Sub-Culture Groups and My Role in Them
Instructions:
compare and contrast two subculture group you belong to and the two or more social roles you play in each group.paragraph 4-6
Solution
Sub-Culture Groups and My Role in Them
I was born in Downtown Minnewara to poor parents. My parents later died in a car accident and I was left in the care of my elder brother Jonte. We had a younger brother, Uno, who was left when he was so young he could not even remember what our parents looked like. In fact, we grew up with Jonte as our father. After our parents passed away, Jonte had to drop out of school and get a job so that he could afford to pay the bills, put food on the table and still be able to keep us in school. Jonte protects me from any harm. He can beat me as much as he wants and I don’t mind. But when he tries to beat Uno, I don’t know where I find the courage to stand up to him, and he always backs down. At home, I am a member of the “smoked”, which is just a group of Jonte’s friends. When at school, I am a member of the “novelists” which came up in the Literature class. In this essay, I contrast the two subcultures and my roles in them.
The group called smoked (7 members) got its name from the neighbourhood where we reside. Too much plastic and polythene wastes are generated every day. As a result, there is no day that goes by without smoke in the neighbourhood. The smoke is often so thick that it leaves black stains on our white clothes and our roofs. As the smoked, our values include loyalty, brotherhood and responsibility for one another. Every member must ensure we stay loyal to the group. We are each other’s brother and take care of one another as such. In case anybody messes with one of us, we all retaliate. Even though we do not have any weapons, Ortiz, my brother’s best friend sometimes walks around with a switchblade. Whenever we are leaving for some adventure or for an adventure, we make whistling sounds that we are sure no one except us will comprehend. Considering the way the whistle is made, we usually know exactly what we are meeting for. Within the group, my role is to run errands. Whenever there is a message to deliver or something to buy, nobody will be turned to but me. I have developed an athletic skill from the many errands I have run for the group. As a result, I am also the group’s champion whenever we have competitions with other groups in the neighbourhood (Perner 1).
Our belief is that we are poor and have to work hard to get food and clothing. Our norms restrict us from being thieves, robbers or pick-pockets. Von who was a pick-pocket when we met him has since changed and now carries people on his father’s motor cycle so that he can get money. We also discourage in-group fighting, even though it sometimes happens.
Apart from being a smoked, I am also a novelist. Not that I write a novel, I love to read novels. When I joined High School, one of the first courses we took was English Literature. The module required us to read three novels that would be examined at the end of the year. From the readings, some of us in the class developed interest in reading novels. We formed a group of 10 students with a similar interest. Just like the smoked, we stay loyal to one another. However, we have dissimilar backgrounds and apart from reading novels, we have entirely diverse opinions on other issues of life. I am the group leader and have the role of deciding which novel each one of us has to read every week. Once we have got the books, each one of us has at most a week to read the book and understand it. At the end of the week, we come together to discuss the book and the story it communicates. This is our way of enjoying school life. Reading a similar book symbolizes our devotion and loyalty to one another. We do not have the obligation to defend one another as is the case among the members of the smoked group. We have no specific language, but we ensure we observe the rules of grammar and literature in our speech, especially during our discussions. As such, I also act as the enforcer of the group’s policies (Perner 1).
Whenever we encounter grammatical error in the speech of any one of us, we are expected to correct each other on the spot. Even though it is sometimes embarrassing, it helps us maintain correct English at all times. Just like the smoked group, we also discourage in-group fighting. However, despite the large diversity between us, since we are people from different social and financial backgrounds, fights never erupt between group members. Whenever there is a disagreement between any group members, we convene and discuss the most peaceful way forward (Perner 1).
I belong to two
sub-cultural groups, one at home and another at school. In one, my role is a
messenger, while in another, I am the leader. There are differences as well as
similarities between the two groups. Both groups require loyalty and
accountability. However, the smoked defend one another while the novelists
group do not. The smoked believe in working hard to get money for meeting our
needs, while the novelists only believe in enjoying our school life.
Works Cited
Perner, L. “Culture and Subculture”. Consumer Behavior. USC Marshall, 2017.