| Dear Kensing,
Your points are very well taken. I just wanted to respond to some of your arguments.
To begin, I agree with you about the idea of social control and social change. I think your characterization of law in combination with other modes of social control does a good job in reconciling the idea between Parsons and the law as the weakest form of social control.
On the second paragraph, though, I think your characterization of Parsons is too simplistic. I think Parsons speaks to the connection between internal psychology and external norms. But it is not a simple one-way interaction. Social institutions/structure foster the culture of certain norms, those norms, in effect, affect individual beliefs, and in turn, those individual beliefs strengthen social norms and thus, the power of social institutions that adhere to those norms. (Do you see how it is almost a two way cycle?) So it's not just that Zimmerman is affected by the institutionalized white supremacy and acting independent of his beliefs. His racist beliefs, whether conscious or sub-conscious, are influenced by the institution of white supremacy, and in turn, his racist beliefs also strengthen the institutional structure of white supremacy.I think this is why Parsons or other structural functionalists suggest that social change has to come from institutions rather than individuals. |