Social Stratification v Social Stratification a system by

Social Stratification v Social Stratification = a system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy v Social stratification divides a society into different strata or layers v Social stratification is a form of social inequality v All societies arrange their members in terms of superiority and inferiority according to socially approved criteria which determines who gets what, when, and why Social stratification as a critical analysis of boarder social groups

Social Stratification Cont v Horizontal layers found in rock, called “strata, ” are a good way to visualize social structure v Society’s layers are made of people, and society’s resources or privileges are distributed unevenly throughout the layers v Lower ranked members tend to be denied the same privileges as those in higher strataincluding equal access to

“Rank” v When determining an individuals ‘rank or category’ the way or criteria used will vary culturally BUT, can include: v Age v Gender or Sex v Class v Ethnicity/ Race/ Culture/ Religion v Physical Dis/Ability v Income v Education v Sexuality Each criterion can have its own rank and subcategory depending on the society

Measurements v 3 Main Degrees of stratification can be measured by: v Wealth (income) financial resources, material possessions, potential for future earnings v Power Ability to reach personal, financial & professional goals despite obstacles v Status Social esteem others hold for an individual

Influence v Disagreement on which of the degrees of stratification are most influential to a person v Recognize that power, wealth and status are perceived uniquely cross- culturally v Canada: individuals gain wealth and status and in some cases power from professions or employment (impacts ones socioeconomic status) v Masai People: a man, and his family gains wealth and status from the size of his family (wives & children) and the size of the cattle herd his family maintains

WHO CARES which degrees of stratification are most influential to a person! “Society tells us that these are the goals we should seek [attaining high levels of wealth, status and power]…But society isn't so fair about how the means of accomplishing them are distributed” – HEY THAT’S NOT TRUE! v In Canada, the dominant ideological presumption about social inequality is that everyone has an equal chance at success a. k. a- equality of opportunity v Everyone can pursue economic or social rewards by working hard- meritocracy v “Kinship ties only take you so far in large scale societies ” because you can work hard v But this is not always the case !! Not everyone has a similar level of wealth, status, and power or access to resources everyone's starting point or condition is not the same

Origins of Stratification? v Transition from hunter/gatherer societies to horticultural/pastoralist societies v Characteristics of hunter/gatherer societies v Food gathering and food production was the focus v v People hunted, fished, grew and collected all their food v People were in small groups and were nomadic v Little trading occurred- everyone possessed basically the same things v The division of labour was small- everyone did the same job Characteristics of horticultural/pastoralist societies v Bigger groups of people in the same place v Primary means of substance are domesticated livestock and the cultivation of crops using hand tools v Surplus of food- permanent places of residence

Why is there still Stratification? v Theories on why there is STILL stratification: v Functionalist theory: Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore (1945) v Inequality is necessary for the maintenance or functioning of complex societies It is necessary and inevitable v Various professions or specializations are required and needed but all have different statuses v To entice the best people to do difficult professions, there must be a reward at the end of the road- such as: high pay or high status v Usually professions that require a lot of time (many years of education and training) and sacrifice (personal and financial)

Which would YOU choose? Imagine living in a society where shining shoes and doing brain surgery both give us incomes of $150, 000 per year. If you decide to shine shoes, you can begin making this money at age 16, but if you decide to become a brain surgeon, you will not start making this same amount until about age 35, as you first must go to college and medical school and then acquire several more years of medical training. While you have spent 19 additional years beyond age 16 getting this education and training and taking out tens of thousands of dollars in student loans, you could have spent these 19 years shining shoes and making $150, 000 a year, or $2. 85 million overall. Which job would you choose?

Functionalist Theory Cont v Problems with Functionalist theory: v We don’t always reward the professions most involved in maintaining society- hockey player vs. nurse v Ignores barriers to achieving the high- prestige professions ethnic minorities, women, people from low- socioeconomic strata's v Assumes that everyone is motivated to seek highest paying, status jobs– what about desire for meaningful work and helping others

v v v Why is there still Stratification? Conflict Theory: Karl Marx v Emphasizes conflict between those in the upper levels of society who fight to maintain the status quo and those in the lower levels who struggle for a more equitable division of wealth, power and status v People in power use their influence within government, industry, education and religious institutions to keep others satisfied with their lower status v People of high status convinced others that if they failed to reach high status it was their fault because they didn't’t work hard enough Problems with Conflict Theory: Ignores: v personal choice v ability v effort

Race Stratification v Race is socially constructed v Race is not a biological or genetic fact v Race is a term used to categorize groups of people according to biological or physical features v v Term emerged in the 18 th century as a way of justifying European colonial expansion and dominance over other groups of people- “people of colour” – Africans and Aboriginals The perception of racial differences is a powerful social force when a value or ranking system is prescribed v Dangerous and serious implications v Stereotyping/ Prejudice v Racism v Access to resources v Educational success rates

Race Strafication v Race is learnt- we are not born seeing differences between races+ v The media socializes us to see and hear race in a specific way- Disney v https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=j. Hyz. Ab. V 6 nu. M v https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=PZry. E 2 bqwdk v Standards of beauty v Google the word ‘beauty’… try ‘pretty’

Class Stratification v A social class is defined as a category of individuals of equal or nearly equal prestige v Canada is a class society with labels such as: upper, middle and lower class which are generally tied to income levels v The class people belong to is earned through endeavor and is known as achieved status v Other societies may have more categories v Based on gender, ethnicity and even age, Canadians experience unequal access to education and employment opportunities which determine wealth and ensuring status v A caste is a special form of social class where membership is determined at birth and that caste is known as their ascribed status

Class Cont. . v v The Caste system in India: 4 main classes: v Brahmana: Consist of those engaged in scriptural education and teaching, essential for the continuation of knowledge v Kshatriya: Take on all forms of public service, including administration, maintenance of law and order, and defense v Vaishya: Engage in commercial activity as businessmen v Shudra: Work as semi-skilled and unskilled laborers Parallel in South Africa (past) v ‘Blacks’ were relegated to low- rankings v Could not marry non ‘Blacks’ v Could not hold certain property- prohibited from living with ‘Whites’ v Could not swim in same swimming pool or hold hands v Fear of pollution of their purity through improper contact with ‘Blacks’

Race Clarification Race Ethnicity ● Race is your biologically engineered features ● It can include skin color, skin tone, eye and hair color/ texture ● Ethnicity is about the learned cultural behaviors celebrated throughout regions around the world ● Institutionalized racism is a form of Systemic discrimination - maintaining a group of people on the margins of society with little collective power while privileging another group

Who has the Privilege? Who has the Privilege in our society? What does privilege look like in our day- to- day lives?

Naming of Privilege ● White privilege does not mean all white people are born into automatic money or power o It means white people are free from the systemic bias, suspicion, and low expectations ● Many white people are deeply uncomfortable with the naming of their privilege because they take it to be an indictment of their personal thoughts or actions o Rather white privilege arises from a larger system where social identity affects access to resources and opportunities It’s not about demonizing its about recognizing systemic oppression

Class Stratification ● A social class is defined as a category of individuals of equal or nearly equal prestige ● Canada is a class society with labels such as: upper, middle and lower class which are generally tied to income levels ● The class people belong to earned through endeavors and is known as achieved status o Other societies may have more categories to determine class (other than endeavors) § such as gender, ethnicity and even age ● A caste is a special form of social class where membership is determined at birth and that caste is known as their ascribed status

Other Parallel in South Africa (past) ● ‘Blacks’ were relegated to low- rankings ● Could not marry non ‘Blacks’ ● Could not hold certain property- prohibited from living with ‘Whites’ ● Could not swim in same swimming pool or hold hands ● Fear of pollution of their purity through improper contact with ‘Blacks’ ● Second class citizens

How is class manifested? Verbal evaluation- what people say about others in their own culture ● can be positive or negative ● each culture will do this differently and have different standards Patterns of association- not just about who interacts with whom but also how and in what context ● ex: corporate executive and a janitor are normally from different classes and their interactions will occur in the corporate office and will require certain stereotyped behaviours Symbolic Indicators- activities and possessions indicative of class ● Ex: having/ getting a tan ● straight teeth ● number of bathrooms in a house

In Sum. . Each stratification variable lives and happens within a context of connected systems and structures of power (e. g. , laws, policies, state governments and other political and economic unions, religious institutions, media) Inequities are never the result of single, distinct factors. Rather, they are the outcome of intersections of different social locations, power relations and experiences. INTERSECTIONALITY

This is the Devastating Reality we around us System of Domination, Oppression & Privilege that governs us The more we KNOW, the better we can fight against it and work towards Implementing CHANGE!