Gridiron GangGridiron Gang, a sports/drama film released in 2006, tells the story of Sean Porter, a counselor at a juvenile detention center, and how he works to transform the situation of young people detained in a football team. This movie is actually based on events that happened in real life. The film not only shows the different steps the counselor takes to turn the young inmates into a football team, but also shows the personal lives of some inmates and how they came to the youth center. The main aim of the counselor trying to get young prisoners to play on a football team is to help them learn about social responsibility and gain a sense of respect not only from the outside world, but for themselves. However, the counselor faces many problems throughout the film from both the manager of the youth center and the coaches of the opposing teams; they don't feel comfortable letting players with criminal charges play on the field. He also encounters many problems among the young inmates, with them always arguing with each other and trying to establish a sense of dominance in their team. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay There are many sociological concepts that this film portrays, especially deviance and social control, as it is set in a youth center. Deviance occurs when a certain behavior is conducted that violates the standards of conduct or social norms in force. Crime is considered a kind of more formal deviance, not only subject to social sanction but also punishable by law. This youth center takes the necessary measures to enforce the rules and acceptable behavior from inmates. To give an example of deviance from the film, a scene worth highlighting would be the story of how Willie Weathers (one of the main characters) ended up in a youth center. Willie was a gang member and was caught robbing and shooting a gun at a convenience store. This falls under the sociological concept of deviance because Willie broke the law, violating the standard norms in force. Social control is defined as the techniques and strategies to prevent certain deviant behaviors in a society. In this film, the counselor tries to use football to socially control the inmates. He believes that by employing the techniques and strategies that accompany football, such as teamwork, responsibility, maturity and discipline, this can help to prevent inmates from acting aggressively towards each other and to form a sense of self-respect. An example from the film would be when Sean Porter first gathered the inmates and told them they were going to form a football team. A famous quote from the film is said by Sean Porter, while addressing the inmates: “You do it my way, not your way. Your ways got you here and you're here because you lost. You are all losers right now, but if you accept this challenge and stay true to the program, you will all be winners in the end." What Porter is saying here is that he is in charge and makes the rules and that if they stick with him, they will be better and stronger people, and people will look at them differently. Another sociological concept that can be applied to this film is the concept of social cohesion and socialization. Social cohesion is about social bonds and how people relate to each other and get along with each other. Socialization is the process by which individuals understand the values, beliefs, and norms of a particular society and learn to function as members of that society...
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