1. Social Stratification

2. Almost all societies have a way of separating groups by certain characteristics. This separation could be based on ancestry, race, age, physical appearance, gender, educational attainment and occupation.

3.   Social Stratification – –Division of society into categories, ranks or classes

4. 2 Stratification Systems   Caste System 1. 1.A person’s status is assigned at birth 2. 2.Scarce resources and social rewards are distributed on the basis of ascribed status 3. 3.This is determined by the status of the parents 4. 4.Problems with the caste system: if one person marries and has children with a person from another caste, whose system is that child assigned?

5.   Exogamy – –Marriage outside one’s own social category – –Is forbidden in the caste system   Endogamy – –Marriage within one’s own social category

6. Example – Five castes in India  Brahmans –Priests, scholars  Kshatriyas –Rulers, nobles, soldiers, landowners  Vaisyas –Merchants, bankers, business people  Sudras –Laborers, artisans  Harijans –Outcastes, limited to the most undesirable tasks –Once known as the Untouchables

7.  As of 2003, –More than 160 million people in India are considered "Untouchable” –"Dalits are not allowed to drink from the same wells, attend the same temples, wear shoes in the presence of an upper caste, or drink from the same cups in tea stalls," said Smita Narula, a senior researcher with Human Rights Watch, and author of Broken People: Caste Violence Against India's "Untouchables."

8. 2 Stratification Systems  Class System 1.Scarce resources and social rewards are distributed on the basis of achieved status 2.Individuals have some control over their place in stratification system

9. 3.Karl Marx defined social class in terms of who owns the means of production, which are the materials and methods used to produce good and services  Divided into 2 basic groups: –Bourgeoisie: the owners of the means of production –Proletariat: the workers who sell their labor in exchange for wages 4.Max Weber believed that class consists of three factors: property, prestige and power

10. Weber’s View  Max Weber’s view is adopted by most sociologists today  Social Class –A grouping of people with similar levels of wealth (property), power and prestige

11. A.Wealth (property)  Made up of assets  The value of everything the person owns  And made up of income  Money earned through salaries, investment returns, and other capital gains  In the US, wealth is concentrated overwhelmingly in the hands of a small minority of the population

13. B.Power  Is the ability to control the behaviors of others, with or without their consent  Can be based on force, the possession of a special skill or type of knowledge, particular social status, personal characteristics or custom and tradition

14. C.Prestige  Is the respect, honor, recognition or courtesy an individual receives from other members of society  Can be based on any characteristics a society or group considers important  Examples – income, occupation, education, family background, area of residence, possessions and club memberships are the most common factors that determine prestige  Occupation tends to be the most important determinant of prestige

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16.  Socioeconomic Status (SES) –A rating that combines social factors such as educational level, occupational prestige and place of residence with the economic factor of income