Self, Society and Everyday Life

SELF, SOCIETY, AND EVERYDAY LIFE DEFINE AND DESCRIBE HERBERT BLUMER'S CONCEPT PF SELF-INDICATION AND ITS RELEVANCE FOR UNDERSTANDING WHAT ANTONY ELLIOT DESCRIBES AS IDENTITY OR SELF.
By: Student’s Name
Course code+name
Professor’s name
University name
City, State
Date of submission
Topic 1.
HERBERT BLUMER’S CONCEPT OF SELF-INDICATION
Self-indication is the principle that states; if everything else is kept constant, an individual's perception of something should be in such a manner that it appears like it is from a random selection from a group of other observers. Such a person or observer's reasoning should therefore be as if he or she has been picked out from a group of other similar observers. There is a way in which human beings interact with themselves and their surroundings. Such interaction is dictated by how the individual understands the meaning assigned or associated with their surroundings. Such meanings are, in turn, dictated by how they define the social interactions therein.
Therefore, it is the individualistic or personal interpretation of such meanings within the society that now build upon the overall understanding of the object or phenomenon. According to Blumer, the identification and attachment of meaning onto an object or phenomenon is called indication. It is the primary way through which human beings acclimatize, associate, and socialize with their respective surrounding. In so doing, they will always judge the importance or convenience of the object concerning whichever situation they find themselves in. In so doing, much of the judgments and interpretations will revolve around how to use the object at that moment. By looking at this understanding of self-indication, it is worth noting, therefore, that self-indication, in its way, has a continuum. This means that it gives an individual the right to make decisions, be they rational or not.
IT’S RELEVANCE FOR UNDERSTANDING WHAT ANTHONY ELLIOTT DESCRIBES AS 'IDENTITY' OR 'SELF.'
Self-indication is quite relevant in almost all facets of human socialism and decision making. As initially indicated, it grants one the authority to make these decisions. This also means that it places on over the object or action to be decided over. Such authority over them means that one can either take them in, turn them down, or work to help make them even better, depending on how they are perceived or interpreted. Self-indication helps to view life as being made up of various phases, settings, and frameworks and work within these settings.
Blumer indicates that people should only react to people's actions rather than seek to define them because each person reacts differently in society (Shibutani, 2017). This implies that individuals' actions or behavior are not constant but instead a construct. The construct of self relates to how people change over time regarding other people's actions and environmental changes.
According to Elliott, everything that happens around an individual, in turn, helps to carve out what the person thinks of as part of their routine life. It is this ...