Ch 7 Global Stratification

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Ch 7 Global Stratification

• Fundamentals of Social Stratification

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Stratification

• Definition
• Types
• Basis of social class
• Why universal

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Definition

• Write down your definition
• Share with the class
• Division of people into layers according to
  relative property, power, prestige
• Universal
• Most fundamental is by gender
• Worlds societies also stratified (between
  societies)

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Systems of Stratification

• Slavery
• Caste
• Class

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Slavery

• Some people owned by other people
• Uncommon in hunting gathering
• Common in agricultural
• Typically based on
• Debt
• Crime
• War

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Slavery (cont.)

• Not sign of inferiority
• Could be temporary status
• Obligation for certain number of years
• Not necessarily inherited
• Not necessarily powerless poor
• Still in world today, e.g., Sudan
• Examine U.S.

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Slavery in U.S.

• Need for labor
• Indian enslavement didnt work
• Tried Africans
• Some think slavery led to racism not other way
  around
• Owners developed ideology to justify
• System of beliefs
• Childlike, helpless, needed to be taken care of
• Some not fully human
• Slave states passed law to obtain control
• Still legal discrimination into 20th C.

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Slavery in U.S.

• Slave states passed law to obtain control
• Made slavery inheritable
• Some states illegal to hold a meeting or be
  away from home w/o a pass
• Still legal discrimination into 20th C.
• 2 separate school systems until 1954
• Poll tax

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Caste

• Status ascribed
• No social mobility
• Reinforced by endogamy
• Marry only within caste
• Examples
• Traditional India
• U.S. based on race after slavery

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Caste - Traditional India

• Castes based on religion occupation
• Castes
• Priests/scholars
• Nobles/warriors
• Merchants/artisans
• Outcastes (degrading laborers)/untouchables
• System abolished in 1949
• Rituals based on caste still practiced
• Ceremonies at birth, marriage, death

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Class

• Based on wealth, power, prestige
• Social mobility possible, not probable
• Born into parents class
• Can change based on achievements
• Few actually socially mobile

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Basis of Social Class Marx

• Depends on relationship to means of production in
  industrial society
• Bourgeosie
• Proletariat
• Resources controlled by bourgeoisie
• Until proletariat have class consciousness
• Realize source of their oppression
• Revolt
• False consciousness keeps this from happening
• Thinking have more in common with capitalists

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Basis of Social Class Weber

• Critic of Marx
• Class has 3 components
• Wealth (property), power, prestige
• Class, power, status
• Economic factors very important BUT
• Some have power but dont own means of prod.
• E.g., managers of companies
• Prestige comes from wealth, but not always
• E.g., scientists, educators
• Power comes from wealth, but not always
• E.g., judges, police

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Why is stratification universal?

• Functionalist explanation
• Conflict explanation
• Lenskis synthesis

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Why is stratification universal?

• Functionalist Davis Moore
• Meets needs of society (functional)
• Fill positions in society
• Some more essential to societys survival, e.g.,
  ??
• More important positions filled by most capable
• Offer rewards to most capable qualified
• Often require
• Extensive training
• Long hours
• Significant responsibility accountability
• Higher rewards necessary as incentive

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Why universal? Functionalist

• Tumins critique
• How measure importance of a position?
• Cant use rewards of position, since thats part
  of the definition of stratification
• Produces circular argument
• Need independent way to measure
• If strat works as functionalists describe,
  positions would be awarded on basis of merit, but
  many exceptions
• Some inherit positions
• Some go to college because have money, not
  because very able
• Stratification ought to benefit everyone, but
  dysfunctional for women, minorities, the poor

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Why universal? Conflict

• Groups conflict to get more resources
• Use power to maintain what already have
• Use social institutions to maintain power
• Mosca
• Society needs organization to get work done
• Some must be leaders to make decisions
• Results in inequality of power
• Give themselves more rewards
• Marx

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Why universal? Conflict

• Marx
• People in power because they control resources
• Not because they are more able
• Eventually class consciousness of workers
  overcomes control of bourgeoisie
• Struggle difficult because bourgeoisie control
  police, schools, politics

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Why universal? Lenski

• Created synthesis based on evolution of society
• Functionalist correct when considering meeting
  basic needs of society
• Conflict correct when considering surpluses
• An elite emerges controlling those resources
• Hunting gathering minimal stratification
• Horticultural leadership has some privilege
• Agricultural
• System of inequality emerges
• Class or caste

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Why universal? Lenski

• Industrial
• Reverses trend
• Actually less inequality, even though great
  surpluses
• Society too complicated
• Elite must share with middle class to manage
  complex institutions

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Global Stratification

• Most Industrialized Nations
• Industrializing Nations
• Least Industrialized Nations

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Most Industrialized Nations

• Location
• North America U.S., Canada
• Europe Britain, France, Austria, Germany,
  Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Italy, etc.
• Asia Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong
• Middle East Israel
• Oceania Australia, New Zealand
• Characteristics
• Capitalistic
• Poor better off the average person in Least Indus
  Nations
• 16 of population, but 31 of land

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Industrializing Nations

• Location
• Europe Russia, Spain, Portugal, Greece,
  Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia,
  Slovakia
• N. Am. Mexico
• S. Am Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay,
  Venezuala
• Asia S. Korea, Thailand
• Middle East Turkey
• Africa South Africa
• Characteristics
• 16 of population, 20 of land
• Lower incomes standard of living than Most
  Indus. Nations
• Do have electricity, indoor plumbing autos,
  telephones, food, life expectancy higher than
  L.I.N.
• More poverty illiteracy than in M.I.N.

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Least Industrialized Nations

• Location
• Central America Cuba
• South Am Peru, Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivia
• Africa most
• Asia China, N. Korea, Pakistan, India ,
  Afghanistan,
• Middle East Lebanon, Iraq, Iran
• Oceania New Guinea, Philippines, Indonesia,
  Vietnam
• Characteristics
• Most living on less than 1,000/yr.
• Street children in sewers
• Nor running water, indoor plumbing
• No trained doctors, central water supply
• Fast population growth because infant mortality
  reduced by imported medicine, but births still
  high

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How Nations Become Stratified?

• Colonialism
• World systems theory
• Globalization of capitalism
• Culture of poverty

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How Nations Become Stratified?

• Colonialism
• First to industrialize had advantage
• Invested in transportation armies
• Political colonialism pattern of European
  nations
• Economic colonialism pattern of U.S.
• Exploit people natural resources for benefit of
  dominant nation

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How Nations Become Stratified?

• World systems theory
• Immanuel Wallerstein
• Industrialization led to 4 groups of nations
• Core nations
• Britain, France, Netherlands, Germany
• Industrialized rich, powerful
• Semiperiphery
• Mediterranean
• Depended on trade w/core
• Economic dev stagnated
• Periphery
• Eastern Europe
• Sold crops to core
• Less economic dev
• External area
• Africa, Asia (most)
• No capitalist economic dev

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How Nations Become Stratified?

• Globalization of capitalism
• Many nations now following principles of
  capitalism
• Production trade very interconnected
• Events/policies in one affect other nations
  revolutions, natural disasters, trade
  protectionist policies, etc.
• Culture of poverty explanation
• Oscar Lewis
• Way of life perpetuates poverty
• Mostly rural, subsistence agriculture
• Traditional ways more secure, no experimentation
• Religion encourages fatalism

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What did you learn?

• Write down two things you learned about
  stratification
• Share with the class