Final answer:
Rebellion refers to the rejection of societal goals and methods, aiming to transform or destroy the existing social order. It is one aspect of response to social strain identified by sociologist Robert K. Merton and can range in expression from individual withdrawal to organized efforts to overhaul society.
Step-by-step explanation:
The subject at hand is rebellion, a term within social studies that pertains to people who reject both the socially accepted goals and the means to achieve those goals. Instead, they wish to change or destroy the existing social order. Examples of such behavior range from the retreatism of individuals who withdraw from societal goals, such as certain homeless populations, to active rebels like terrorists or freedom fighters who seek to overturn an existing social order through non-conformist and often violent means. Sociologist Robert K. Merton categorized rebellion as one of the five modes of individual adaptation in response to social strain. Cultural imperialism is another relevant concept, where one culture imposes its values on another, which can lead to resistance and rejection of prevailing cultural patterns. In contrast, anarchist socialism pertains to a more organized approach to rejecting state structures while still acknowledging forms of social organization. Historical figures like Mikhail Bakunin and movements like Marxist revolutionaries in Russia exemplify the more dramatic aspirations to fundamentally transform society.