Good Idea (Maybe) But the Execution Wasn't There

I tried something new in Introduction to Sociology yesterday. I used Postsecret.com as an example of how we don't reveal everything about ourselves to the people in our networks. I had already taught the basics about Erving Goffman's Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. I like the idea that social interaction is an "information game" in the sense that we strategically reveal some details but conceal others. We keep secrets from friends and family and there are things we avoid talking about.

In the class when I introduced Goffman, I emphasized the point that surely we don't tell people we know everything. But that doesn't mean we have to keep all our secrets. I find it fascinating that people use Postsecret.com as an outlet to share their secrets. It's an anonymous way to circulate a secret. Maybe it makes you feel better to unload your secret. Maybe you were itching to tell someone but couldn't trust anyone to keep your secret. So as a follow up to the class about Goffman, I showed a documentary about Postsecret.com and then had a brief discussion with students when it ended. The documentary at times feels like an advertisement for the site. But I like hearing people associated with the site give their perspective about secrets and I like the examples of secrets that are shown throughout the video. And I like how the video includes footage of college students going to live Postsecret events on campus (there are students who take to a microphone to share a secret in public).

But I didn't execute the discussion as successfully as I hoped. I counted on students having spontaneous reactions to the video. I figured they would offer insightful comments and that I could mostly play the role of moderator. But they were quiet (perhaps a Monday effect) and the few questions I did have planned didn't really spark an enthusiastic discussion. It was a reminder that I can never have enough discussion questions in store. When a class goes quiet, it's best to have plenty of questions ready or get them involved in a short writing exercise. Maybe I should have gone to the index cards to have them respond to the video. Well, a lot of teaching is trial and error. If I try this topic again, I need to be more creative in building a discussion around the video, and need to be better prepared if the topic is one that leaves them on the quiet side.

Man of Distinction (A Sociological Poem)

Can you tell us your secret?

How did you get such great taste?

So cool how you wear something new

You always find the perfect restaurant

You even know who to read

You stay one step ahead of us

And when we catch up you’ve already moved…..on

It’s all so perfect because you present the everyday man façade

Everybody (and I mean everybody) can relate to you.

You’re an amazing balancing act

You distinguish yourself from the rest of us

But never act like you’re better than us

And that’s why it works so well.

Year in, year out, you find it before we do

You know exactly how to work the display

It’s an intangible thing

A skill we can’t compute

If asked about it, you wouldn’t even field the question

Or you’d say something clever (“I like what I like”)

But can it be so simple?

You’re a class act

You make it look so easy

Today it’s vodka

Tomorrow a cigar

Then an obscure ingredient (“Ooh, I never heard of that one before!” we say with delight)

Top it all off with a philosophy you found around the corner.

It’s incredible, all these tricks up your sleeve

We’re dazzled by the impressions you leave

You don’t have more than us

But you’re a man of distinction

And that’s enough.

Author's note: I wrote this poem to convey sociological ideas that captured my attention at a time I was reading a lot about social class--notably, the book Facing Social Class (edited by Susan T. Fiske and Hazel Rose Markus) and the blog post "High Heels And Distinction Among Women" by Lisa Wade. My poem appears in the blog post "Poetic Sociology," written by Peter Kaufman. Check out his post for great ideas about using poetry to teach sociology.

On a related note, I'm in the middle of reading a work with great insights about social class--Shamus Rahman Khan's Privilege: The Making of an Adolescent Elite at St. Paul's School. I recommend this book and think it's a good fit for an undergraduate course on social class/social stratification. I'm thinking of teaching Social Stratification next year (would be first time teaching course) and will likely assign Khan's book along with Fiske and Markus' book, plus a few short readings (including the one mentioned above by Wade).