A Functionalist Perspective

678 Words3 Pages
A functionalist perspective on class stratification. Class stratification is a universal concept that is measured upon a hierarchy, a three tier system, upper, middle and lower class. Each social class has its own society of people who share similar economic positions, occupation, education and wealth. All societies are increasingly diverse and have their own inequalities, the three main inequalities in each society would be privilege, prestige and power. These three main p’s would determine where a person would fit into the social hierarchy. People are born into a caste system that ascribes them to their social position. Social mobility is possible within each layer on the hierarchy through an open caste system, this would allow a person to climb up and down the hierarchy ladder through their achieved status, whether it be success or failure. If they are born into a closed caste system, then movement between the strata is highly unlikely as they tend to be ranked by their ascribed status thus defining their social position over their lifetime. A functionalist’s perspective on class stratification is seen as a rose coloured view. Functionalists believe that stratification is beneficial and positive to our society. They see societies and the major institutions among them to be inter-dependant and inter-connected. They depend on institutions playing a function in society which maintains order and stability. Whether it be the family, education, religious, economic or political institutions. Functionalists use an organic analogy otherwise known as the human body analogy to compare society to the human body. They argue that all parts of society need to work together in order for society to maintain consensus. If one body part stops functioning correctly then the rest of the human body will be affected. An example in society would be if the education system was failing
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