Class (Lecture 18&19) Flashcards
Wealth Distribution
Measure differences in TOTAL WEALTH, including pension funds, housing, other assets, as well as cash
Income Distribution
Measures DIFFERENCES in annual income from (eg: wages, investments) in a particular year
Stratification
- Any system of ranking people in society, as manifest in objectively-identifiable ways
- May include political, gendered, ethnic or economic forms
Strata (Forms of Stratification)
- Ranks society as a whole by one principle (eg: wealth) them compares people as statistical groups (quantiles, eg: top 20&)
- Strata just statistical constructs of the sociologist: no claims of objective unity
Class (Forms of Stratification)
- Describes certain shared economic features or situations of a group– characteristics that they have in common
- Class based on certain objective features about social structure: QUALITATIVE, not quantitative
Group (Forms of Stratification)
- Self-identifies groups (aristocracy, artists etc..) gain power by seizing certain instruments of social control or sources of wealth
- groups define selves: they exist because members perceive a unity of interests
Quantile
- Statistical units of identical sized chunks of population, used to compare across social hierarchy
- Usually given specific name (based on latin numbers) depending on size of group (eg: deciles are groups of 10% of society)
Class
- Your economic position in society, as defined by certain objective criteria– which differ between theorists
- All those in the same class position share these features; the boundaries between classes aren’t just arbitrary
Davis-Moore Hypothesis
- To ensure certain difficult bu necessary positions are filled, society rewards those who do them very highly. This attracts most talented to do such jobs
- Inequality is therefore FUNCTIONAL; it creates a hierarchy that benefits everyone
Life Chances
The opportunities open to an individual or chances they will be able to climb the social hierarchy, depending on their class origin
Poverty
Extreme low-income; inability to buy necessities
Absolute Poverty
Poverty measured by universal standard (eg: ability to get food and shelter)
Relative Poverty
Poverty compared to other members of society (eg: how far behind richness are you?)
Poverty Trap
- Any self-reinforcing (often structural) mechanism that makes it hard for people to escape poverty once they’ve fallen in to it
- May affect people or even whole countries
Food Desert
- Area without easy access to foods required for a healthy diet (eg: fresh fruit and veggies)
- Technically, significant number of households more than 1 mile (urban) or 20 miles (rural) from groceries
Underclass
The long-term poor; those stuck in a position of poverty or unemployment with few prospects for getting out
Culture of Poverty
- Oscar Lewis’ term for values, norms and behaviour patterns of some urban poor, which left them ill-suited to urban life
- Often embraced hedonism, accepted marginalized status, didn’t see selves rising
Differential Association
Theoretical explanation for crime suggesting it’s learned by associating with other criminals with those who hold law in contempt
Delinquent
- An ill-disciplined individual; petty criminal, perhaps including minor public disorder
- Someone not really ‘trained’ to lead responsible life of good, hardworking citizen
Marx on Class
- Class is STRUCTURAL; it’s defined as a specific position within a system of social relations, defined by ownership or means of production
- Class is central–> other forms of inequality are derived from class
Weber on Class
- Class is defined by your MARKET situation, what resources do you have to get what you want?
- Economic class is only one form of inequality, and can itself be shaped by other forms
Mode of Production
- The way a society is organized in order to produce the things its members need
- Based on ECONOMIC organization around existing technology for getting food
- other social relations depend on economy
Class Relations
Specific positions within a mode of production, defined by OWNERSHIP of means of production and the relations between people in different positions
Post-Industrial Society
Used to describe modern Western societies, which were formally industrial centres, but which have now transitioned to service economies with less manual labor
Privileges
Particular rights or opportunities permitted only to members of certain groups (eg: right to join a particular club, marry a prince)
Closure
Strategic monopolization of access to privileges for all except members of your own group (eg: male-only clubs–> often uses law)
Status Inconsistency
- An individual’s rank in one class system may differ from his/ her rank in another
- Often leads to anxiety or radicalism
Divisions of Labour
Each worker performs a single, highly-specialized role for whole, instead of making a product on his own, like traditional artisans
Taylorism or Scientific Management
- Aims at absolute maximum efficiency in the workplace, especially factories
- Trains workers to follow exact procedures and ‘manages’ them like machines
Deskilling
Reducing the level of skill or specialization required to perform or a advanced division of labour to replace skilled works
Non-standard Work Agreements
- so called ‘McJobs’ short term, low skill jobs with limited future prospects
- Often involved part-time work multiple jobs lack of security–> may be self employed
Monopoly Capital
Giant corporations that dominate economy, excluding small businesses and leaving workers with few options but to work for them
Alienation
- Feeling of distance from your life, work, other people, leading to sense of having no control
- Marx comes from treating labour as a commodity to be bought and sold
Class Interests
• The goals and desires of people as defined by their position within a class system
Exploitation
- Using a position of strength to compel someone in a position of weakness to given you something they otherwise wouldn’t
- Profiting at expense of another
Labour Union
Organization of workers for collective bargaining of pay, defence of rights against employer, provision of other services to workers
Class conflict
• Social struggles caused by conformation of interests between structurally-defined classes
Class Conscious-ness
BOTH an individual’s awareness of being a member of particular class, and self- identity of class member and a class’s awareness of its real group interest in long run
Classless Society
A society in which all class conflicts are resolved by the abolition of class. The ‘means of production’ are in everyone’s hand, so no one has power over others
