“There is no such thing as society”

“There is no such thing as society”
Margaret Thatcher
Interview for Woman's Own (Sep 23 1987)



SO "The social" is a very intrsting and thought provoking subject. We started to explore all the diffrent social/media formats and investigate the diffrent networks we as humans operate on. 



Definition:  The term Social refers to a characteristic of living organisms (humans in particular, though biologists also apply the term to populations of other animals). It always refers to the interaction of organisms with other organisms and to their collective co-existence, irrespective of whether they are aware of it or not, and irrespective of whether the interaction is voluntary or involuntary. (WIKIPEDIA)



In my opinion this refrence to the term social is one i would agree with. For me it perfectly sums up what we mean when we use the words social. 



I took this term a step further and subtly listened out for when myself and friends used the term.
The main use seemed to be when describing a person....
" He's quite sociable" , " She's not very sociable with us"

For me its clear that when used in this context, "social" is referring to the friendship network and to how there is a general consensus that being sociable means doing stuff together. I also saw an interesting example on wikipedia..



"Another common meaning of a "social" in English-speaking countries such as Britain, New Zealand, Canada and Australia is that of a leisure-time gathering with food and drink, organised by an institution, association, or company. A distinguishing feature is that it is deliberately organised at a venue at a predetermined time. Thus one might say, "are you going to the social?", meaning a social event by some organisation."(WIKIPEDIA)






In relation to the quote referenced at the top by a former Prime minister we have to look a bit deeper. First of all i do in no way shape or form agree with this quote, why? Ill explain...



First of all, when looking at quotes you have to realise your only looking at a certain part of the entirety, of what was said. So i had a look at the statement in its entirety.

"I think we've been through a period where too many people have been given to understand that if they have a problem, it's the government's job to cope with it. 'I have a problem, I'll get a grant.' 'I'm homeless, the government must house me.' They're casting their problem on society. And, you know, there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first. It's our duty to look after ourselves and then, also to look after our neighbour. People have got the entitlements too much in mind, without the obligations. There's no such thing as entitlement, unless someone has first met an obligation."
Prime minister Margaret Thatcher, talking to Women's Own magazine, October 31 1987



So what i gain from this quote now, that she is referring to the social relationship between the government and the people. It could be argued that there is no social between the government and the people as its them doing and enforcing and the people ( us ) abiding. However i think that the government works on the basis of what the majority want to see happen in their country, therefore creating a social relationship. 



Secondly to say the fraction quoted at the beginning of the post, is in my opinion complete crap!



SO what do i think?

• 
  
  Society provides a means of communication "Tracks of communication" - Mentioned in my previous post.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Society is the foundation in which any given person grows up in.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Society differs from country to country, town to town.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Society is compiled of all the living organisms that live inside of it.
  
  
  
•  Society is the realm in which to be "social" in
  

Now without getting to philosophical, i believe that society itself is simply a reason for living, maybe even the meaning of life? Think about that.......