Children play king of the mountain, with the stronger players trying to keep the weaker ones from taking possession of the top of a hill. Societies do the same thing, but they do it in much more complex ways. They divide themselves into segments or groups called classes that are based on differences between people. Class systems emerge because there is a human tendency to look upon differences as signs of inequality. France in the 17th century and Russia prior to 1917 had class systems in which the social boundaries were quite precise. Those at the top levels were acknowledged as having a higher status, or standing, than anyone else. In today's societies standing may be based on the possession of wealth, on membership in a specific ethnic group, on educational achievement, on family relationships, on position in the power structure, on occupation, or on other factors. The nature of class distinctions varies from country to country. In the United States, for example, much less significance is attached to family relationships than in Great Britain. Ethnic characteristics are a far more critical factor in the United States than they are in Brazil, and they are decisive in South Africa. Education is less significant as a basis of discrimination in the United States than it is in Germany, Sweden, or The Netherlands. Occupation, too, plays a less vital role in forming class distinctions in the United States than it does in many European nations, though some occupations—such as physician or scientist—may fluctuate in their social prominence. Class distinctions are nearly as old as organized human society. In the ancient world the chief distinction was between the few and the many. The few were society's rulers: kings and nobles, priests, and the military leadership. The many were the mass of citizens who did most of society's work. There was no group between these two social segments comparable to today's middle class. In the ancient Roman Republic, society was divided into two general classes: patricians and plebeians. In the early republic the patricians monopolized the political offices and the priesthood. The plebeians were the mass of citizens. They were originally excluded from holding nearly all public offices. By the time of the empire the distinction between the two classes had diminished greatly, though the term patrician continued to be used as a title of honor. During the Middle Ages European society gradually hardened into a fairly rigid class structure called feudalism. Within this society everyone had a distinct place and certain responsibilities—from the highest noble to the lowest serf (see Feudalism). Feudal society began to disintegrate when the economic revitalization of Europe created new classes of citizens independent of feudal obligations. The world's oldest and most rigid class arrangement is the caste system of India. It is an elaborate system of social and occupational ranking that has existed for more than 2,000 years (see India, “Caste”). Class distinctions were established in the first place because of the exercise of power and the accumulation of wealth by a few members of society. The social systems were perpetuated by inheritance and by law. During the late Roman Empire, laws were passed that attempted to lock individuals permanently into their occupations. These laws had the effect of creating classes of workers, whose trades were passed from one generation to another. Theories About ClassFrom the ancient world to the end of the Middle Ages, most writers approved of fairly rigid social classifications. One's function in society tended to fix status permanently. In Plato's ‘Republic' the philosopher proposed a society divided into three classes: guardians, auxiliaries, and workers. Aristotle also believed that the best society consisted of three classes: the rich, the poor, and a middle class larger than either of the others. Such a society, he believed, made the most stable political system by diminishing the clash of poverty with wealth. Discussions about and denunciations of social classes and inequality began in the 17th and 18th centuries because the aristocratic traditions of Europe were challenged by a new class of wealthy merchants and manufacturers. Members of the newly rich class could afford the same luxuries as the titled nobility, and they wanted to share political power as well. The English political theorist Thomas Hobbes believed that social equality would lead to economic competition. John Locke accepted a society divided between property owners and laborers. The French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau distinguished between natural inequalities and those that had been imposed artificially over a long period of time. Early in the 19th century two former United States presidents, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, in an exchange of letters, debated whether there was a natural aristocracy of talent. (The word aristocracy is from the Greek aristos, meaning “the best.”) Adams noted that “birth and wealth together have prevailed over virtue and talents in all ages.” Jefferson replied that “Science has liberated the ideas of those who read and reflect. . . . An insurrection has consequently begun of science, talents, and courage against rank and birth, which have fallen into contempt.” The most influential theoretician on social class was Karl Marx in his writings on socialism. According to Marx the basic distinction in all societies is between the owners of the means of production (capitalists) and those who do the actual work (wage laborers). He believed that there are other intermediate classes but that these two are the primary ones. From this division into two main classes, Marx concluded that history is the unfolding of class struggles. The outcome, through violent revolution, would be a classless society. (See also Communism; Socialism.) Early in the 20th century the German sociologist Max Weber made a distinction between class, status, and power. He argued that these three categories represent different forms of social hierarchy that do not necessarily coincide. Weber agreed with Marx that class is determined mainly by the ownership or nonownership of property. Status, however, is based on social honors, prestige, and style of living. Many modern celebrities, such as professional athletes and entertainers, would fall into this category. They are not capitalists in the Marxist sense, but they win great popular approval and have the wealth to support their exaggerated style of living. In Weber's third category, power, belong those who possess the means of command—the political and military segments. Weber had the advantage of writing after the completion of the Industrial Revolution. The old class structures of Europe were crumbling. Real power in society was coming into the hands of businessmen. Labor unions had emerged to challenge the power of capitalists. Wealth was being diffused throughout society, bringing more prosperity to a greater proportion of the population. The hard line that Marx perceived between capitalists and workers was slowly fading. Modern Social ClassesThe United Kingdom's Parliament is divided into the House of Lords and the House of Commons, making it evident that social rankings have been preserved (see Parliament). Yet, when the British Office of Population Censuses and Surveys analyzes its statistics, it does not use the traditional rankings. Rather it uses five broad categories of social class based on occupations. These are: (1) professionals; (2) intermediate occupations (managers, artists, white-collar workers); (3) skilled occupations (foremen, supervisors, and skilled manual workers); (4) partly skilled occupations; (5) unskilled occupations. This classification may be compared to the more usual division into upper, lower, and middle classes. The upper class in Western industrialized societies is distinguished mainly by its possession of great wealth—either inherited or earned. In the United States, for instance, about 35 percent of the private wealth is owned by less than 1 percent of the population. The ownership of such wealth enables those who possess it to enjoy distinctive personal and cultural pursuits from which most of the population is excluded. It also gives them a powerful influence on public policy. In Communist nations the upper class is determined by political power instead of by wealth. Nevertheless, positions of power bring with them special benefits not enjoyed by the masses. The working class is a misleading term because most members of all classes engage in some kind of work. The name refers to those who are commonly called blue-collar workers and their families. They are workers in mines and manufacturing industries, including skilled and semiskilled manual laborers of all types. As a class they are traditionally distinguished by dependence on wages and lack of significant property holdings. Since World War II rising incomes have propelled many of these families into the middle class. The middle class, the largest population segment in nonsocialist modern industrial societies, is also the most varied. Many of its members would once have been considered blue-collar workers. Some, in what is called the upper middle class, have incomes and life-styles that approximate the upper class. Generally members of the middle class include the professionals (lawyers, clergy, and physicians), middle management, teachers, farmers, self-employed businessmen, salesmen, computer programmers, and others. It was the emergence of a middle class that undermined the old aristocracy of Europe and that made the growth of democratic government possible. Underclass is a term that has come into use in the United States since the early 1960s. It refers to what sociologist Oscar Lewis called the “culture of poverty.” This class is made up of people who, from one generation to another, experience unusually high rates of unemployment. Members of the underclass are generally dependent on the state for the basic necessities of life. Because of low educational attainments, their chances for self-improvement seem unlikely. Such an underclass exists in the United States and the United Kingdom and to some extent in other Western European nations. Racism and discrimination play a role in creating an underclass. (See also Poverty.) |