For this unit, you read “The Promises” from C. Wright Mills 1959 book, The Sociological Imagination. In this book, Mills conceives of the sociological imagination as a quality of mind (or way of viewing and interacting with the world) and “the vivid awareness of the relationship between personal experience and the wider society”–the relationship between your biography and history. 

As you now know, Mills argues that the greatest contribution sociology can make is to help the public find/see connections between and make sense of the various ways in which their personal lives are shaped by public issues. These public issues, broadly conceived, include history, technology, politics, culture, the economy, laws, the nation into which one is born, the neighborhoods in which we are raised and many other social forces beyond our individual and personal control.

For this reflection and application assignment, I would like you to employ the sociological imagination to examine the lives of millennials and how their individual/personal biographies and/or their personal “troubles” have been shaped by the public “milieu” in which they have grown up and lived. I asked you to read “Millennials: The Me Me Me Generation” to provide you with the “data” from which to draw for this analysis.

Your essay should be 2-3 pages in length (double-spaced, 12 point font, 1″ margins).

Please remember to use your own words and not present others’ words as your own. I would prefer that you avoid quoting Mills’ or the author of the Time piece on Millennials. Instead, practice paraphrasing (translate his ideas in your own words) when relevant. Some rely too heavily on quoted material resulting in a paper that is light on their own ideas and thoughts.