SYP 3000 USF The Perfect Mother Analysis Discussion

Your third of three switched-at-birth stories

The first two came up on A14 and were set outside the United States

This story is set in the United States

Before you start this assignment, click hereLinks to an external site. to listen to This American Life 260, “Switched At Birth” (2008) in its entirety. You can find a transcript of the story hereLinks to an external site.. This is one audio story that I think is best to listen to with the transcript by your side or to just skip the audio and read the transcript because it is kind of difficult to keep all the names straight. What I suggest is organizing things this way – Keep track of dark-haired and serious Sue McDonald and her blond-haired, super bubbly mom Kay McDonald and then blond-haired, super bubbly Martha Miller and her dark-haired and serious mom, Mary Miller.

01. .025 points, At least 25 words > The story of what happened to Sue McDonald and Martha Miller is very much like the story of what happened to Joseph Siberg and Yacine Al Bezaaz, see A14. If you had to “parallel” or “match up” the characters in these two stories who is Sue more like Joseph or Yacine and why? Who is Martha more like Joseph or Yacine and why? Be sure to fully explain and defend your response by showing that you paid attention to the details of each one of these four individuals’ respective lives. The story of Sue and Martha was assigned right above this question, scroll up.

02. .025 points, At least 25 words > Defend Mary Miller’s reason for keeping Sue and Martha switched at birth and in the dark about this fact until both girls had grown into adult women. The story of Mary Miller was assigned right above Q01, scroll up.

03. .025 points, At least 25 words > Who do you think got the better family on the switch, Sue or Martha? Be sure to define what you mean by “better” here, explain why you chose Sue over Martha and, as always, be sure to explain and defend your response. The story of Sue and Martha was assigned right above Q01, scroll up.

04. .025 points, At least 25 words > Make the argument that religion mattered more in the case of Sue and Martha being switched at birth than it did for Joseph and Yacine to be switched at birth. Here is a quick link back to the story of Joseph and Yacine. Be sure to explain and defend your response. The story of Sue and Martha was assigned right above Q01, scroll up.

05. .025 points, At least 25 words > Using the story Switched At Birth (2008), above, as evidence, make the case that it didn’t matter that Sue McDonald and Martha Miller were switched at birth. Be sure to fully explain and defend your response. The story of Sue and Martha was assigned right above Q01.

06. .025 points, At least 35 words, Note the word count change > This course has been filled with stories about people keeping secrets. Who, from the list below, do you think, had the biggest problem with their secret becoming public? Be sure to explain and defend your response. Post your answer to this discussion board; respond to at least one other posting; and as your answer to this question, just let me know that you did all that. Your first post needs to be at least 25 words and then your response to someone else’s post at least 10 words.

• Sarah Hart agreeing to give birth to a clone, See A01
  • (Sarah Hart wanted to contribute to social psychological research)
• The Louise Wise Agency, See A02
  • (An adoption agency that worked with social psychologists)
• Samantha Futerman and Anaïs’ birth mother, See A02
  • (A young mother without any familial or community support)
• The hospital where both Keita Nonomiya and Ry?sei Saiki were born, See A14 
  • (An institution that made an honest mistake in a time of crisis)
• The hospital where both Joseph and Yacine were born, See A14Links to an external site.
  • (An institution that made an honest mistake in a time of crisis)
• Norbert Miller, See “Switched At Birth” story at the top of this assignment
  • (A reverend, husband, and father who made a deliberate choice)

The sociology of secrets

Watch Stories We Tell (2012) below and then answer the questions that follow. You might want to scroll down and read through the questions first before you start so you know what to look for. This documentary is one of the best films I know to let a person use all the ideas they have learned in a Sociology Psychology course like this one while, at the same time, critiquing those ideas.

07. .025 points, Minute markers and explanations > List all the people who could have possibly been Sarah Polley’s father and when they come up in her documentary, Stories We Tell (2012). There is a right answer to this question and a wrong one 😉 So pay close attention as you watch! I need the minute markers when all these potential dads come up along with who you are talking about, i.e., Michale Polley, and Geoff Bowes …

08. .025 points, Minute markers, and explanations > Would it have been possible for Geoff Bowes to be Sarah’s father? Again! There is a right answer and a wrong answer to this question! You need to watch until the very end of the documentary to find out the answer and I am pretty much this answer isn’t Google-able 😉

09. .025 points, Minute markers, and explanations > For what specific reason did Sarah Polley’s mom, Diane, lose custody of her two older children, i.e., the one she didn’t have with Michael Polley?

10. .025 points, Minute markers, and explanation > Tell me the exact minute marker Sarah makes it clear that some of the home movie footage in Stories We Tell (2012) is “real footage” that her dad, Michael Polley, shot over the course of her childhood and growing up and some of it is “staged and shot” by her for the specific purpose of this film.

11. .025 points, At least 25 words, Note the word count change > How does the story of Diane Polley help inform the story of Bobby, Eddy, and David’s mom, who is never named? Bobby, Eddy, and David’s mom was discussed here, but if you want a refresher, read thisLinks to an external site..

12. .025 points, At least 10 words > Okay! It becomes impossible for women to reproduce after a great environmental disaster and Dr. Jelliff comes out of retirement to clone one of the two remaining mothers on earth, Sue Klebold, see A13 Q22, or Diane Polley in order to create more mothers. Who do you advise him to choose and why? Can’t remember who Dr. Jeliff was? Click back here.

Hi! We are closing in on the end of this course. We started with a secret social psychological research project, Peter Neubauer’s twin study, which was rooted in Freudian theory, introduced here. I want to end on one social psychological theory from sociology, which has had as much scientific and academic influence as Freud in the 20th century and, which I think is even going to become more influential in the 21st century. If the last few assignments of this course have been intriguing to you, you know what that means, don’t you? You need to take more sociological courses. Not psychology courses. Sociological courses 😉

GHM said it all came down to the pronouns

George Herbert Mead (1863-1931) was on to something in the 1930s

Questions 13-24 walk you through the very last theory you need to learn for this course, symbolic interactionism. Just read through each question carefully and do what it says. A lot of the time I am just explaining to you how this theory works through narrative examples you should already know from previous assignments. Trust the process 😉 and look for the parts of the question highlighted in gray. That is what the actual question is 😉

13. .025 points, At least 25 words > In the early 20th century, there was a Freudian-trained psychologist named George Herbert Mead (1863-1931) who came up with a theory, which suggested that people’s sense of self was more about the social contexts they found themselves in and the language they used to communicate, than whatever it was that made up their id. How was that true for Mikael when he first introduced himself to Lisa? I first defined the id for you here. I first introduced Mikael and Lisa here. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

14. .025 points, At least 25 words > According to George Herbert Mead, there are two parts to a person’s identity. The more social part is called the Me and the more private part is called the I. You can read about the Me and the I hereLinks to an external site., but stop reading if it gets too confusing. Mead’s ideas can seem complicated upon their first reading. To make this idea easier to grasp, as your answer to this question, just describe the Me Mikael presented to Lisa, as opposed to the I he was struggling with at home with his family. Again, I first introduced Mikael hereLinks to an external site.. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

15. .025 points, At least 25 words > Make the argument that the Me is sort of like what Freud called the super-ego and the I is kind of like the ego. I introduced Freud’s definition of the super-ego and ego way back here on A04. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

16. .025 points, At least 25 words > Mead’s idea of the Me and the I isn’t connected to anything like what Freud called an id, i.e., it doesn’t make theoretical assertions about the human body. Would it be possible for the MISTRA studies to have employed Mead’s theory of the self, i.e., the Me and the I? MISTRA was first introduced here on A03. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

17. .025 points, At least 25 words > When George Herbert Mead was first working out his theory of the Me and the I, many other psychologists and sociologists, and philosophers at the time thought that he was wrong to rely on pronouns to articulate and explain the way a human develops their sense of self. Defend Mead and make the argument that the “Me” and the “I” are a better way to articulate and describe what Freud would have called the “super-ego” and the “ego,” since they emphasize the social contexts people find themselves in, rather than try and figure out what their “id” is all about. Freud’s ideas about the super-ego, ego, and id were first introduced here.

18. .025 points, At least 25 words > Challenge your answer to Q17. Defend Freud and argue that you can’t leave the id (and the human body) out theoretically when defining and describing the human self since social contexts can not only change but totally disappear from the face of the earth. Use the story of the little town of Pinepoint, introduced here, see Q07-09, to formulate and explain your response.

19. .025 points, At least 25 words > Based on your answer to Q13, did Lisa misidentify Mikael’s I, when she first met him? I first introduced Mikael hereLinks to an external site.. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

20. .025 points, At least 10 words, Note the word count change > What piece of clothing did Mikael create so he could better present his Me to Lisa while swimming? You can easily find this answer here. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

21. .025 points, At least 10 words > Why did Mikael’s mother think Mikael presented a fake Me to his new friend Lisa and then insist that Mikael reintroduce himself to Lisa as Laure while wearing a dress? I first introduced Mikael and his mother here. Be sure to explain and defend your response.

22. .025 points, At least 25 words > Simone De Beauvoir, whom I introduced to you on A08, never broke down the self into the “Me” and the “I” as Mead did, but used a very similar idea from existentialism called the “situation” (i.e. “Me”) and the “choice,” (i.e., “I”). What parts of Ry?sei Saiki’s identity was his “situation” and what part was his “choice?” Ry?sei Saiki was first introduced hereLinks to an external site. and I posted an image of him below as a quick reminder.

23. .025 points, At least 10 words > Name and describe the specific institution that informs Joseph that his Me and his I aren’t what he thinks they are. I.e., What is the institution that first notices that Joseph’s blood type doesn’t match his parents’ blood type? There is a right answer to this question and a wrong one, so be sure to explain and defend your response. Joseph was first introduced here and I posted an image of him below as a quick reminder.

24. .025 points, At least 25 words, Note the word count change > Now, according to Mead, the Me and the I are always connected, are always entwined, except when a human dies. When a human dies, the I dies with them. As your answer to this question, simply describe how Diane Polley’s I (and her secrets) died with her, but her Me lived on through her daughter Sarah’s documentary about her, Stories We Tell (2014). Diane was introduced in Q07-Q12 on this assignment. Be sure to explain and defend your response.