Economy, Society and Cul-

tural Change
Mr. Jerry P. De Leon LPT

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THE ECONOMY AS FOUNDATION OF
SOCIAL LIFE
Mr. Jerry P. De Leon LPT
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Karl Marx, the father of scientific socialism, famously stated in his A Preface to a Critique of Political Economy
(1859), the most controversial assertion in sociology:

In the social production of their life, men enter into

definite relations that are indispensable and inde-
pendent of their will; these relations of production
correspond to a definite stage of development of
their material forces of production.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Karl Marx' point of view

• He stated that the different kinds of social relations

that are generated by the economic production of
human beings of a particular society shape the en-
tire life, beliefs, and activities of that society.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Karl Marx' point of view

• If a society remains feudal, people will always be

tied to the land and its economic structures. But
once they are freed and begin to work in factories,
they develop a different way of live, a different
worldview.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Class
Refers to relations among people who share the
same class interests in relation to the means of pro-
duction. It also shapes how people think about
themselves.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Capitalists
Those who own and monopolize
the means of the production
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Proletariat
Those who own nothing except to
sell their labor power in the market
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Class system
Individuals are positioned according to
their access to the means of production
and contribution to productive labor.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Class system
Individuals are positioned according to
their access to the means of production
and contribution to productive labor.
The Caste System

India
 Caste System
The word caste is derived from the Por-
tuguese casta meaning lineage, breed, or
race.
The caste system is a social hierarchy
in which society is divided into groups.
These groups determine what labor
you can do and your level of spiritual
purity.
 Caste System
• Placement in this social hierarchy is
based upon one’s birth. Essentially, you
fell into the same caste as your parents. BRAHMIN

• People cannot move up or down to

different castes or levels in their KSHATRIYA

lifetime.
• It was believed that your righteous life VAISHYA
and good karma brought about reincar-
nation to a higher caste and a wicked
life sent you lower in the caste system.
SUDRA

?????
 Caste System
The system is based upon the assumption that all people are not cre-
ated equal and is practiced today throughout Asia (e.g. India, Sri Lanka)
and Africa (Senegal, Rwanda, Nigeria).
 Origins of the Caste System
The Indian caste system is rooted in the religion of Hinduism.
It was also utilized by Aryan invaders four to five thousand years ago to enforce so-
cial control in India.
It is still a powerful influence of Indian life today in shaping economics, politics
and culture.
 Caste System - Levels
Brahmins
– These are the priests, scholars, and philosophers who
teach and study.
 Caste System - Levels

Kshatriyas
– These are the warriors,
rulers, and those concerned with
defense and administration of
the village or state.
 Caste System - Levels
Vaishyas
– These are the traders, merchants and people involved in
agricultural production.
 Caste System - Levels
Sudras
– These are the peasants and
common folk who make up the
laborers and servants for the
other
castes.
 Caste System – In Practice
It defined a person’s social universe
– Enforced restrictions on inter- marriage
It defined a person’s standard of
conduct
– Each caste had it’s own set of rules
 Caste System – In Practice
It defined a person’s expectations
– Determined what kinds of foods one may eat
It defined a person’s future
– Determined specific job or vocational roles
 Caste System – In Practice
• Because of the law of Karma, people do not resist the caste system.
• They believe they are there because of their actions in previous
lives.
• This encourages the individual to fulfill his role or duty of his or her
caste, because their position in the next life is sure to improve.
• If you did something outside your caste, you could be excommunicated
from your caste. That would cut you off from doing any work to support
yourself because you could only do the jobs allowed by your caste.
 Caste System – Another
The “Untouchables” Level
– These are a group of people who had no caste at all. They are outcast from the rest of Indian soci-
ety.

BRAHMIN

KSHATRIYA

VAISHYA

SUDRA

“UNTOUCHABLES”
 Caste System – Another
The “Untouchables”
Level
– The untouchables were also made Unseeable,
Unapproachable and Unhearable. They live
separately from caste Hindus in slums. These slums
are rarely recognized as formal settlements by the
government and so lack basic services like educa-
tion, health, water hygiene, and no legal means of
forcing the government to take action.

B. Lietzke 14
Caste System – Another
Level
Caste System – Another
Level

“Untouchables”

Navsarjan
 The Importance of Economic
Structure

Status groups
These are normally communities as status refers to life
chances that are determined by social honor or prestige.
This is where people have distinguished themselves from
the "outsiders" when people who belong to status groups
from exclusive communities with strong boundaries.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Cultural capital

• It refers to the forms of knowledge, educational

credentials, and artistic taste that a person acquires
from family background, which give them higher
status in society.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Social capital

• It refers to resources based on group membership,

relationships, and networks of influence and
support.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Symbolic capital

• It is the "the acquisition of a reputation for

competence and an image of respectability
and honorability.
 The Importance of Economic
Structure
Max Weber defined class a category of individual who:

• Have in common a specific casual component of their life

chances
• His component is represented exclusively by economic
interests in the possession of goods and opportunities
for income
• It is represented under the conditions of the commodity
or labor market
 THANK YOU

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