Social System

in the UK
Family and Class
 Family Types
• Todd (1990) provides the characterization of family types based on a) how parents and children

interact and b) the nature of the relationship between siblings.

• It results 5 types of family:

a. Absolute nuclear (children leave home when reaching adulthood and one child (esp. The oldest
son) inherits parent’s properties.

b. Egalitarian nuclear (Equal division of inheritance among children)

c. Stem family (Extended families with several generations living under one roof. The properties are
inherited by the son who stays at home and holds the authority)

d. Incomplete stem family (Equal division of inheritance)

e. Communitarian family (both authority and equality are strong)

Family types in the UK
 Marriage
• Religious marriage = conducted by authorized religious celebrant

• Civil marriage (since 1753) = legally registered

• Same-sex marriage (Marriage Act of 2013)

• Common law marriage (unrecognized in law) = cohabiting couple

• Royal marriage (Marriage Act of 1772) = the wedding of the royal

family members

• Divorce (Matrimonial Causes Act of 1973)

 Medieval wedding
• Religiously and traditionally

• Men were able to choose their bride, women did

not have a choice (arranged).

• Marriage was primarily a politic and economic

transaction and the most efficient way to
accumulate resources and solidify social bonds
between families.

• Consanguinity (too closely related) is prohibited to

marry.

• The legal age is 12 for girls and 14 for boys.

• No different traditions from today’s wedding.

 Early modern wedding
• To complete the wedding, the bride and
groom said their vows in the present tense
(spousal)

• The couple should be of similar age,

background, financial circumstances and
religious beliefs.

• The key quality in a woman was an ability to

run the household efficiently.

• A husband is a“ruler” over his wife, children

and servants.
 Marriage Acts
In 2004, the acts becomes Civil Partnership Acts.

• Marriage Act of 1753 (all wedding must be conducted by a minister in Church

to be legal; No marriage of a person under the age of 21 was valid without the
consent of parents or guardians)

• Marriage Act of 1836 (the non-conformists and Catholics can be married in

their own places of worship)

• Marriage Act 1929 (the age limit for marriage is to 16 for both sexes)

• Marriage Act 2013 (Equal civil rights for same-sex couple)

Social Stratification
(Class) in the UK
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 Feudal system in medieval period

• In the medieval period, a feudal system is based on military

and landownership (the elites were then called the
aristocrate) Monarch

Nobles & Church Official

Knights

Peasants & servants

 Monarch and Peerage
• Monarch means the King, the Queen, and other royal family members.

• In adressing the monarch members, peerage is used based on the rank. Those
are:

1. Dukes and Duchess

2. Marquesses and Marchioness

3. Earls and Countess

4. Viscount and Viscountess

5. Baron and Baroness

 Landownership
• All the land in the kingdom is belonged to
the monarch.

• King granted land to his most important

nobles, church, and knights.

• Most nobles and wealthy knights lived in

manor house (large estate including housing
and farmland), while the monarch
themselves lived in castle.

• Peasants who worked for them (Servant)

lived with their Lords (Nobles and Knights).
 Feudal System in Industrial
Revolution
• The social stratification in the industrial revolution age is
divided into: Upper class, middle class, and lower class.
Upper Class Upper-upper Class (heritage)
(Aristocrate) Lower – upper Class (investment)

Upper-middle class (high income)

Middle Class
Lower middle class (lower income)
Skilled working class
Working Class Unskilled working class

No work (government support)

People called them ‘Chav’
Lower Class
 Stratification in 21th Century
(BBC Reports in 2013 about social class)

• Elite • The wealthiest and most privileged

• Established Middle Class • Socialise with a wide variety of people
and take part in wide variety of cultural
• Technical Middle Class activities
• New Affluent Workers • Work in science an tech
• Traditional Working Class • Economically secure without being well-
• Emergent Service Workers off
• Precariat • The oldest age average group, own a
home, work in low-average income job
as driver, cleaner, etc.
• The youngest age average group, not
financially secure
• The poorest and lives from government
support.