Violence in Society – Sociology Essay
Violence exists in many different forms in our society. Unfortunately, many people believe that violence is the most effective way of solving the problems in our world today. It is a horrible resolution but is usually seen as
the only option, and results in tragedy. Basically, man has not yet learned from his past mistakes and is not aware that violence just leads to more violence. Violence today accomplishes nothing and is a futile act that shows how many problems our society has.
When used as a way to solve problems, violence is very useless. It is a senseless act because instead of resolving situations and trying to be more open minded, people just choose violence and show their intolerance felt for people unlike them. An example of this would be from the movie Mississippi Burning, when the Ku Klux Klan would chase and hunt down innocent black people and then hang them or shoot them. People would get killed just because of their skin colour or cultural beliefs. These kinds of racism and violence have been present since the 1950’s and 1960’s, when they were used constantly. Another example from these times is found in the life of Martin Luther King Jr. who was a preacher who believed in negotiation and peaceful means rather then violence, as shown in the video Martin Luther King Jr. that was viewed in class. He was just a man who was trying to solve the major issue of segregation experienced by the black people. He sought to copy the ideas expressed by Gandhi, which also dealt with peaceful means to solve problems. Tragically, Martin Luther King Jr. soon after was assassinated and murdered. This goes to show how much hatred and violence exists in mankind.
Our world is basically run by our society and the people around us. Then what kind of society are we when we use violence against the helpless, and lack any sort of tolerance for those who differ from us? This goes to show us how many problems our society has these days, and has had for the past decades. An example of this would be Hitler, and how he killed off Jewish people to carry out his objective of “a perfect world” which consisted of blonde hair and blue eyed people (German culture). This kind of terrorism seems sickening and disgusting. However, there are certain types of people who exist in the world that share the same opinion of Hitler. Other examples include the disaster that occurred on September 11th last year. This was an act of terrorism and hatred. Osama Bin Laden was responsible for these terrible acts of violence towards the United States. These atrocious catastrophes have forever altered our sense of security.
The usual way of solving problems that deal with violence rather then peaceful means, are not adequate anymore for the world in which we live. People are starting to realize who the “good” and the “bad” are. An example of this would be when peace marches with Martin Luther King Jr. would turn into a riot of innocent people running for their lives from the authorities, who mercilessly attack them and abuse them. These pointless acts led the people to finally realize what kind of government they were supporting, and helped them to understand and be more open minded about what was really going on.
Thus, violence itself is not a solution to problems. It is more beneficial to society to question whether or not violence is really the answer. Only through thoughtful discussion and the realization that the solution lies in peaceful negotiation, will there be any hope for the future.