Sarah Frazier

Professor Paul Price

Sociology 001
December 15, 2016
Reflection Understanding Race
The Understanding Race writing assignment was an exercise in reading about the topic of
race and reflecting that I understood some of the complex issues related to race in our society.
This assignment was an opportunity for me to relate sociology to personal experiences. When I
am able to make an emotional connection to content I am studying I am more likely to
internalize what Im learning about and retain it more effectively than a topic that I have no
personal experience with.
This assignment once again forced me to think outside the box. Instead of
simple regurgitation, I was able to relate to the topic of race and bring about a deeper
understanding of the topic. One of the questions I reflected on, how ethnocentric practices
historically used by those in power that have contributed to prejudicial attitudes towards racial
and minority groups, got me thinking in a new direction and was definitely a learning moment
for me because it was a question I never pondered before. For me, this assignment was a classic
example of learning something new about a topic that you think you already know a lot about. As
always, the study of sociology has enabled me to step outside of my perspective and view society
with a new set of eyes. Reading about the topic of race from a functionalist and symbolic
interactionist perspective was very interesting and helped me to view a familiar topic as if it were
new again.