Central university of Kashmir

School of legal studies of law

Assignment on : Role is the

performance of status. ( Essay)
prepared and submitted by

Name :Aleena syed

Course : Ba . LLB (ist semister)

Email: eleenasaeed4@gmail.com

Submitted with regards to : Anil Kumar

Role is the status of

performance: The introduction of
status and role in the social sciences is often
credited to American anthropologist Ralf
Linton , who set forth the concept in his book
' The study of Man’ in 1963 . Linton did not
originate the concept , however GH Mead, G
simmel and others started using it in the
beginning of the twentieth century. Linton’s
conceptualisation of what was become role
theory has been so efficacious for structuring
research that scholars have continued to use
it even as they modified his ideas . Linton
defines status as a position in society .it is one
level of abstraction away from actual persons
. While individuals may hold certain statuses
,that is many people may occupy the same
status and status may persist longer than the
individuals who occupy it at any point in time
. The concept of status and role have a
growing significance in the social sciences .A
distinction between status and role is
simplified by Ralf Linton when he said you
occupy a status but you play a role . Every
position or status in society carries with it a
set of expected behaviour patterns . Status
and role are two sides of the same coin . The
concept of status and role are the initial tools
for the analysis of social structure . A status is
simply a position in society or in a group .
Every society and every group has many such
positions and every individual occupies as
many positions as there are groups to which
he belongs . Thus, each person holds a
number of positions in society known as
statuses . A woman might be a musician ,a
teacher, a wife and a mother . Each of there
social positions , with the rights and duties it
entails is status. Although a person may hold
a number of statuses , one of them which
might call a master status , defines the person
socially . Role refers to the behavioural
patterns, obligations and privileges of an
individual in a society. Role is the dynamic
aspect of the status . The functions which are
expected from an individual who holds
certain status as know as role expectations,
and the functions actually performed are
known as role taking.
Role performance is how a person expresses
his or her role . Sociologist Erving Goffman
presented the idea that a person is like an
actor on a stage calling his theory
dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use
impression management to present ourselves
to others as we hope to be perceived. Each
situation is a new scene and individuals
perform different roles depending on who is
present. Think about the way you behave
around your co workers ,the way you behave
with your grandparents versus the way you
behave with a blind date . Even if you are not
consciously trying to alter your personality,
your grandparents , co workers and blind
date probably see different sides of you .
Normally speaking status means a position of
a individual in a society. Social status refers to
the position that an individual occupies in a
particular social structure like social group or
society in general. In the concept of vertical
social stratification an individual is always
ranked as per his or her social status . Status
is always accompanied by a role which an
individual has to follow . Role is the expected
behaviour of an individual who holds a certain
status in the society . A status is associated
with roles , which Linton defines as a
collection of duties , which later scientists
expanded to mean behaviours . A farmer has
the right to own land and the duty to pay
taxes , and he is expected to behave in a way
that is deemed appropriate to these rights
and duties . The group of roles associated
with a status forms a role cluster . The basic
definition of status and role is so much a part
of the social science vocabulary , that authors
no longer bother to reference the literature.
We have studied the statuses of slaves ,
captive and human sacrifice , we also realized
that performing a role may be fulfilled in two
manners. A role may be active , that is, it is
performed under the person’s agency or
initiative . But a role may also be passive
Here a person is forced or coerced to
undertake a task . This distinction can often
differ greatly depending upon the particular
status_ rank combination under security .
Indeed , it appears that the role cluster varies
in its mix of active and passive roles
depending on the rank of the person in a.
Particular status . And we characterize the
roles associated with statuses from ruler to
slave as lining up along a continuum from
mostly active to mostly passive .we have
undertaken this inverse in the hope that a
status and role comparison of early status
would yield new insights into their nature .

Role is the dynamic aspect of the

status , role cannot be isolated from status .
Role is not found in vacuum it has a strong
cultural aspect . The normative aspect of role
is culture . There are no roles with out
statuses or statuses with out role . Just as in
the case of status ,the term role is also used
with a double significance .
Social roles as already stated, are in
accordance with the social values, ideals,
patterns etc. These ideals, values and objects
change and so the concept of the role also
changes. The role which is justified at a
particular time may not be justified at some
other time. Roles are allocated according to
the positions (called status) people occupy in
the social system . Each system has its own
set of role requirements .social groups
operates harmoniously and effectively to the
extent that performance conform to the role
requirements. Role is sociologically important
because it demonstrates how individual
activity is socially determined and thus
follows a regular pattern . The role is in fact
the action aspect of status . It involves
Various types of actions that person had to
perform in accordance with the exceptions of
the society . These actions are dependent not
on the individuals will but on the social
sanction , that is why it is said that every
social group has cultural basis It is not
possible for anyone to perform his role fully in
accordance with the expectations of the
society. There is bound to be some
distinctions. For example one may not be able
to perform his role to the full satisfaction of
the children. From the socio-cultural point of
view all the roles are not equally important.
Some of the roles are more important while
the others are less. The, roles that are most
important are called key roles while the roles
that are of general importance, are called
general roles . Status and Role are two highly
related concepts. Status always involves a
role expectation from the person enjoying the
status. Role is determined by the status of a
person. Status and Role are both determined
by socio-cultural values. Both are determined
in relation to other members of the society.
Similar statuses are found in various societies.
For example the status of a father in every
type of patriarchal society is more or less the
same. However, roles are expressed in
different forms; there are different role
expectations in different societies. Status can
be properly understood with reference to
social aspirations and ambitions. Role can also
be understood in the background of the social
aspirations and the ambitions and
requirements of the society . Status
represents only a part of the entire social
setup to which the individual member
belongs. Different statuses carry out different
roles. It means that different individuals
perform different roles. On the basis of status
and role, the whole society stands divided
into different groups. Each group is called a
particular status group. Persons belonging to
one status group have similarity of outlook.
Different persons belonging to even one
status group discharge their roles in a
different ways. The culture or the cultural
background to which a person belongs
attaches a value which is also known as
prestige. Role is discharged in relation to the
prestige of status or the value attached to it.
Members of different status groups are
divided into various categories and ranks,
may be vertically or horizontally. For example
a society that divides itself into different
castes, creates vertical hierarchical groups.

The difference that exists amongst various

brothers in the family is an example of
horizontal differentiation. It is not necessary
that the roles may also be differentiated or
divided into hierarchical order according to
the division of society into groups. Status can
be ascribed or achieved. Each, however,
involves the performance of a role. Roles are
discharged according to various statuses and
therefore, they have all the elements of
status.

References:

• Status and Role in Early States: a

Comparative Analysis .
• https://quizlet.com/14768904/status-
roles-role-sets-flash-cards/
• https://www.sparknotes.com/sociology/s
ociety-and-culture/section4/
• https://www.reference.com/world-
view/role-individual-society-
de1717591b9aad6b
• Adler, Patricia, Steven Kless and Peter
Adler. 1992. Socialization to Gender Roles:
• Popularity among Elementary School Boys
and Girls. Sociology of Education 65: 3:
• http://www.jstor.org/stable/2112807.
Accessed March 30, 2015
• Adams, Robert McC. 2010. Slavery and
Freedom in the Third Dynasty of Ur:
• Implications of the Gahanna Archives.
Cuneiform Digital Library Journal 2010: 2.
•
http://cdli.ucla.edu/pubs/cdlj/2010/cdlj20
10_002.html.
• YouTube .