Paper Example: Navigating Social Norms and Respecting Divergent Opinions within the Family

Sometimes we may find ourselves in situations where we break the informal social norms which are referred to as folkways. These are the daily expectations of an individual's behavior that would enhance socialization among the members of society. I have been in a situation where I was deviant to the folkways that exist in our society.

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Recently, we were in the sitting room with the family having various discussion topics just to pass the time. Present in the room were my parents, grandparents, my elder sister, and my younger brother. We would discuss random topics that would arise in the line of conversation. My deviant behavior that was not in line with the existing folkways occurred when my younger brother was explaining to everyone in the room how we needed to buy another television. Everyone was quiet in the room while my brother praised the newly launched Samsung QLED 8K 55-inch television stating that it had a good resolution and stated that my parents should purchase the device and replace the current one. He argued that the current one did not have a good resolution and was not clear when one was watching a movie.

I felt that my brother was bringing up a topic that would make my parents spend a lot of money yet the current television is good. In a very loud voice, I shouted to my brother that he should keep quiet and that if he wanted a better television, he should look for a job and purchase any television that he wished. I told him that we are good with the old TV and thus he should not bring opinions on more spending on unnecessary products.

Everyone in the room looked at me. Their faces seemed to be annoyed by the loud voice that I had used against my brother. My father asked me if it was necessary to use such a high voice to present my ideas. My mother was also angry at me, she stated that everyone in the house has the right to express their ideas. She stated that it was unethical for me to shout at my brother since even if the television was to be purchased, the money to be used was to from either her or my father. She argued that I was so emotional that one would assume that my brother had committed a crime.

My grandparents also stated that everyone should be given a chance to explain their views. They stated that it does not mean that my parents would have bought the television and thus I should have waited for my brother to finish and take my turn to explain why the television should not be purchased providing various justifications. On the other hand, my sibling just kept quite surprised while listening to what my parent and grandparents were telling me.

I felt guilty and would never engage in deviant behavior ever again either as an individual or as a group. I felt that I should always wait for people to present their opinions and if I do not agree with them, I would opt to challenge them politely. I will be giving people the chance to offer their opinions concerning the topic of discussion and after they are done, I will be taking my turn to challenge their ideas and provide justifications as to why their opinions should not be applied. I will also be supporting them in the areas where they have raised a valid point. Furthermore, despite the high-level disagreement, I chose to use a low tone in my communication.

The act of shouting out the opinion of another person can be seen as deviant because it would cause a lot of problems in society. It would make communication among members of society very difficult if everyone in society embraced the behavior. People would be having problems expressing their views and it is only the loudest who would get a chance to present their opinions. It also makes conversations among individuals to be noisy where even crucial ideas may pass without reaching the audience. Therefore, I believe that my act of shouting at another person without allowing them to express their opinions should not be tolerated.