The Real War Heroes

Classroom controversies are short and provocative articles designed to encourage classroom debate. They revolve around current, often hot button issues, and are likely to generate considerable classroom dialogue. Please feel free to print as many copies of these articles as you need. To submit a paper or proposal, visit our contact page.

A technological utopia?

The view propogated by the media companies and sellers of technology is that technology is freedom. From early dishwashers to the recent spate of ads hawking the latest social phones, technology leads to utopia. But does it? Does being connected 24/7 through multiple devices really lead to quality of life, or does it degrade life and provide one other way for us to be monitored, controlled, and over worked?

The Tenor Of Our Times

In this article William Hathaway, renowned peace author and activist, discusses the tenor of our times, revanchism, which refers to a global attempt by the elites to “turn back the clock” and reinstate a social order characteristic or earlier, more imperial, times. Do you agree? Is he correct that our countries are now operating as imperialists in a global prison, sweatshop, and war zone environment?

Classroom controversies are short and provocative articles designed to encourage classroom debate. They revolve around current, often hot button issues, and are likely to generate considerable classroom dialogue. Please feel free to print as many copies of these articles as you need.

Functionalism 2.0 – Rethinking an America Tradition of Conservative Thought

Functionalism has long had a bad name in sociology as the handmaiden of elite interests, justifying all manner of inequality and power abuse by implying (and sometimes suggesting outright) that these things are “functional” for our society. As this article demonstrates however, this need not be the case. Functionalism can provide a useful rubric for understanding modern society and need not be the handmaiden of conservative thought.

Care Bears vs. Transformers: Gender Stereotypes in Advertisements

While traveling recently, I stopped at a fast food restaurant with my 6-year-old daughter. When we sat down at the table to eat, she disappointedly pulled a pink care bear out of her cheeseburger meal. When I asked her what was wrong she asked why the woman had given her a care bear when she wanted a transformer. She went on to explain to me that she liked boy’s toys because she was a tom boy. Why did the fast food worker assume that my daughter wanted the care bear? Why is the transformer considered a boy toy?