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In Tuesdays with Morrie, why does Morrie choose to be a sociology professor?
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Morrie chose to be a sociology professor to understand and address societal inequalities, influenced by his experiences growing up in a poor Jewish immigrant family during the Great Depression. Witnessing injustice, such as factory supervisors mistreating workers, motivated him to help others comprehend social dynamics. Inspired by his mother's belief in education as a means to escape poverty, he pursued sociology to gain insight into societal structures and educate others on these issues.
One could say that Morrie Schwartz almost fell into becoming a sociology professor; it's not really something he ever planned. When Morrie was a young man during the Great Depression, there weren't many career options available for someone from such a poor background. But his mother was a great inspiration to him; she understood that education could provide a way out of poverty for Morrie. And she proved just how much she valued education by taking classes to improve her English.
Morrie chose to major in sociology because it helped to make sense of the society in which he was raised. As someone from a poor Jewish immigrant family, Morrie was acutely aware from an early age of the significant disparities in wealth and opportunity that existed within American society at that time. Studying sociology could help him to take a step back and gain a greater insight into the...
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culture in which he was brought up and its relation to American society as a whole. For a second-generation Jewish American like Morrie, sociology will undoubtedly have been a big help in understanding the various social factors that limit educational opportunity and which hold back so many people from economically deprived groups.
Mitch Albom jokes that Morrie became a professor "by default": he hates blood and law, but still wants to help others. Morrie grew up in a lower-class family, and during the Depression, his father worked in a factory that made fur clothing. Morrie went to the factory once with his father and there he witnessed the supervisors yelling at the workers. Morrie felt that the supervisors' treatment of the workers was unjust, and from that point on, he set his sights on working to help people understand the complex relationships that develop in society. Morrie decides to become a professor to reach out to others and spread this knowledge.
Why did Morrie choose to become a sociology professor in Tuesdays with Morrie?
One could say that Morrie Schwartz almost fell into becoming a sociology professor; it's not really something he ever planned. When Morrie was a young man during the Great Depression there weren't many career options available for someone from such a poor background. But his mother was a great inspiration to him; she understood that education could provide a way out of poverty for Morrie. And she proved just how much she valued education by taking classes to improve her English.
Morrie chose to major in sociology because it helped to make sense of the society in which he was raised. As someone from a poor Jewish immigrant family, Morrie was acutely aware from an early age of the significant disparities in wealth and opportunity that existed within American society at that time. Studying sociology could help him to take a step back and gain a greater insight into the culture in which he was brought up and its relation to American society as a whole. For a second-generation Jewish-American like Morrie, sociology will undoubtedly have been a big help in understanding the various social factors that limit educational opportunity, and which hold back so many people from economically-deprived groups.