*Every semester I teach college Sociology classes I always have my students play a game of Monopoly. They don't play normal Monopoly though but one with special rules designed to teach them about how social class and wealth impact success and failure in life.* # The name of the game is Sociopoly or Sociological Monopoly ## The game's rules were designed by Catherine L. Coghlan and Denise W. Huggin. The purpose of the game is to change a familiar game like Monopoly that most students know into a teaching tool to teach students how real society functions. (*See the end of the post for links to their study and directions for playing the game.*)  …show more content…
Within these classes people experience different life opportunities based on peoples' economic status. Sociological Monopoly tries to put players in different social statuses to teach them how in real life money/wealth impact life opportunities. In the game players are assigned different roles. Players are assigned roles as members of the upper class, middle class, or lower class. Depending on the social status a player is given, each player starts off the game with different amounts of money and property. The lower class players start off with very little money and no property. The middle class and upper class players start off with more money and property than the lower class. …show more content…
Real life isn't fair like that and Sociological Monopoly shows that. Those who start off the game poor only get poorer. Those who are rich get richer and have an easier time. In this alternate version you can take out loans but you have to pay them back with interest. Those who are poor take out loans thinking they will get ahead but they only get in debt.  # It's always fun to watch students play the game to see how they react. Those who are rich are happier and feel superior. Those who have less money get discouraged and unhappy. In ways as the game continues, players emotions mirror real life. Those in the upper class have a lot of money and an easier time full of joy. Those in the middle class will own a little property but they won't ever earn enough to move up in social status. Those in poverty sink lower and lower into debt and struggle to stay afloat. It usually takes 30 to 45 minutes for a game to get to a point where those with little money are out of options and those with money are cleaning out the bank. After the game I always discuss how players felt, what they learned, and how the game mirrors real life.
A two million dollar legacy: one strange game for 16 players. Mr. Westing tried to put everyone into his trick. Mr. Westing, the guy who has millions of dollar but no one can share with him. His building-sunset tower has been rent for 16 people, which are a family, a doctor, a judge, a secretary, and a thief. One day, they found the dead body of Mr. Westing in his old house. Westing’s legacy said he would give two million dollar to the person who found the murder. He said he was murder by one of his inheritor. A suspenseful game began.
... that they affect one another. A person who lives by a lower income will not have that mines and chances of become wealthy. A person in the other spectrum, which is born into a higher class, will most likely stay wealth. This leads to an endless cycle of generations staying within the working class realm. The likely hood of a person moving up a class is rare but it does exist. People need to be pushed and have a drive to keep going and to keep trying. That is why we are told we have an equal chance in life so we can all strive for better even though in reality we do not all have an equal chance. But nonetheless people should try to become successful even if they never make it in life because a life without purpose, goals, or ambitions is a meaningless life. As humans we need a reason to live, another day for people to take advantage and make the best of it.
rules. Enjoyment of the game proved so great that from an initial experimental venture, it soon graduated at their college to an
In the novel wealth plays vital impact on the lives of the characters, money defines social stature, in my perspective middle class was practically nonexistent, established wealthy individuals
Society today is split in many different ways: the smart and the dumb, the pretty and the ugly, the popular and the awkward, and of course the rich and the poor. This key difference has led to many areas of conflict among the population. The rich and the poor often have different views on issues, and have different problems within their lives. Moral decay and materialism are two issues prevalent among the wealthy, while things such as socio-economic class conflict and the American dream may be more important to those without money. Ethics and responsibilities are an area of thought for both classes, with noblesse oblige leaning more towards the wealthy.
The rich, in essence, can buy life, whereas the poor are abandoned to die in a
Social class is a group of people who rank closely in property, prestige, and power. Within these social classes exist some properties of class level that are characteristic of their ranking. The first of these is property. Property consists of furniture, jewelry, bank accounts, and other materials that can be quantified into monetary value. (Henslin, 2014) Basically, they are things that can be quantified to add up in quantified value end up un a sum of monetary value. This value is termed wealth. This is different from income. Income is known as the flow of money. Prestige is the next characteristic looked at when determining social class. Prestige is the value which different groups of people are judged with. (Henslin, 2014) Different occupations within society offer varying levels of prestige. The final aspect looked at when determining class is power. Power is defined as the ability to exert your will within society. (Henslin, 2014) The reason to review this is because different classes of society all maintain these aspects at higher or lower degrees, with the upper tier having the
Class affects the experiences around us-how we grow up, the people we associate with, the schools we attend, our health, and our opportunities in life. Those who grow up in the upper class have the opportunity to attend the best schools, have plenty of food to eat, associate with what society deems the “best” people. The underclass, or the poor, often have a poor education, are on welfare, and are deemed the undesirables of society.
To look at the world sociologically, one must first understand the definition of sociology. Sociologists, according to Peter L. Berger are people who are “intensively, endlessly, and shamelessly interested in the doings of men.” They study people in their natural habitat, which is wherever people gather. So in order to look at the world from this perspective, one should “think systematically about how many things we experience as personal problems are really social issues that are widely shared by others born in a similar time and social location as us.” (Pearson Custom Sociology, 5) This is known as the “sociological imagination”, first coined by C. Wright Mills. In The Promise, Mills describes how there is a connection between our problems and those of the social world. In order to understand these connections however, one must look at the different aspects that make up the social world and how they affect us. The various themes to understand when looking at the world sociologically are social structure, race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and social interaction.
The monopoly game is mainly characterized by strategic thinking, luck, critical thinking, probability, trading, and management skills (Darling, 2007). The element of the luck comes from the dices that are thrown by the players. Also, the decision of which player are going to start. What is more , there are other elements that increase the uncertainty in the game. For example, chest cards and the community cards which might change the direction of the player both positively and negatively. As a result to this change the player will adopt new strategies and plans.
The poor gets poorer, and the rich gets richer. Economically speaking, this is the truth about Capitalism. Numerous people agree that this inequality shows the greedy nature of humankind. The author of the source displays a capitalist perspective that encompasses an individualist approach towards an “un-ideal” economic system. The source articulates a prominent idea that capitalism is far from perfect. The reality is, as long as capitalism exists, there are always those people who are too poor or too rich in the system. We do not need elitists in our society but that is exactly what capitalists are. In this society, people are in clash with those who “have” and those who “have not”, which creates conflict and competition. Throughout
Money can give people a lot opportunities and privilege. Financially privileged people have no trouble getting materialistic things such as big houses, expensive cars, and jewelry. Being privileged can also provide better scholastic education as well as respect. On the other hand, a lack of money, as a person might guess, limits opportunity and lower a person’s status on the privilege pole. In order for an underprivileged person to have all of those things, they have to work hard to get to get the luxuries of nice houses, cars, and jewelry. As far as education goes, the underprivileged might not go to the best schools but they get an education that will prove to be more valuable in life; they learn to earn respect, appreciate what they have and how to survive with just the necessities and what’s really important in life. So when a person looks at each group and tries to decided with one gets the most out of life, they will see that underprivileged individuals get so much more out of life than a person who came up in affluence and privilege.
Although the poor citizens participate in the money game, their mind set is to not lose money, instead of making it. This is a negative mind set, that will only attract more of what they do not want. The two groups have two completely different mindsets. The poorer citizens today are terrified to try and succeed out of fear of failure, so they avoid it. The wealthier citizens today had the idea of investing into things, and NOT lose money, only focusing on winning. All while wealthy individuals can visualize what it is they need to do, and take those steps in order to reach their goal, and be successful in this game of life. They will think, and act from the view of playing the game to win. As for the poorer class individuals, they will never invest, and make that jump out of fear of failure, which will in return always hold them back until they change their mind
“You’re going to pass the test, and if you don’t, no games until you pass the test next year.” My heart immediately dropped like a brick and my mind started to race. Games were my source of entertainment, and being cut off from them was like being exiled from society. The minute we got home, I raced to my room and started to make flashcards to study theory. For days, I studied non-stop, only stopping when necessary. Finally, the last group lesson arrived. Instead of finishing the usual one or two practice tests, I managed to finish five and I aced all of them.
..., a person who earns $25,000 is happier than a person who makes $125,000 and an employee who makes $500,000 is only slightly happier than someone who makes $55,000. Lastly, there are more important things in life that and make you happy, for example, friends. They don’t come with a price tag, and if they do, you definitely need new friends. Money won’t make you happy since good times can’t be bought. You don’t need a fancy vacation to have a good time; it’s just a matter of who you spend it with. Over the years, humans have blown the value of money way out of proportion. People make it seem like if you’re not filthy rich, then you won’t live a good life but it’s not true. You can lack money and yet still live a perfect, happy life.