Significant Others Essay

Significant others” is term used in sociology that refers to the important people in one’s life that are close to that person. People who are classified as “significant others” are usually individuals who uplift, motivate, and better the person that they are close with. For me, I am lucky enough to have many significant others involved with my life. First and most obvious, God has always been my “go to” being, because God gives me the motivation and strength that no human being could ever fulfill. God creates crossroads, pathways, and loves me like no other. Anytime I’m unsure about my life and all the wrongful decisions that I make on a day-to-day basis, God has always found a way to bring out the light in the darkest of darkness. My parents

Owens (2007) states, “Significant others are those persons who are of sufficient importance in an individual 's life to affect the individual 's emotions, behavior, and sense of self.” However, the most important is to treat others the way I would like to be treated. With that being said, I always try to rationalize the words and actions of myself before I could jeopardize hurting another person. For instance, “if” there is someone is was socially indifferent or maybe just didn’t fit the criteria of the “social norm,” I feel that the person should still be treated as if he/she is just like a best friend, because one just doesn’t know from the outside looking in just what that person has been through in the game of life, or what cards they were dealt. Another message about myself that I feel is very important is to never give up no matter how much hardship that has been thrown my way.

Cultural and Social Values My life is very different. Seeing as my father is a born and raised Muslim from Iran, and my mother is a born and raised Christian from New Jersey, one could see how cultures could clash within a household. On the Persian side, my dad has taught me of the “Faravahar,” which is an ancient Persian symbol that translates to “forward-pulling force.” The “Faravahar” has six characteristics to it and according to Beyer (n.d) the characteristics include:

1. The figure in the middle of the symbol is a head of an old

One of the hands points upward, which means that people shall only move in this direction; however, the other hand holds a ring, which holds a ring that represents appreciation for promise (much like a wedding ring).

3. The wings are spread apart showing that we are ascending as humans for the better afterlife. The wings are separated into three major sections which characterize three different meanings, which are good thoughts, good words, and good deeds.

4. There is a circle in the center of the symbol, which represents the circle of life.

5. The tail is pointing downwards and is separated into three sections, much like the wings, the sections mean bad thoughts, bad words, and bad deeds, and the relevance of the tail pointing downward is to state that humans should stay away from these characteristics.

6. There are two threads hanging at the bottom of the symbol, which in the words Daly (2012), represent “good mind” and “angry mind,” and that these two characteristics could occur in a human at any time in life.

However, on the American side, my step-mother has taught me moral values that are stressed in Christianity, such as the Ten Commandments. As far as my peers, they have taught me friendship, fairness, and