soci 4 Flashcards
Social inequalities
-we are not equal but can be treated with equity
-a function of many factors including ethnicity, race, gender, class
-existence of long term differences in access to goods and services among social groups
progression of human societies
-august comte
-3 stages
-1. theological stage: people fetishize things and believe in deities
-2. metaphysical stage: similar to theological stage but different in way of abstraction of belief in objective/concrete god
-3. positive stage:
scientific thinking is preeminent
growth and development of human society
-both signify progress
-growth is quantitative
-development is qualitative
nature and causes of wealth
-Adam smith
-insatiability of human wants
-utilization of resources
-enhanced productivity
-need to increase satisfaction
Thomas Hobbes
-astronomical population growth
-defends materialism–the view that only material things are real
-social contract (political philosophy)
Marx and webber
-main term to talk about social inequality is “class”
-class is relational and reflects the relationship of people
means of production
-the resources needed to produce goods
-means of production are capital
-the funds and properties necessary for large scale manufacturing and trading
2 relationships to the means of production
-the owner (aristocrats)
-bourgeoisie ( capitalists who own the means of production)
- petty bourgeoisie ( small time owners with little capital)
-the workers (peasants)
- proletariat ( class of workers who succeeded the peasant class of pre-industrialization era)
- lumpenproletariat (small time criminal , beggars, unemployed)
Dialectical materialism
-marx
-wrote at height of industrial revolution
-prevalence of laissez-faire market
-struggles between capitalist interests and workers rights
class as social identity
-class has a corporate identity
-shared sense of common purpose, class consciousness
-awareness of what is in the best interests of ones class
webers critique of Marx
-weber also saw society as divided into economic classes
-thought of social inequality as more about ownership than means of production
-stressed about 3 elements
wealth
power
prestige
wealth
-includes factories, properties used to make money and properties that are highly respected by members of society
ex. superbowl quarterbacks- flashy car, expensive house, trophy wife
prestige
-degree of respect of an individual, socially valued possessions, master statuses are viewed by majority of people in society
power
-ability of individuals or groups to achieve their goals despite the opposition of others
dominant capital class
-composed of those who own or control large scale production
middle class
-representing a mixed middle category of small business people, educated professionals, credentialed salaried employees and wage earners
Working class
-people who lack resources or capacities apart form their own labour power
class division and popular sport
-class and sport connected at professional and recreational levels
-sport that offer people form poor socio economic backgrounds opportunities to achieve financial rewards are called mobility sports
-ex soccer, basketball, boxing
social stratification
-describes society as though it is divided into a series of layers
stratum
-a group to which people belong on the bases of their income, education
strata
-used s units of analysis in stratified sampling, research method in which equal samples are drawn from each stratum of the population
quintile
-a segment or stratum, representing each of five equal groups into which the population is divided
-income for example, can be measured by comparing the income of quintiles
ideology
-a set of beliefs about society and the people in it
-usually forming the basis of a economic or political theory
dominant ideology
-set of beliefs put forward and supportive if the society’s dominant culture or class
-ex. trickle down theory- states that if wealthy are given the freedom to generate more wealth, others in society will benefit
neoliberal ideology
-dominant ideology that views individuals as independent players on the sociological scene
-downplays concerns over social inequality
-may relsut in blaming the victim
-reflects a belief of social mobility
counter ideology
-offers a critique of dominant ideology
-challenges it justice and its universal application to societies
-seek to create significant change
hegemony
-Antonio gramsci
-to explain the prevalence of the dominant ideology
-non coercive methods of maintaining power by the dominant class
global capitalism
-the global system is made up of the core countries (capital west), the semi peripheral countries of the emerging nations, and the periphery (least developed countries)
continued annexation and exploitation
-global inequalities are historical- the dominant west is depended on the wealth of the peripheries to develop right from slavery to colonialism, to Neo-colonialism
neo-colonialism
-the old strategies of colonialism have been rebranded in many ways through the agency of:
multinational companies
aids
non-transfer of technology
democracy education
poverty and excess
-one indicator of inequality in Canada is food banks
-use of them increased by 28% between 2008 and 2017
minimum wage
lowest hourly rate a person can be paid
easiest to replace
living wage
generally represents a target above minimum wage
considered too low for the working poor to live on
canadas 1%
-1% of the worlds pop controlled 99% of the worlds wealth
-highest paying eco earns more than 189 times that of average Canadian in 2010
-this number increasing suggesting that inequality is increasing
dependency theory
global capitalism, continued annexation and exploitation, Neo-colonialism
race
-spurious and controvertible categorization of humans that lack scientific backings
-promotes social inequalities
-development is hampered by racism and radicalizing tendencies
-first applied to humans during European colonial expansion in 16th and 17th centuries
-term reflects biological superiority and inferiority
-established that there is only one race-the human species
racialization
-social process in which human groups are viewed, judged in terms of their
intellect
morality
values
innate worth
-becuase of perceived differences in physical appearance and cultural herritage
visible minority
-defined as persons other than aboriginals who are non-white or non caucasian
master narrative
-story a nation tells about itself to celebrate its past and present
-evolves over time, reproduced
-often gloss over or omit certain unpleasant events that complicate the national self identity
race vs. ethnicity
race- something you are born into, based on how you look in relation to others
ethnicity -refers to membership of a cultural group that has roots in particular place in the world, distinctive cultural practices
study of ethnicity
-everyone belongs to atleast one ethnic group
-5 approaches to understand ethnic conflict
essentialism
postcolonialism
epiphenomenal
instrusmentalism
social constructivism
essentialism
-the view that every ethnic group is defined by a laundry list of traits carried down form the past to the present
-static view of ethnic culture
-culture does not change without the influence of outside forces
post colonialism
a framework that analyzes the impact colonialism has on both the colonizer and the colonized
colonialism
the economic and political exploitation of a weaker country or people by a stronger one
ethnicity as epiphenomenal
-describes a secondary effect that arises but does not causally influence, a separate phenomenon
-suggests that any ethnic conflict is just a byproduct of the struggle between economic classes
instrumentalism
-focuses on emerging ethnicity rather than on long established ethnic characteristics
-traditionally presented as opposite to essentialism and compatible with epiphenomenal
ethnic entrepreneurs
elite members who mobilize ethnicity for personal gain
social contructivism
the view that ethnicity is artificial
-explains how ethnicity is constructed by the elite
-looks at the motivation of the broader group not just the elites
indigenous in canada
-racialization began in 16th century
-they have been living in Canada for 14,000 years now
-93% of Canada history is indigenous
-indigenous studied as problems not founders
indigenous status
the people are defied by a complex system of legal statuses that separate them from non-indigenous people
-registered Indian, big-31, Indian, band member, reserve resident, treaty Indian ,Metis,eskimo
the black one thousand
late 19th century
-many blacks migrated west to be free from prejudice and discrimination
-by 1914 the settlement and migration on blacks had ceased because Wilfred Laurier made a declaration that prohibited any immigrants belonging to the negro race from settling in Canada
black pop today
-population has declined several times
-in the 1970s the black population began to increase consistently
-the third largest visible minority in the country are blacks
asian Canadians
-as of 2016 two-thirds of visible minority Canadians were of asian ancestry
-chinese immigrants began to settle on Canadas west coast in mid 19th century
head tax
-to stall undesirable Chinese immigration
-started at 50 and moved all the way up to 500
-dramatic effect on chinese immigration
-ratio of men to women was 28-1
-women not allowed to work in a place owned by an oriental
standpoint theory
-argues that the perspective sociological researchers bring to their work is strongly influenced by their social location, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation
W.E.B Du Bois
first black sociologist
studied problems concerning africans in the us and elsewhere
Daniel g hill
first black Canadian sociologist
went to uoft
intersectionality
-refers to the way different social factors- race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, age- combines to shape the experience of a minorities group
-developed by Kimberly Crenshaw and elaborated by Patricia hill collins
-dimensions fo inequality create an interlocking matrix of domination
racism and 4 linked elements
1.racialization: construction of certain groups of people as different and biologically superior or inferior
2. prejudice: pre-judgement of others on the basis of their group membership
3. discrimination: differential treatment-rewarded or punished- of individuals based on their group membership
4. power: manifested when institutionalized advantages are regularly handed to one or more group over others
different kinds of racism
- racial bigotry: open, conscious expression of racist views by an individual
- systemic or institutional racism: racist practices rules and laws have become institutionalized
- polite, smiling or friendly racism: racism hide behind smiles or words that seem friendly, microagressions
master narratives and buried knowledge
- racism is often downplayed or omitted in the master narratives that a country constructs about its history
-historical mistreatment, exploitations and destruction of minorities is excluded form textbooks
-colonialism is reframed as peaceful co-opperation
-foucault called this burried knowledge
carding and racial profiling
-racial profiling is often at play in the practice fo carding in which police stop, question and document people when no offence has been committed
