Getting Sociological on the VMAs

There are so many theories in every subject and sociology is not an exception. There are three big sociological theories: the functionalist theory, the conflict theory and the symbolic interactionism theory. One of the three big sociological theories is the Functionalist Theory, which can be applied to almost anything. The functionalist theory is basically looking at society as if it is a car and knowing that each part in the car has a particular function, and that if there was a part missing then the whole car, society, will fall apart. The functionalist theory believes that people actively work making stability and order happen.

The Functionalist Theory can be applied to almost any event. Recently there were the Video Music Awards that aired this summer. If we look closely the Video Music awards you can apply many different functions of the functionalist theory.

This year the event was held in Los Angeles but there was no host for the VMAs, as they were unable to find anyone that matched the requirements. Different celebrities presented the awards and there were several performances done by different people. Every year the VMAs try to go over the top and give a completely unexpected performances but there is a certain degree as to which you can out do something, so this year the VMAs were much simpler than the extravagant events they used to be. Even Lady Gaga didn’t change into a million costumes throughout the event , instead she dressed as a man, which is still not the most normal thing to do but people always expect something different from her and she always delivers.

The manifest functions could be that the VMAs brings people/family together whether they are watching it on Television or Live in Los Angeles. Everyone is interested in what the celebrities are going to wear and who's going to be there. The marketing and Public Relations sectors benefit from this event. Companies can place advertisements throughout the show, every time it was time for Jessie J to perform during the break several advertisements for fast-food restaurants or products played., particularly Taco-Bell.

Latent functions that are associated with the VMAs is the focus on public transportation as people would more likely use the bus or train to avoid traffic jams. The VMAs could bring complete strangers together if they have similar tastes in music or videos.

Anticipated disruptions of the VMAs are the same as the disruptions that happen with any large celebration, traffic, littering and shortage of clean toilets because of the large amount of people.

Everything can be looked at in a sociological way even the most unexpected cases.