Personal Troubles Versus Public Issues: DANA’S STORY

(Taken from SOCIOLOGY: A Critical Approach by K.J. Neubeck and D.S. Glasberg)

This is a story about Dana, a sincere and pleasant young woman of 19.

Dana grew up in a middle-class neighborhood with her parents and two younger
brothers. She was relatively good student in high school, although she was the first to
admit she coasted whenever she could. To provide the family the basic necessities,
Dana’s parents both worked. They gave up vacations in order to put a small amount of
money aside each month to help pay for their children’s college expenses. Dana and
her brothers found part-time pay jobs to pay for their personal expenses. There were
few luxuries. Dana’s family was proud last year when she went off to a public college
that had a good reputation. It was just affordable with Dana’s summer earnings and a
modest boost from the financial aid office. She was on track. But now her world is falling
apart.

Dana’s father has been out of work for over six months. He was laid off when his
employer, an industrial firm where he had worked his way up to a middle-management
position, “downsized” its labor pool. To his dismay, he found little interest from other
employers. He wondered how much his being middle-aged had to do with it or if his
physical disability, the result of a car accident, counted against him. He took it for
granted that his dark skin was a liability. Dana’s mother had been working ever since
her youngest child was old enough to care for himself after school. But salary as a clerk-
typist in an insurance company was not sufficient to support much above the poverty
level, let alone contribute to Dana’s college expenses. When Dana asked for more
financial aid, the college aid office told her that the federal government had tightened
the eligibility rules and it couldn’t give her anything more. Even with the part-time jobs
she was holding down, Dana could not afford to stay at college.

When Dana arrives home, she finds her family in turmoil. The stress seems to be
ripping apart her parents’ marriage. Mutual hostility and periodic outbursts of physical
abuse mark their relationship. Dana’s father was always strict but fair with his children.
Now he behaves unpredictably. Her brothers seek refuge with their friends and try to
avoid their father. They are also beginning to get in trouble at school; her mother is
receiving a stream of calls and notes from school authorities. Dana spends a lot of time
in her room, anxiety stricken and chronically depressed by the overwhelming facts of
her difficult situation. Away from her friends, and too frightened to approach her parents,
Dana suffers alone.
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Guide Questions:

1. What is the problem of Dana? (5 points)

2. What are the causes of Dana’s problem? (5 points)

3. What are the possible solutions to Dana’s problem that you could suggest? (5 points)