Examine the argument that social identities are often characterised by inequality. Introduction There are many ways to look at identity and what it means for us as an individual and as a social group. A Social identity is given by connections to other people and social situations. Some of these identities are given to the immediate situation which is liable to change. However it’s when others choose an identity for an individual or a group because of their circumstances that we get negative value identity or in equal identity.
It implies there are inequalities that are society rather than biological factors. The hierarchies of stratification are class, race, and gender. They place individuals in certain groups and reward them with certain resources. The documentary “Waiting for Superman” related to our discussion on social stratification. In the film social class was represented.
Social class may also refer to any particular level in such a hierarchy.” Sociologists have given a threefold classification of classes which consists of upper class, middle class and working class. Social class, in regards to sociology usually refers to the primary system of social stratification. Social stratification is “the presence [in society] of distinct social groups which are ranked one above the other in terms of factors such as prestige and wealth.” (Haralambos and Holborn.
It is believed that society is made up of many parts to work together to make it function as a whole. Emile Durkheim believed that each person in society as a whole had their own part to contribute to make society function. Furthermore it was deteremined that when everyone did their part society functioned “normal” versus “abnormal” when certain parts were not in synch with the whole. Conflict Theory is the belief that society consists of groups that are competing for resources that are scarce. In this theory, there is almost always a struggle for power with the wealthy usually winning while the poor loose and therefore have less resources.
They are interconnected systems of inequality. Matrix of domination Families can be a place to resist inequality Social stratification: structured (socially patterned) inequality Groups are socially defined & treated unequally Class Persons occupying the same relative economic rank form a social class. Striking differences in income; growing gap between top 1/5 & bottom 1/5 Occupation is the most frequently used indicator of class. Determines income, opportunity, lifestyle Cultural explanations of class Each class is viewed as having a distinctive culture. Comparisons between the classes usually turn out to be “deficit” accounts of lower-status families.
Open systems are where people experience some changes in social position. Slavery is an extreme form of social inequality where one group of people s owned by other people. Three dimensions that Weber argues should be considered when examining social stratification are class, status, and power. Class is the degree of wealth that a person has. Status is a person’s social esteem or honor.
Review Questions What is the Davis-Moore thesis? It is a thesis that states social stratification has good consequences for society. They argued that societies have many different occupations or take in them and jobs differ in their importance to society. List and define three different systems of stratification in society. It's based off of wealth, property, and power.
It was an important event because so many people died when the ship sank, partly because of the lack of lifeboats, after the sinking no ship was allowed to set sail unless there were enough lifeboats for everyone on the ship. It was called one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters. I think that the titanic is still talked about because it’s a technological story, where everything seemed to be right with the ship then things went not only wrong, but so horribly wrong, so quickly that it captured people’s imagination at the time.
Sociology Essay Examine the extent to which social divisions are socially constructed. Use either gender or ethnicity to construct and illustrate your argument. The study of social divisions has dominated research within the social sciences since the nineteenth century. Individuals place themselves within the social divisions of class, gender, sex and sexuality, race and ethnic diversity, disability and mental illness. These social divisions are socially constructed.
Poverty and inequality exist in every developed culture and often are only patched in order for society to continue upwardly. Poverty and inequality in the United States exists for many reasons; reasons that very from the prospective lens. Interpretive theories in particular ask us to question our reality and its constructs. Interpretive theories require us to looks at the world as a social realm, one that we created and constantly change. Interpretive theories study the relationship between power and the construction of social roles as well as the invisible collection of patterns and habits that make up domination, (Delgado &ump; Stefanic, 2001).