Social stratification,

Social class,
Social mobility
 Learning Outcomes :

 Explain the concept social stratification

 Explain the concept social class
 Describe the six (6) basic social classes in a
society
 Discuss wealth, power and prestige (as
classified by Max Weber as categories of
importance in social stratification)
 Critically discuss the effect of social
stratification on health and life expectancy of
an individual
 Introduction:
 In all societies there is differentiation of the
population by age, sex and personal
characteristics.
 The roles and privileges of children differ from
those of adults; and those of good hunters or
warriors differ from those of rank and file.
 Strictly speaking, there are no purely
equalitarian societies, only societies differing in
degree of stratification.
 Even Russia which dream of a ‘classes
society’, could not, any more than any other
society escape the necessity of ranking people
according to their functions.
 All societies exhibit some system of hierarchy
whereby its members are placed in positions
that are higher or lower, superior or inferior, in
relation to each other.
 The concept of ‘social stratification’ is made
use of to refer such classification or gradation
and placement of people in society.
 Through this process of stratification people
are fixed in the social structure of the society. •
Stratification assumes three main forms: caste,
race and class.
 Meaning

 All societies arrange their members in

terms of superiority, inferiority and
equality.
 The vertical scale of evaluation, this
placing of people in strata or layers is
called stratification.
 Those in the top stratum have power,
privilege and than those below.
 All societies differentiate members in
terms of roles and all societies
evaluate roles differently.
 The persons who perform the more
highly esteemed roles are rewarded
more highly.
 DEFINITION
 According Raymond W. Murray: “Social
Stratification is horizontal division of
society into ‘higher’ and ‘lower’ social
units.”
 According to Gilbert: “Social Stratification is
the division of society into permanent
groups or categories linked with each other
by the relationship of superiority and
subordination.”
 According to Kurt B. Mayer: “Social
Stratification is, a system of differentiation
which includes social positions whose
occupants are treated as superior, equal or
inferior relative to one another in socially
important respect.”
 According to Lundberg: “A stratified society
is one marked by inequality, by difference
among people that are evaluated by them
as being ‘lower’ and ‘higher’.
 Johnson (1986:315) describes SOCIAL
STRATIFICATION as the social structures
which provide wealth, power and status
unequally among the members of different
social classes.
 It is a process in the sense that people
classify themselves with regard to different
status groups and associate themselves
with the relevant wealth, power and
prestige.
 Characteristics

 It is social
 It is ancient
 It is universal
 It is in diverse forms
 It is consequential
It is social
Stratification is social in the sense, it does
not represent biological caused inequalities.
 It is true such factors as strength,
intelligence, age and sex can often serve as
the basis on which statuses or strata are
distinguished.
It is ancient
According to historical and
archaeological records, stratification
was present even in the small
wandering bands.
It is universal
The stratification is a worldwide
phenomenon.
It is in diverse forms
The stratification has never been uniform in all the
societies.
The ancient Roman society was stratified into two
strata: the patricians and the plebeians,
The ancient Aryan society into four Varnas:
Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Sudras,
The ancient Greek society into freeman and slaves
 The ancient Chinese society into the
mandarins, merchants, farmers and the
soldiers and so on.
 Class, caste and race seem to be the
general forms of stratification to be found in
the modern word.
 But stratification system seems to be much
more complex in the civilised societies.
It is consequential
The stratification system has its own
consequences.
The most important, most desired and often the
scarcest things in human life are distributed
unequally because of stratification.
 The system leads to two main kinds of
consequences: life chances and life styles
 ‘Life-chances’ refer to such things as infant mortality,
longevity, physical and mental illness, childlessness,
martial conflict, separation and divorce.
 ‘Life-styles’ include such as – the mode of housing,
residential area, one’s education, means of
recreation, relationship between the parents and
children, the kind of books, magazines and TV
shows to which one is exposed, one’s mode of
conveyance and so on
 Forms of social stratification

 Caste
 Class
 Race
 Caste system

 The caste system in unique to India

The caste system, the joint family system and
the village system of life are often regarded as the
three basic pillars of the Indian social system.
 The caste system as a form of social
stratification is peculiar to India.
The caste is an inseparable aspect of the Indian
society.
 It is particularly Indian in origin and
development.
 There is no comparable institution
elsewhere in the world for the caste
system.
 It may found in other country, but the
caste system which we understand
today with all its peculiarities is found
in India alone.
Caste is embedded in the Indian Social
Structure
 Caste is closely connected with the Hindu
philosophy and religion, custom and tradition,
marriage and family, morals and manners,
food and dress habits, occupations and
hobbies, etc.
 The caste system is believed to have had a
divine origin and sanction.
It is endlessly supported by rituals and
ceremonies.
 It is a deep-rooted and long-lasting
social institution of India.
 In India, we can find more than 2800
castes and sub-castes.
 Of these, the major caste (varnas) such
as Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and
Shudras are found in almost all the
states.
The Origin of the word ‘Caste’
The term ‘caste’ is derived from the
Spanish (also Portuguese) word ‘caste’
meaning ‘breed’ or ‘lineage’.
 The Portuguese used the term ‘caste’
first to denote the divisions in the Indian
Caste system. • The word ‘caste’ also
signifies ‘race’ or ‘kind’.
 The Sanskrit word for caste is
‘Varna’ which means ‘colour’.
 Races and colour seem to be the
bases of Indian caste in addition to
the division of labour and
occupation.
 The popular equivalent of caste is
‘Jati’.
The origin of the caste system
According to the Chaturvarna doctrine,
the Hindu society was divided into four
main Varnas namely:
The Brahmins, the Kshatriyas, the
Vaishyas and the Shudras.
The Varna system which was prevalent
during the Vedic period was mainly based
on the division of labour and occupation.
 The Caste system owes its origin to the
Varna system.
 The present caste system can be said
to be the degenerated form of the
original Varna system.
Varnas which were four in number and
castes which are found in hundreds and
thousands are not one and the same.
Origin of Caste system
• It is difficult to trace the origin of caste system – it
originated in India – various theories to explain the origin
of caste system.
Racial theory
Political theory
Occupation theory
Traditional theory
Guild theory
 Religious theory
Evolutionary theory
Racial theory (Varna)
 According to Mazumdar Caste system originated after
the arrival of Aryans in India.
Indo-Aryans used the term ‘Varna’ which means ‘colour’.
In order to differentiate the groups of people.
They called it Dasa Varna – Dasa people.
Rigvedic literature stresses very significantly the
difference between the Arya and Dasa, not only in their
color but also in their speech, religious practices, and
physical features.
 They divided Brahma, Kshatra and Vaishya – Sudra on
the basis of Varna (race).
 
 
Political theory
Caste system is a clever device invented by the
Brahmins in order to place themselves on the highest
ladder of social hierarchy.
Ghurye states, Caste is a Brahminic child of Indo-
Aryan culture cradled in the land of the Ganges and
then transferred to other parts of India.
Brahma, Kshatra and Vaishya - Dvija (twice born)
Sudra - Ekjati (once born)
Based on their duties.
Occupational theory
Occupation is the base for the origin of caste
system.
Those who carried out better and respectable
profession were considered superior.
Nesfield views – Functions and Function alone
is responsible for the origin of caste structure in
India.
Occupational differentiation and numerous sub-
caste such as lohar, sonar, chamar, nai, mali etc.,
Traditional Theory
The caste system is of divine (godly) origin.
 According to this theory castes were
created by Brahma in order to make human
beings to harmoniously (part of body)
perform various social functions necessary
for the maintenance of society.
Guild theory
Denzil Ibbetson, Consider that caste are
modified forms of guilds.
 It is the product of interaction of three forces
Tribes • Guilds • Religion
The priests followed hereditary and
endogamous group.
The other guilds also adopted the same
practices and in course of time became caste.
 
Religious theory
Hocart and Senart are the two main
advocates of religious theory.
Hocart, its originated on account of
religious principles and customs.
Senart, has tried to explain the origin of
caste system on the basis of prohibitions
regarding sacramental food.
 
 Evolutionary theory
  This theory reveals that the caste system did not
emerge all of a sudden or at a particular date it
evolved gradually factors responsible for the
evolution of caste system are:
Hereditary occupation
 the intention of the Brahmins to keep themselves
pure
beliefs in the ideas of karma and rebirth
ideas of exclusive family, ancestor worship and
the sacramental meal
 

   racial clashes and colour

prejudices
 geographical isolation of Indian
peninsula
 static nature of Hindu Society
 foreign invasions
 Rural economic structure
 Social class system
  Introduction
  Social Class’ is a principal type of
social stratification found especially in
the modern civilised countries.
 If the caste system is found to be
unique to India, the class system is
universal in nature.
 Sometimes, the word ‘class’ is used to
represent groups of professors, artists,
engineers, doctors, students, etc.
 Social class system
 

   The word ‘class’ is also used to

refer the quality of the things
whether good, better, best, and so
on.
 But the concept of ‘social class’ is
more used in sociology representing
a kind of social stratification than
anything else.
 Definition
 
 P. Gisbert – A social class is ‘a
 
category or group of persons having
a definite status in society which
permanently determines their relation
to other groups’.
 Ogburn and Nimkoff – ‘A social class
is the aggregate of persons having
essentially the same social status in
a given society’.
 Definition
 MacIver and Page – ‘A social class
 

  is any portion of the community

marked off from the reset by social

status’.
 Max Weber – social classes are
aggregates of individuals ‘who
have the same opportunities of
acquiring goods, the same
exhibited standard of living’.
 
 
  Warner and Lunt in their study of New England
 
town (their book being “The Social Life of a
Modern Community), have divided each of the
traditional classes into two sub-classes.
The Upper-Upper class
The Lower-Upper class
The Upper-Middle class
The Lower-Middle class
The Upper-Lower class
The Lower-Lower class
Characteristics
  of social class
    Mode of feeling
 In a class system we may observe three modes
of feelings.
Feeling of equality in relation to the members of
one’s own class.
Feeling of inferiority in relation to those who
occupy the higher status in the socio-economic
hierarchy.
Feeling of superiority in relation to those who
occupy the higher/lower status in the hierarchy.
•
  Mode of living

  A social class is distinguished from other classes by its
 
customary modes of behaviour or mode of behaving.
 This is often referred to as the ‘life-style’ of a particular
class.
 ‘life-style’ or the modes of living include such matters as
the mode of dress, the kind of house and neighbourhood
one lives in, the means of recreation, the cultural
products one is able to enjoy, the kinds of books,
magazines and TV shoes etc
 Element of prestige
  
 
Status is associated with prestige.
 

 The relative position of the class in the

social set up arises from the degree of
prestige attached to the status.
This, the status and the prestige enjoyed by
the ruling classes or rich classes
  Element of stability
 
 A social class is relatively a stable group.
 It is not transitory nor unstable like a crowed or
a mob.
 Though status in the case of class is subject to
change, it is to some extent stable.
 Status in the case of class may undergo radical
changes in extraordinary circumstances i.e., in
times of wars, revolutions, economic, political
and social crisis and so on.
 It is an open group
   Social classes are ‘open groups’.
 An open class system is one in which vertical social
mobility is possible.
 This means there are no restrictions, or at the most only
very mild restrictions are imposed on the upward and
downward movement of individuals in the social
hierarchy.
 It is an economic group
 The basis of social classes is mostly economic, but they
are not mere economic groups or divisions.
 Social Mobility

  Social mobility is the movement of people

up or down the stratification system.
 It can also be defined as the act of moving
from one social class to another.
 Class systems allow for more movement
than slave or caste systems.
 It is quite difficult to achieve upward social
mobility
 Social Mobility
Social mobility is the movement of
 
people up or down the stratification
system.
It can also be defined as the act of
moving from one social class to
another.
 Class systems allow for more
movement than slave or caste systems.
 Social Mobility

 
Types of Social Mobility
1)Territorial Mobility – It is the change of
residence from one place to another.
2) Vertical Mobility - Refers to a major
movement up or down in social class
position.
 Social Mobility

3)  Horizontal Mobility - Refers to

movement within a social class. In
general, there is no overall change in
the social class status of an individual
involved.
 Social Mobility
 Marx and class conflict
  • Karl Marx was very interested in class relations in
capitalist societies.
• Class was determined solely by one’s relation to the
means of production.
 Max Weber, position in a stratification system was not
based on economics alone: social status was also
significant.
• Weber’s multidimensional approach is attractive to
those who believe that social prestige and power can
be independent of economics.
 Social Mobility

Functionalist
  Approaches
• Functionalist theorists attempt to
understand what role inequality plays in
keeping society at equilibrium.
• David and Moore (1945) argued that
stratification benefited society by ensuring
that the most important roles would be filled
by the most talented and worthy people
 

Thank you and God Bless…