from his community. Within the community, a person begins to be influenced by what his community has to offer and adjusts to its “climate”. Not only does the community aid in the creation of one,s personalities, but it deeply impacts one’s views whether political, social, or random views on life. For example, one might feel that life is not full of adventures because he/she lives in a community far away from busy life and trends while someone in California will feel that life is about getting out their and enjoying every moment. The community we live in greatly impacts the way we grow to live our lives. Also, if the community is diverse, one has a high chance to develop an understanding personality while one living in a conservative community will have hidebound views and opinions on certain topics. Individuals within the same community have similar views because they grew up with those views and customs being poured into their heads.
ReplyDeleteNot only does the community create individualism and develop personalities, but an individuals can greatly impact the community. The difference is that the community no doubt influences the individual but it is the individual’s choice to make a great impact on the community. Affecting the community can include creating a program or club to help the poor, volunteering at a mosque or church, spreading a certain goal or passion. This change can also be negative; an individual can spread hatred within a community or hateful views to break the bond between everyone. Community is like a school; a positive teacher (individual) makes a productive class (community) and a negative teacher creates a lazy class. I like to think of the community as a clothes rack, where similar people are placed on the same rack.
I agree that the community does create individuality within people when compared with other people from other communities because no two communities are exactly alike. But within the community itself you just seem the same as everyone else. For example, within the Amish community everyone is basically the same--same clothes, same religion--but if an Amish person where to visit another community they would be the most individualistic person there. That Amish person would stick out like a sore thumb.
DeleteThe individual is just one of the many people who makes up the community. That individual can bring their own uniqueness to the community but they can also add nothing to the community if they are just the same as everyone else who lives in it already. An individual can change the community but it is more likely for the community to change the individual. If a community is a certain way an individual is more likely to conform to it so that they feel included. For example, if a community is "ghetto" the individual might try to become "ghetto" to fit in with everyone. But if an individual sticks to who they are they can promote others who are like them to come to the community and that then could change the community. However, sometimes the community you live in is not the community that affects you. I have lived in Belleville since I was 5 but I went to school in Nutley instead of a Belleville school so I do not feel that I am what people typically think of when they think of a Belleville citizen. However, without the individual the community would not and could not exist and vice versa. The community and the individual need each other in order to survive.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with your statement that the community you live in is not the community that affects you. Although you are not a “typical Belleville citizen”, the morals and habits of other Belleville citizens influence what morals and habits you are willing to implement in your own life.
DeleteIt is human nature to interact with other people and create relationships in order to survive and live. We observe this social instinct with other species, as they also form communities within themselves and thrive through common interest and mutual contribution. A community is a group of people living together with the same interests.
ReplyDeleteHowever, a community and individual do not always work together symbiotically; an individual may feel dissociation from the rest of the community rather than being included. Additionally, issues such as hierarchies and one-sided work can occur; the community calls for an individual’s obligation to assist his community through hardship and prosperity. The tight-knight bond of people are prone to homogeneous ideas that may affect the individuals' interests and camaraderie. A community affects the individual and vice versa.
For example, in Rob Suskind's novel A Hope in the Unseen, Cedric Jennings endures a challenging high school career and is eventually admitted into Brown University. Throughout his Ivy League path, various communities are present in his life and aids him through his endeavors and tribulations. The audience see the various communities affect his life as the church community sheltered and motivated him to focus on education and a bright future; whereas, the gang community ensued an influx of crime, poverty, and substance abuse influence around Cedric. Both communities affected Cedric’s life as he allowed the church community to dictate his life--thanks to his mother--rather than the communities of drug dealers, robbers, and delinquents. However--as I mentioned prior--, Cedric strayed away from the church community as he no longer shared a mutual dependence on religion; he transitioned from the church community to the college life, where he felt alienation from other cliques he observed. To conclude, a community and an individual both work together to mold one’s daily life.
If an individual does not feel like they belong in a community, it could result in negative feelings and isolation. Do you believe that the individual should learn to adapt and include themselves in their community? The individual might become hostile and disconnected towards their community causing personal issues to occur. Does the community have a responsibility to raising, influencing, and caring for each other? Should the community try to involve itself to help every single person living in it?
DeleteAn individual has a choice to either become a part of a community or to be independent. An individual shares interests of those inside of the community, contributing to events or ideas pertaining to their interests. For example, a community of parents in a town share an interest in education and safety for children. Parents who take part in this parental community voice ideas or take action to improve, for example, the education system. However, a parent mayindifferent or support the education system, therefore an individual, in this case a parent, can be unattached to a community despite being categorized similarly. Each member provides support for others within the community, creating a force to encourage ideas. Individuals band together in support of change and in support of beliefs.
ReplyDeleteThe community and individual both impact each other. For instance, gangs are communities comprised of ill-mannered people who share violent interests. Individuals within this community are pressured by other members to form violent acts such as armed robberies. As time progresses, the member of the gang will adopt the gang customs and become a more tortuous person than when they initially joined. On the other hand, an individual may be able to bring change in the community. Although it may be unlikely, a gang member who has a change of heart can attempt to change others within the community. If the influence is great enough, the violent community may disband, making a positive impact to the community.
I like the way in which you provided example for the points and arguments you were making. I specially agree with the statement that the community and individuals both impact each other. Members of a community all have a significant role in the community; and the community they have chosen has a similar role in the lives of those members.
DeleteAs you said, the community impacts the individual and vice versa. You mentioned how gang violence is an example of a "community" that negatively impacts the individual and the environment as a whole. Of course, gangs harm a peaceful environment with its violent behavior and intentions. However, could a peaceful community still have ill intentions towards diversity or change? Both gang communities and peaceful communities share similar sets of values. Do you believe that if the community were to be introduced to conflicting values of established beliefs will cause inevitable discord?
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