Antro 13. Ünite

13 Social Inequality
and Stratification
Ines Gesell/Getty Images
Equalities and Inequalities Maintaining Inequality

Equalities and Inequalities: Ideologies
Three Systems American Secular Ideologies
Egalitarian Societies Theories of Inequality
Ranked Societies Functionalist Theory
Enormously wealthy and Stratified Societies
desperately poor people coexist in
Conflict Theory
nearly all contemporary nations. Castes in Traditional India Who Benefits?
This photo illustrates living
conditions in a neighborhood in Classes in Industrial Societies:
Freetown, Sierra Leone. The United States
293
Copyright 2014 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE S
After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
1 EXPLAIN egalitarian, ranked, and stratified.
2 DISCUSS the primary differences between castes and classes.
3 DESCRIBE how ideologies are important in maintaining inequalities in stratified societies.
4 EVALUATE the functional and conflict theories of stratification.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men or legitimate authority (see Chapter 12). Wealth and
are created equal, that they are endowed by their power go together among some peoples, each mu-
Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” As you know tually reinforcing the other. But not always: esoteric
by now, whether in fact all “men” are believed to have (secret) knowledge often enhances the power of men
been created equal depends on which society you and women who have little wealth. On the Micronesian
happened to be born into. Whether you have certain island of Pohnpei, people believe that many elderly
“unalienable rights,” and the nature of these rights, people possess secret knowledge that they often do not
also varies from people to people. In this chapter, we disclose until just before their death, if at all. Sorcery and
consider another dimension of cultural diversity—the witchcraft also can make people powerful (Chapter 14).
allocation of culturally valued rewards. The essence of The final type of reward is prestige—the respect,
this topic is “who gets what and why?” Gender, race, admiration, and overt approval other group mem-
and ethnicity are two other bases for allocating rewards bers grant to individuals they consider meritorious.
and are covered in other chapters (Chapters 2 and 11). Prestige (honor, status) is a social reward, based on
judgments about an individual’s personal worthiness or
the contributions the individual makes to others in the
Equalities and Inequalities group. Norms, values, worldviews, and other cultural
knowledge affect prestige. For instance, many North
Inequality refers to the degree to which culturally val- Americans admire “self-made” persons who have suc-
ued material and social rewards are received dispro- ceeded in life by their own talents and efforts. However,
portionately by individuals, families, and other kinds of such individuals would be looked down on as self-
groups. To the extent that inequality exists in a group centered and ungenerous in many other cultures.
or whole society, its members receive varying levels of The distribution of each kind of reward varies among
benefits. Although specific rewards vary by culture, in societies. Some societies allow ambitious individuals to
comparing societies, anthropologists commonly dis- acquire wealth, power, and prestige; whereas others make
tinguish three reward categories. it difficult for anyone to accumulate possessions, gain
The most tangible is wealth—ownership of or ac- power over others, or put themselves above their peers
cess to valued material goods and to the natural and socially. It is important to understand that what people
human resources needed to produce those goods. The think about the distribution of rewards does not neces-
national economies of modern nations measure wealth sarily correlate with the actual distribution, especially
in money (total GDP or GDP per capita). Preindustrial with wealth. In modern capitalist nations, people’s beliefs
peoples who do not use money may value consumables about wealth distribution are commonly mistaken.
like shelter and beads and resources that can be used to
produce the consumables.
The second kind of reward is power—the ability
to make others do what you want based on coercion
Equalities and Inequalities:
Three Systems
inequality Degree to which individuals, groups, and To introduce the ways societies differ in inequality,
categories differ in their access to culturally valued rewards. anthropologists often use an influential classification
developed by Morton Fried way back in 1967. Fried
294 PART III The Diversity of Culture
CONCEPT REVIEW Systems of Equality and Inequality
Form Main Characteristics
Egalitarian Rough equality between families in access to necessities, possessions and wealth objects;
wide access to and sharing of productive resources; influence and prestige based on age
and personal qualities and achievements
Ranked Limited number of formal social roles or positions (offices, titles) that confer some
authority; access to prestigious titles and offices determined largely by hereditary, family/
kinship ties; rights to resources allocated by those of higher rank
Stratified Sharply unequal distribution of material resources and wealth; large inequalities in access
to power and social rewards (prestige)
Caste Named, endogamous, ranked groups with membership normatively based on birth;
occupation and activities constrained by caste membership; interaction between members
of different castes governed by social rules (segregation, pollution)
Class Vague definition and imprecise membership determined by a combination of birth and
achievement; class membership broadly determined by occupation and wealth level,
variably affected by inheritance
identified three basic types of societies based on their Third, egalitarian-ranked-stratified is the temporal
level and kinds of inequality: egalitarian, ranked, and order in which the three forms developed. Until about
stratified. (The Concept Review provides a quick look 10,000 years ago, nearly all humans lived in egalitarian
at the major differences between the three systems.) We societies. Ranked societies developed in a few areas
need to clarify four points about Fried’s classification. about then, and a few thousand years later, stratifi-
First, the categories do not refer to access to rewards cation developed in some early chiefdoms and in the
based on gender or age. When we call a society egali- great civilizations (see Chapters 7 and 12). After that,
tarian, for example, we do not mean that females and over the next 4,000 to 5,000 years, stratified societies
males receive equal or nearly equal rewards, that elderly spread throughout much of the world, as some peoples
people and young people are socially equal, or that un- and nations conquered and ruled over others.
skilled and lazy people are valued just as much as skilled Fourth, it is important to distinguish two bases for
and diligent people. Even in egalitarian societies, social equality and inequality. For clarity, we simplistically
distinctions are based on gender, age, and personal refer only to the far ends of the equality–inequality
qualities. Essentially, egalitarian means there are few continuum. Equality may exist because people cultur-
differences in the rewards received by families or other ally value life in that kind of society: people strive to
kinds of kin groups within a society. Egalitarian espe- maintain equality among themselves. Alternatively, it
cially refers to peoples among whom wealth, power,
and prestige are not inherited along family lines. At
the other end of the continuum, in stratified societies,
egalitarian society Form of society in which there is
there are major differences in rewards between families
little inequality in access to culturally valued rewards.
or kin groups, in addition to other distinctions such as
gender, age, and personal qualities. ranked society Society with a limited number of
Second, Fried’s three categories are merely points high-ranking, privileged social positions; groups are
along a continuum of inequality. It is impossible to pi- ranked relative to one another.
geonhole all human societies into one of these types stratified society Society with marked and variably
because most fit somewhere in between the three cate- heritable differences in access to wealth, power, and
gories. The terms egalitarian, ranked, and stratified are prestige; inequality is based mainly on unequal access to
mainly short descriptions of the kinds and range of vari- productive and valued resources.
ation in inequality found among the world’s peoples.
CHAPTER 13 Social Inequality and Stratification 295
may exist because it is a regular outcome of how their Mobile hunting and gathering peoples, such as the
system works: people are not actually striving to all be Inuit, Ju/’hoansi, Hadza, and BaMbuti are egalitarian.
equal, but the way their economy and society works James Woodburn identified three reasons rewards are
lead to equality. That is, equality is generated, regard- comparatively evenly distributed among such foragers.
less of whether people desire it. 1. Most obviously, the band or camp must move
Similarly, for inequality people (some or most peo- frequently for effective adaptation (see Chapter 7).
ple, at least) may positively value a high degree of in- Mobility makes it difficult to transport possessions
equality, believing it is necessary for the welfare of all and hence to accumulate possessions or other
or is supernaturally ordained. Alternatively, inequality forms of wealth.
may exist because it is regular outcome of how a par-
2. The cultural value foragers place on reciprocal
ticular economic and political system works. That is,
sharing (see Chapter 8) prevents individual persons
people (some or most people, at least) may desire more
or family groups from becoming wealthier than their
equality, but their efforts to produce it fail, because the
bandmates. Because sharing food and most durable
economic or social system continually generates it.
possessions is normatively expected, hoarding and
accumulation are negatively valued. Therefore, even
Egalitarian Societies if someone tried to accumulate, he or she would find
In egalitarian societies, aside from distinctions based it difficult to do so because other people demand
on sex and age, minor differences exist among individ- their share, and failure to adhere to the norms of
uals and families in rewards. People who work hard, sharing and to live up to egalitarian values is socially
who have attractive personalities, or who possess valu- punished by public ridicule or worse.
able skills may be rewarded with respect and prestige 3. Mobile foraging families are not tied to specific
from other members of their group. Egalitarian groups territories but have the right to visit and exploit
have various cultural mechanisms to prevent any indi- the resources of many areas, often due to extended
vidual from becoming too “big.” And, even respected family ties (see Chapters 9 and 10). If anyone tries to
people have few, if any, more possessions or power be the boss or exercise control over behavior, other
than others. people have the option to leave and live elsewhere.
Anthony Bannister/Gallo/AfricPics.com
Like most mobile hunter-gatherers, the Ju/’hoansi are an egalitarian people.
In sum, if people move around in their environ- In contrast, in ranked societies, there are a limited
ments a lot, are required to share food and other pos- number of high-ranking social positions, usually titles
sessions, and have a range of options about where to or some kind of formal offices that grant authority.
live and whom to live with, then inequality in wealth People who hold the title can issue commands and ex-
and power does not have much chance of developing. pect to have them obeyed. The titles also confer high
If inequality should develop, it does not have much honor on the people who hold them. In most cases,
chance of persisting for very long. the privilege of holding a title or occupying an office
Not all foragers are or were egalitarian, however. As is largely or entirely hereditary within certain families,
discussed in Chapter 7, the Native Americans of the lineages, clans, or other kin groups. If you are born into
Northwest Coast lived in ranked societies because, in a group that does not have the hereditary right to the
their rich environment, the three conditions just listed title or office, normatively (but not always in fact) you
did not exist. Northwest Coast people were more sed- cannot succeed to the office regardless of your talents
entary, accumulated wealth for redistribution to val- or ambitions.
idate and acquire rank, and formed kin groups that An excellent example of a ranked society is Tikopia,
were associated with particular territories. the small Polynesian island whose kinship system we
Most traditional horticultural peoples also are egal- described in Chapter 10. Tikopia’s 1,200 persons were
itarian, although others are ranked. In most of the hun- divided into four patricians, each with its own chief
dreds of occupied islands of Melanesia there are tribal who exercised authority over his clanmates. Each clan
peoples (Chapter 12) who live from growing tree and in turn was divided into several patrilineages. Every
root crops, keeping pigs, and fishing if they lived along patrilineage had a head, believed to be the oldest liv-
coasts. In most Melanesian societies, men compete for ing male descendant of the man who founded the lin-
prestige by organizing large feasts on special occasions eage about four to six generations ago. Alongside this
such as weddings, funerals, or just to distribute foods ranking of individuals within a single lineage, the var-
and valuables to draw people into debt. If a man is un- ious lineages of a single clan were ranked relative to
usually successful in organizing large feasts, he rises up one another. One lineage of each clan, supposedly the
to become a big man—someone whose name is widely original, “senior” lineage from which the “junior” lin-
known, to whom many men owe goods or favors, and eages had budded off generations ago, was considered
who usually has several wives to help with gardening the noble lineage. Members of other lineages of the
and pig keeping. Melanesian peoples vary in the degree clan deferred socially to members of the noble lin-
to which big men have more wealth than other men. eage, according to Tikopian standards of etiquette. In
In some, there are noticeable differences in possessions, addition, the noble lineage of each clan selected one
but in others, big men distribute so much of their wealth of its members as chief of the whole clan. Clan chiefs
to others that they live pretty much like everyone else. had authority to punish troublemakers and the duty
Melanesian peoples with big men are considered to perform rituals connected to agriculture and other
egalitarian societies by most anthropologists, despite common concerns.
the fact that some men were notably “bigger” than Chiefs and other members of the noble Tikopia
others. They illustrate the cautions we discussed ear- lineages had little more wealth than anyone else, how-
lier: typologies anthropologists use to depict human ever. The nobility received tribute from other lineages
cultural variability must be applied carefully so that of their clan, but they gave away most of it in the many
they enlighten rather than obscure the lives of actual public activities they organized and financed through
peoples. redistribution (see Chapter 8). The chief and nobility
of each clan could not deny access to land and ocean
resources to members of other lineages because each
Ranked Societies lineage was considered to have inalienable rights to
Any particular Melanesian tribe or even village may certain pieces of land. High-ranking Tikopians, then,
have many big men, some “bigger” than others. And received high esteem and token tribute from other
the number of big men varies over time, depending on islanders, but they did not use this tribute to make
how many men have done well in any decade or gen- themselves notably wealthier than lower-ranking peo-
eration. This is because big man is not an office into ple. They were honored and could issue commands in
which someone is recruited, but an informal status certain contexts, but their wealth was not great. It is
that some men achieve based on their ambitions and mainly in this respect that ranked societies contrast
accomplishments. with stratified societies.
Stratified Societies definition, castes are endogamous groups: they have
cultural norms or laws that require individuals to marry
Within a society or nation, a social stratum consists within their caste. As discussed in Chapter 9, rules that
of families who have roughly the same access to re- mandate marriage within one’s own group have the ef-
wards. Stratified societies have two distinguishing fect of maintaining the distinctiveness of the group rel-
characteristics: ative to other groups. This is because normatively there
❚ There are marked and enduring inequalities is no possibility of upward mobility through inter-caste
between strata in access to all three kinds of marriage. One’s caste membership is theoretically he-
rewards: wealth, power, and prestige. The inequality reditary: One is born into the caste of one’s parents,
may last through generations because the positions one marries someone in the same caste, and one’s chil-
that bring rewards are themselves hereditary or dren are likewise born into and remain members of
because being born into a certain stratum gives one’s own caste. In contrast, most class societies allow
individuals better or worse opportunities. Birth people to marry someone of a different class; in fact,
into a certain class affects whether a person has intermarriage between classes is a common avenue of
a head start in life, thus enhancing her or his social mobility.
competitiveness relative to others. Second, caste systems have enforced norms or laws
❚ Inequalities are based primarily on unequal access regulating social relationships among members of dif-
to productive resources such as the land and tools ferent castes. For example, norms or laws may prohibit
people need to make their living or the education direct physical contact between castes or may forbid
and training needed to succeed. In stratified members of different castes from eating from the same
societies, a minority of people control access to the bowl or drinking from the same wells. In some societ-
resources other people need to survive at culturally ies, high-caste members believe they will be spiritually
acceptable levels. polluted if they touch members of other castes. Indeed,
they often must perform rituals to cleanse themselves
Stratified societies vary in their cultural beliefs
after accidental contacts.
about the possibilities of social mobility—that is, about
Both of these general differences mean that castes
movement up and down the social ladder. In some, such
have more permanent membership and more rigid
as North America, Europe, New Zealand, Australia and
social boundaries than classes. This does not mean
other contemporary democracies, upward or down-
that it is easy to tell whether some particular stratified
ward mobility is possible through education, special
society “has” castes or classes. Some societies have
skills, hard work, good luck, or other circumstances. In
elements of both. For instance, some scholars have
East Asia, educational performance is so important for
suggested that black–white relations in the American
a child’s success that most parents expend enormous
South were more castelike than classlike until the mid–
resources in schooling, including even preschool. In
twentieth century. There was no possibility of upward
other stratified societies as in traditional India or in
mobility into the white “caste” for blacks because no
Europe before the Industrial Revolution, one’s posi-
one could overcome the cultural stigma of dark skin
tion is considered fixed, often because of beliefs that
color. Interracial marriage was legally prohibited or
existing inequalities are hereditary and/or ordained by
culturally taboo, so that the two races were virtually
supernatural beings.
endogamous. Explicit laws against certain kinds of “in-
Social scientists distinguish two major kinds of
tercaste” contacts and interactions—known as segre-
strata: classes and castes. Two general differences
gation laws—forced blacks to live apart from whites,
between class and caste systems stand out. First, by
forbade them to enter certain white business estab-
lishments and public restrooms, prohibited drinking
from the same water fountains, made them send their
class System of stratification in which membership in children to all-black schools, and so forth. Most whites
a stratum can theoretically be altered and intermarriage did not believe blacks were “polluting” in the spiritual
between strata is allowed. sense of the word, but many whites did believe blacks
caste Stratification system in which membership in a were “unclean” in another sense and tried to minimize
stratum is in theory hereditary, strata are endogamous, and contact with them.
contact or relationships among members of different strata Usually the term stratification refers to differences
are governed by explicit laws, norms, or prohibitions. in wealth, influence, and status within a single society.
There are great inequalities among societies also, such
as between nations and even between whole continents India’s traditional caste hierarchy is so intimately
in the modern world. Whether future globalization will tied up with the ceremonies and worldview of Hinduism
reduce economic inequalities among nations—and, if that the two are almost inseparable. (Hinduism is in-
so, whether it will be sooner rather than later—is hotly credibly diverse, so here we present only a simplified
debated. The effect of globalization on inequality within depiction of it.) Hindu religion holds that spiritual
nations is also unclear. Many believe inequality is in- souls are reborn into different physical bodies at var-
creasing in both the “developed” and the “developing” ious stages of their existence—this is the doctrine of
worlds. In the former, many working-class people are reincarnation. Souls seek an end to the cycle of earthly
losing unionized, factory jobs, while the owners of the birth, death, and rebirth, but to achieve this end, each
factories (including stockholders) make higher prof- soul must be reborn many times in many bodies, both
its and grow wealthier by relocating their operations animal and human. Souls attempt to move from lower
overseas. In the latter, some people are better able to forms of life to higher ones: from animals to humans
obtain new jobs in globalized factories and leap ahead (of various ranked castes) to gods.
of other citizens who are unable to take advantage of The body into which a soul is born depends on how
the new opportunities. (Globalization Challenges and closely that soul adhered to proper standards of behav-
Opportunities discusses this issue.) ior in previous lifetimes. For souls that were placed in
human forms in their previous incarnation, standards
include avoidance of activities that Hindus believe are
Castes in Traditional India polluting. Among the most polluting activities are han-
India’s traditional caste system is the most famous and dling and working with animal carcasses or human
best known. It is complex and highly variable from re- corpses, touching excrement and other waste materi-
gion to region, so we present only a general picture. als, dealing with childbirth, and eating meat. Not only
Traditionally, the people of India recognized five main are people who regularly perform these activities pol-
social categories, four of which are varnas. (A varna luted themselves, but any members of a higher caste
is not itself a caste.) Each category is ranked relative who come into physical contact with them likewise be-
to the others in honor and degree of ritual purity, come polluted and must bathe ritually to cleanse them-
and each is broadly associated with certain kinds of selves. One’s present place in society—one’s “station in
occupations. life”—varies with the degree to which one is associated
The highest varna is the Brahmins, or priests and with pure or impure activities. In turn, whether one is
scholars; next is the varna of nobles and warriors, the associated with pure or impure activities depends on
Kshatriyas; third are the Vaishas, or merchants and ar- one’s behavior in previous lives, including the degree to
tisans; and ranked lowest are the Shudras, or farmers, which one has allowed oneself to become polluted or
craftspeople, and certain other laborers. Although the failed to cleanse oneself in previous incarnations.
varna are associated with certain occupations, not ev- The caste of a person depends—not perfectly, of
eryone in a given varna follows that occupation. A fifth course—on actions in previous lives. People are born
category—outside and ranked below the four varnas— into a low caste either because their soul has not yet
is the untouchables, to whom falls work considered been through enough lifetimes to have reached a
polluting to the varna. higher form, or because their misdeeds in a previous
The varnas arose in the second millennium B.C.E. lifetime merit reincarnation into a low caste. Thus, all
when the Aryans invaded and conquered what is now “men” were not created equal in the Hindu worldview;
northern India, incorporating most of the smaller it is legitimate that some castes have more power and
states that already were in the region. Over centuries, privilege and more status and wealth than others.
they became large, inclusive categories into which Each caste (jati) is broadly associated with certain
specific castes are placed. The villages in which most occupations. Each village contains a number of castes,
Indians formerly lived are divided into much smaller most of which are named according to the occupation
and specific groupings called jati (castes, as the term traditionally performed by their members. Thus, a vil-
is usually used). For example, in a particular village, lage might include castes of priests, merchants, black-
the Shudra varna might be represented by several jati smiths, potters, tailors, farmers, weavers, carpenters,
with names such as weaver, potter, and tailor. There are washers, barbers, leather workers, and “sweepers” (the
thousands of such castes in India, distributed among last refers to those who remove human waste matter
the many thousands of villages, with each village con- from people’s houses). Just as activities are ranked in
taining a variable number of castes. Hindu beliefs according to their degree of purity and
GLOBAL CHALLENGES
AND OPPORTUNITIES Globalization and Inequality in China
produced huge fortunes for some centuries, the growth of economies in

Europeans and affected balances of the richer regions of North America,
military power. Europe, New Zealand, and Australia
By the 1700s and 1800s, products dramatically outpaced growth in
were pouring out of the conquered Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and
regions of the Americas and Asia. In East Asia (except in Japan). Whether
the islands of the Caribbean, northern continued globalization in the twenty-
Brazil, and the American South, first century will increase or decrease
enslaved Africans produced the cotton, the economic gap between poor and
tobacco, sugar, and cacao that were rich nations is hotly disputed. (See
worn, smoked, eaten, and drunk by Chapters 7 and 8 for more on the
EIGHTFISH/Alamy
western Europeans. In Asia, spices, tea, benefits and costs of globalization.)

porcelain (“china”), hardwoods, and A revealing example is China,
other products produced by peasants which has experienced the world’s
Globalization leads to new kinds and and craftsmen were shipped over land fastest growth since the 1980s. China’s
degrees of economic inequalities both or, later, over sea to satisfy European economic growth rate has hovered
between and within nations. This appetites and tastes. Britain’s colony between 7 and 12 percent for nearly
Hong Kong man stands in front of his in India, for example, provided early three decades because of its plentiful
holdings in Shanghai, People’s Republic English textile factories with cotton and labor, its central government that
of China. other fibers. In the process, India’s own seemingly values growth above other
highly skilled textile weavers suffered. goals, the work ethic of its citizens, and
Inequalities at the global level began Although the costs of transporting the loosening of restrictions on internal
centuries ago. As early as the 1500s, goods from Asian, African, and migration and foreign investment.
the products of the two American American colonies were high, Europe’s Hundreds of millions of Chinese have
continents were shipped to Europe. climate did not allow the production experienced increases in their living
Mesoamerica and the Andes were the of tropical crops, and the labor costs standards by moving from rural villages
homelands of the two great New World of both African American slaves and to work in factories in Shanghai,
civilizations: the Aztec and the Inca, Asian peasants were a fraction of the Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Beijing, and
respectively. Like the upper classes costs of production. dozens of other cities along the eastern
in Europe, the Aztec and Inca elite As these brief examples show, the and southern coasts.
surrounded themselves with treasures, effects of globalization on inequalities Hundreds of thousands of Chinese
many in gold and silver. The trade are several centuries old, at least. factory owners, real estate investors,
(and plunder) of these precious metals During the nineteenth and twentieth and market entrepreneurs have
impurity, so occupations and those who perform them in their own special section of the village, separate from
are ranked. Working with animal carcasses is defil- members of higher castes. Because they contaminate
ing, so leather working is a defiling occupation, and temples by their entry, they cannot go inside a temple.
leather workers are so polluting as to be untouchable. Their touch contaminates water, so they must use sepa-
The same applies to sweeping: people who remove hu- rate wells. These and other restrictions on their behav-
man wastes from houses or spread excrement over vil- ior are sometimes extreme.
lage fields are polluted, and their touch pollutes those Members of high-ranking castes, however, such as
of higher castes. Therefore, members of the leather priests, landowners, warriors, and merchants, need
working, sweeping, and other castes associated with the services of low-ranking castes. Again, this is be-
defiling occupations were traditionally untouchable. cause Hinduism defines some essential activities as
(Discrimination against people of untouchable ances- polluting, so members of castes who would be defiled
try is now illegal in modern India, although it still oc- by these activities need lower castes to perform these
curs in many rural regions.) Untouchables usually live services for them. The bullocks needed for farming die,
become fabulously wealthy. However, Since the 1980s, China’s government increasing due to factors like working
hundreds of millions in rural areas has funded education generously. Its conditions in factories, widespread
have yet to participate significantly in colleges and universities turn out more corruption, increasing economic
the economic boom. Untold thousands graduates than any other country. In inequalities, censorship of information
lost their livelihood when local officials the 2000s, the number of college and on the internet and other media,
did not compensate them when a new university students quadrupled. In 2013, treatment of dissidents, and conflict
factory took over the land they were 7 million students graduated. They are between the Han majority and several
farming. Hundreds of coal miners have not particularly interested in factory ethnic minorities.
died from mine collapses, and tens of work, yet there are not nearly enough In a nation of nearly 1.4 billion,
millions of Chinese experience some professional and service jobs to employ including 56 minorities, Chinese
of the planet’s worse air pollution from them: in the winter of 2012–2013, the leaders might be correct in believing
coal-fired power plants (see Chapter 7). unemployment rate of Chinese college that effective governing requires
(As you can see, China is a country graduates between 21 and 25 was measures and policies that citizens
with lots of large numbers.) 16 percent. In contrast, only 4 percent of nations with a different past and
Lately, many migrants (precise of people with an elementary school a vastly contrasting present find
numbers are unknown) have returned education were jobless, due to the high abhorrent. Leaders often speak of
to their roots in the countryside, setting demand for factory labor producing for maintaining a “harmonious society”
up businesses or finding employment in the global market. Like their counterparts and keeping China “stable.” Many
emerging interior industries. For many, in other parts of the world, China’s scholars of China write about an
city life and factory work have not been well educated have high expectations implicit bargain that the government
as rewarding as they had hoped. Most that are likely to be frustrated. And the has made with citizens: “we will help
young workers eat at factory dining government has plans for 250 million keep your living standards rising if you
rooms and live in factory dormitories of its citizens to migrate to cities in the don’t threaten China’s stability.” Not
with numerous roommates sleeping on next 20 years and has begun constructing a desirable bargain by standards of
bunk beds. As the Chinese economy their living spaces. nations that developed over a century
developed, younger workers expect a With a land area almost equal ago, but perhaps a necessary, given
better life and grow dissatisfied with to that of the United States, China’s China’s circumstances.
low wages and poor work conditions population is four times larger than
that the first generation of factory that of the United States. Its economy Source: Chang (2009); New York Times
workers found acceptable. This has is the world’s second largest. It faces online editions of June 2, 6, 9, 13, and
happened repeatedly in the historical serious problems of energy supply and 22, 2010 (retrieved June 22, 2010);
spread of industrialism, so China is resource depletion. Demonstrations Columbus Dispatch, June 16, 2010,
not unique. and other forms of social unrest are pp. A6, A7.
so someone has to remove dead cattle from the vil- life. Leather workers, for instance, cannot do much
lage. Brahmin women give birth just as other women to improve their lot in this life, but by faithfully
do, so the women of some low-ranking caste have to fulfilling their obligations to members of higher
serve as midwives because handling blood and placen- castes, their souls will attain higher reincarnations in
tas would pollute Brahmin women. Everyone passes future bodies.
bodily wastes, so someone must remove these wastes Although the castes are interdependent in that
from the houses of high-caste members, lest these each “needs” the products and services made by
substances pollute their occupants. Accordingly, each the others, one should not conclude that intercaste
caste has its proper role and function in the economic, relations are harmonious, or that the complementary
social, and religious life of the village. tasks associated with each caste are entirely mutually
In Hindu beliefs, one’s soul is reincarnated into beneficial. A great deal of friction and outright conflict
a higher or lower form partly according to how well exist between individual members of different castes.
one fulfills the obligations of one’s caste in the present In fact, local castes as a whole group sometimes
© Bernard Wolfe/Photo Researchers, Inc.
Hinduism regards certain substances and activities as spiritually defiling or polluting. Ritual bathing—here in the Ganges River—
removes the pollution.
organize themselves with a council to pursue their

common interests. Classes in Industrial Societies:
Although most castes had names that referred to
occupations, in fact, members of a single caste made
The United States
their living in diverse ways. Most members of lower In class societies, individuals and families have dif-
castes were farmers, regardless of their caste name, and ferent levels of ownership of productive property and
many higher-caste persons engaged in farming as well. material goods, have varying degrees of influence over
Also, there was no simple relationship between caste public decisions made by a government, and differ in
membership and access to resources or wealth; some the respect or esteem accorded their position in the
Brahmins were poor, some smiths wealthy. traditional society or contemporary nation.
Many people think caste hierarchies and An important point to make about classes is that
restrictions are no longer important in India. they are seldom organized as classes. There are no oc-
Indeed, given the anonymity of city life, restrictions casions on which the members of a given class come
on behavior clearly are hard to maintain, and many together for discussion or common action (unlike,
lower-caste urbanites are well-educated, middle- say, an extended family or lineage). Indeed, members
class people. So, caste distinctions have withered (but of a single class do not necessarily believe they have
not died) in urban areas. In parts of the countryside, much in common with one another (unlike the mem-
however, where most people are still farmers, caste bers of a labor union). Many people cannot precisely
distinctions remain, although in weakened form. identify the class to which they belong (unlike Indian
For decades, the government of India has given jati or varna). Thus, about four-fifths of Americans
preferential treatment in hiring to members of lower refer to themselves as “middle class.” People cannot
castes, so having a lower caste identity may bring say how many classes exist in their societies, but use
some benefits. phrases like working class and upper class. In fact, there
is considerable debate within the social sciences over (economic classes), for instance. The definitions and
what the term class means, or whether it has any other methods used for ranking the classes depend partly on
than the vaguest meaning. our interests.
The concept of class might be vague, but no one can In the United States, the most widely accepted ap-
deny the enormous differences in wealth, power, and proach to stratification uses the concept of economic
prestige that exist in class societies. The term class re- class, in which class membership depends largely on
fers to all the people in a given stratified society who individual and family wealth. Using wealth as the pri-
receive comparable levels of rewards. Members of mary basis for assigning class ranking has four major
different classes have different access to the material advantages.
resources (income, property, wealth), influential re-
1. Wealth is more measurable than other indications
lationships (social networks, political contacts), and
of class membership (although cash income alone
“sophisticated” cultural knowledge (formal education,
does not measure it adequately).
“social graces”) that are positively valued. Unlike caste
membership, people are potentially able to move up or 2. Wealth is the best single indication of the overall
down in a class system during their lifetime. Interclass benefits individuals and families are receiving from
marriage, personal talent, hard work and effort, and their citizenship in the nation. Money cannot buy
good luck can allow upward mobility. More commonly, you love, happiness, brains, or many other things,
being born into a given class puts one so far ahead of or but it can buy you much of what Americans value
behind others that few people rise or fall very far in the (including education and consumer goods and,
class structure during their lifetime. nowadays, better looks and tighter bodies).
In this section, we concentrate on the class struc- 3. Extremely high wealth is generally correlated
ture of one industrialized society—the United States. with ownership of productive resources such as
In this country, the kind of work one does (occupation) factories, financial assets, stocks, and income-
is often assumed to be the best single overall indication producing real estate. Many wealthy people own
of class membership. (“What kind of work do you do?” the nation’s large businesses or made their money
or “Where do you work?” is one of the first questions in finance. Either they built their companies
American adults ask of new acquaintances, and the themselves, or their ancestors made fortunes
answer gives a lot of information about a person very through business activity and passed their
quickly.) Occupation is generally a good indication ownership along to the current generation. Many
of income, and one’s income influences so much else: of the wealthiest persons gain most of their income
overall lifestyle, access of one’s children to education, from the stock market, which means either they
the kinds of people with whom one associates socially, earn large annual dividends or they get their
the kind of church or club to which one belongs, and earnings by buying low and selling high. However,
so on. notice that many persons become wealthy by
Unfortunately for our desire to make societies selling their skills on the market, in industries like
neat and orderly, the different criteria used to define entertainment media, medicine, law, and sports.
class membership are not always mutually consistent. 4. Wealth levels broadly determine people’s access to
For instance, people disagree on the prestige of many political power. Through political contributions,
occupations—attorneys, physicians, and academi- the wealthy have a greater say in who gets
cians are despised by some but granted high prestige nominated and elected to important offices, which
by others, for example. For some occupations, there is why many Americans push for campaign finance
is a disjunction between income and prestige—nurses reform. Through lobbying efforts, the rich enjoy
and teachers are held in higher regard than plumb- greater influence on the laws and policies of the
ers and assembly-line workers, but often they do not nation than their numbers warrant. By providing
earn as much. much of the funding for think tanks and other
So, it may be difficult to decide to which class some public advisory groups, the wealthy subsidize the
individual belongs. One way around this ambiguity, expertise of many economists and other social
favored by some sociologists, is to separate the three scientists who advise government. People who
kinds of rewards from one another and define a separate serve in the government as elected or appointed
class ranking for each reward. We can distinguish officials may later work in the private sector, which
classes defined on the basis of prestige (status groups, covets both their expertise and their political
as some call them) and on the basis of income or wealth connections.
TABLE 13-1 Distribution of Household The relative benefits of economic growth since around
1990 have been distributed unequally, going far more
Income in the United States, 2011 to the affluent than to the poor and even to those who
Quintile Percentage of Income Earned view themselves as middle class.
However, the distribution of income alone does
Poorest fifth 3.8
not tell the complete story of inequality in the
Second fifth 9.3 United States, because figures on annual income do
Third fifth 15.1 not show how much wealth is owned by families of
different classes. Yearly income figures such as those
Fourth fifth 23.0 in Table 13.1 greatly underestimate the economic
Richest fifth 48.9 inequality in the United States. For example, in 2010
the bottom 90 percent of Americans had 56 percent
Richest 5 percent 21.3
of the yearly income but held only 23 percent of the
Source: United States Census Bureau (2013), Table F.2, wealth held by families. People’s standards of living
“Share of Aggregate Income Received by Each Fifth and Top are not determined directly by their annual income,
5 Percent of Families,” www.census.gov/hhes/www/income nor is their influence on government policies at the
/data/historical/families/ (retrieved June 15, 2013). local, state, and national levels. If we consider the
distribution of wealth, we see that middle-income
families, and even families generally considered
For these and other reasons, we can learn the most affluent, own little in comparison with the truly
about class inequalities in the United States by focusing wealthy.
on the distribution of wealth. Surveys funded by the federal government
Income inequality is one measure of the distribution provide estimates of the net worth (wealth) of
of wealth. Table 13.1 summarizes income inequality for American families. Net worth includes all family
2011, the latest year for which the U.S. Census Bureau assets (property) owned minus debts. Debts include
has published information. In the table, American mortgages, credit card balances, student loans,
households are divided into fifths (quintiles) based on and other money owed by a family. Tangible assets
their 2011 cash income. For example, the poorest one- include property such as residential homes, farms,
fifth of households earned only 3.8 percent of all income, and other real estate, plus motor vehicles, household
whereas the richest quintile earned 48.9 percent of possessions, and the like. Tangible assets directly
the total income earned by all households. The table affect standards of living. Added to tangible assets
also shows that the richest 5 percent of American are the money value of financial assets, such as
households earned 21.3 percent of the total family savings in banks and retirement accounts and money
income in 2011. invested in bonds, and stocks. Financial assets vastly
U.S. Census Bureau data over the past 30 years increase a family’s economic security, for they can be
reveals that income inequality has increased. Between withdrawn from banks or sold on the stock market
1960 and 1980, the relative shares of income received to increase wealth or keep material assets from
by each quintile remained nearly constant. During falling during recessions. Savings and, especially,
those 20 years, the bottom three-fifths (the “poorest” investments also earn additional future income and
60 percent) of American households earned about one- wealth, although not without risk.
third of all cash income. The richest quintile earned a The Federal Reserve Board (the “Fed”) is the
bit over 40 percent. However, by 2010, the share of the semigovernmental institution that tries to regulate the
poorest 60 percent had fallen to 28 percent—a loss of economy by affecting interest rates. Every three years,
about 5 percent. In 2010, the richest one-fifth earned the Fed publishes a Survey of Consumer Finances that
48 percent of all cash income, a gain of about 7 percent estimates the wealth held by American families.
from 1980. The Economic Policy Institute, a private, nonprofit
To make much the same point, between 1960 and institution, uses Federal Reserve surveys and other
1980, the ratio of the incomes of the most affluent fifth data to estimate the concentration of wealth in the
to the poorest fifth was about 8.0, whereas in 2011 United States. For 2010, the Economic Policy Institute
the ratio was 12.9. Considering the ratio of the richest concluded that the richest 20 percent of families held
5 percent to the poorest 20 percent, inequality has 89 percent of the wealth, the middle quintile held
increased even more, from 2.8 in 1980 to 5.6 in 2011. 2.6 percent, and the poorest quintile had negative net
worth (they owed more than they owned). Comparing rebellion, and occasional attempts at revolution occur
the 1 percent of rich families to everyone else, the in stratified societies in all parts of the world (which
wealthiest 1 percent owned 35.4 percent of the wealth, is not to say that they are universally present). Human
whereas the bottom 95 percent owned 36.9 percent lifetimes are so short that most of us live through only
of the wealth. That is, in 2010 the wealthiest 1 percent a few such events, and most of them are far away. In the
had about the same amount of wealth as the bottom long term of history, though, a great many powerless
95 percent put together. and poor people did not simply accept their place in
Another way to illustrate how wealth inequality the hierarchy.
has risen over the last few decades is to compare the One possible explanation of how stratification
wealth ratio for various years: the ratio of the wealth persists is that members of the highest stratum
owned by the very richest Americans to the median (hereafter called the elite) use their wealth and power
wealth. In 1983, the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans to organize an armed force stronger than that of their
owned 131 times the wealth of the median American. opposition. If the elite somehow monopolize control
In 1998, the wealth ratio grew to 168. In 2010, the ratio over weapons or organize a loyal army, then they can
was 288. use coercion and threats to maintain their access
to rewards and resources. Elites do sometimes use
armed force to put down rebellions, and certainly the
Maintaining Inequality ever-present threat of coercion and fear of punish-
ment deters resistance to the elite’s wealth, prestige,
One issue in studying stratification is understanding and power.
how such large inequalities first developed millen- Yet in most stratified societies, with some excep-
nia ago, in prehistory. This issue cannot be addressed tions elites prefer not to actually use force. Use of mil-
here, other than noting that inequalities between peo- itary might is costly to them. Suppose the elite wait
ple usually originated out of a complex combination for rebellions to occur and then use police or armies
of intensive agriculture, control over scarce resources, to put them down. Even if rebellions fail, suppression
large-scale cooperation, and conquest warfare. Most by police and armies produces more hatred and re-
archaeologists who study stratification in prehistory sentment and more awareness of the relative wealth
agree that significant inequalities (deserving of the and power of the elite. Repression increases fear, as
term class) did not exist until after the evolution of civ- intended by elites, but it also can backfire and lead
ilization (see Chapter 7). to a greater probability of future rebellion. Notice
Furthermore, we know that in most stratified also that the elite’s reliance on brute force and op-
societies, a conquering militaristic group imposed its pression to maintain their wealth and power poten-
rule over the indigenous population of a region. This tially reduces or eliminates their honor and esteem,
was true in African states such as Bunyoro and Zulu one of the three major rewards of stratification, and
and in the ancient civilizations of the Americas such one that some members of the elite class presumably
as the Aztec and Inca. Conquest of the weaker by covet. Furthermore, those who supply the military
the militarily stronger was also important in forming might—armies, guards, thugs, or police—must be
the ancient Old World civilizations of East Asia, paid or otherwise provided for by the elite. Payment
Mesopotamia, and India. requires resources. Either the elite can take these re-
Knowing the conditions that led to the origin of sources from their own wealth, thus reducing it, or
inequalities in the past may not be very relevant to they can increase their exploitation of the majority
another issue in contemporary societies: how do such population, thus breeding still more hatred and re-
high degrees of inequality in stratified societies per- sentment toward themselves. Finally, relying entirely
sist? As the United States illustrates, a small percent- on the loyalty of an army is risky because this alle-
age of the population typically control most of the giance may change, as many dictators know or fear. In
wealth and wield a great deal of influence over public sum, reliance on threat and armed force alone is both
affairs. Why does the relatively underprivileged major- costly and risky.
ity allow them this power and privilege? Why doesn’t None of these points deny that armed force is
inequality produce more conflict and even revolts and an important way to sustain the powers and privi-
revolutions? leges of upper class people. Probably few elites have
In fact, class conflict has surfaced historically remained in power for many generations without
in a wide range of stratified societies. Resentment, using force and periodically suppressing rebellions
Sam Bassett/Riser/Getty Images
The difference between the net worth of the very rich and everyone else is much larger than the gap in annual incomes. This
couple seems to have the status that used to be called “jet set.”
and dissent. Nonetheless, stratification systems that who organize new rebellions and attacks. Furthermore,
rely entirely or largely on force seem to be short-lived while armies or police eliminate rebels, innocents are
and unstable and have been replaced by those that usually killed, injured, or harmed economically. This
use other mechanisms. What other mechanisms are can alienate those who otherwise would be more
available? passive about their place in the world. For these and
other reasons, armed force alone is unlikely to elimi-
nate the perceptions of unfairness, injustice, cultural
Ideologies domination, or other attitudes that cause rebellions and
We address this question by noting yet another rea- violence.
son coercive force alone is seldom solely responsi- It helps elites maintain their privileges if they
ble for maintaining inequality. A single rebellion can can influence the perceptions of the underprivileged
have many causes, but a persistent pattern of rebellion about why they are underprivileged. For example, if
is caused mainly by the lower strata’s perception that poor people think it is God’s will that they are poor,
they are exploited or not receiving their fair share of they are less likely to rebel than if they believe they
rewards. Seeking out and eliminating rebels does little are poor because of exploitation. Or, if they think the
to change the reasons people rebel. The instigators elite use their property and power to benefit every-
may be sanctioned or eliminated, but the underlying one in the society, they are less likely to challenge the
discontent that causes persistent conflict remains. elite. Or, if they think that a concentration of prop-
Imprisoning or killing instigators removes them from erty and power is inevitable because that’s just the
rebellions, but sometimes removing one instigator way human life is, they will be less likely to resist.
creates several more instigators (think of modern ter- Or, if they think that they, too, can acquire property,
rorism). Sooner or later, there will be new instigators power, and prestige through their own achievements,
they are more likely to put their effort into improv- societies, religion commonly gives the elite a super-
ing their own position rather than taking the risk of natural mandate, provides them with the supernatural
being punished or killed. Finally, if “the masses” are means to punish people, and gives them ritual func-
divided internally on the basis of values, ethnic iden- tions to perform that are believed to benefit the whole
tities, real threats from enemies, perceived threats population.
from Others, religious attachments, regional loyal-
ties, and so forth, then they are less likely to unite in American Secular Ideologies
the political arena.
To state the general point, if members of the lower Do similar kinds of religious ideologies exist in modern
strata adopt a set of beliefs that justifies and legitimizes industrial societies, some of which are as highly strati-
the rewards received by the higher strata, then they are fied as any preindustrial society?
more likely to try to join the system rather than to beat Some people who are critical of the impacts of the
it. In such beliefs, the elite have a powerful and relatively Judeo-Christian heritage of the West believe this reli-
cheap tool with which to dampen opposition to their gious tradition supports greed and accumulation. In
power and privileges. Moreover, these ideas increase fact, however, many New Testament passages warn
the prestige of the elite. If people believe that inequality Christians about the accumulation of wealth. The
is the will of the gods, or that the activities of the elite best known are the story of the rich man and Lazarus
benefit all, or that the elite became elite through intel- (Luke 16:19–31) and the passages about the rich man
ligence and hard work, then the elite deserve the honor who came to Jesus seeking salvation (told in Matthew
and respect of everyone else. (Not surprisingly, elites 19:21–24, Mark 10:21–25, and Luke 18:22–25). Lesser-
find it easy to believe such things about themselves.) known scriptures say the poor are blessed and the rich
We call those ideas and beliefs that explain inequal- are oppressors (Luke 6:20–24, James 2:2–6, and James
ity as desirable or legitimate ideologies. The term 5:1–6). Two passages in Acts (2:44–45 and 4:32–37)
ideology also has a broader meaning, often referring to seem to instruct Christians to hold their possessions
any set of ideas held by a group—as in the phrases left- in common, which not only does not support wealth
ist political ideology and feminist ideology. Here we use accumulation but is a rather anticapitalist teaching.
the term in the narrow sense, to refer only to ideas that Furthermore, most citizens do not believe that the
justify the status quo of inequality. Ideologies often are richest Americans have a supernatural mandate for
part of a people’s world view (Chapter 2). their wealth. The wealthiest families do not justify their
In many stratified societies, ideologies are based on income and ownership of property and financial assets
religious world views. We are familiar with the notion of by invoking religious authority or divine will. Religion
the “divine right of kings” from feudal Europe—certainly is not generally used to justify the wealth and power
a handy supernatural mandate for kings and aristoc- of particular individuals and families. At most, some
racies! Similar notions are common in non-Western wealthy claim to be “blessed,” but most take credit for
stratified societies. For instance, in Bunyoro, a king- their own success or admit that they are “lucky.”
dom in East Africa, the health and welfare of the ruler Finally, Judeo-Christian teachings historically have
were mystically associated with the fertility and pros- been and still are used to support social and political
perity of the whole kingdom. Anything that threatened movements that seek to correct inequalities that are
his life was believed to be a threat to everyone. In believed to be unjust. The nineteenth-century antislav-
many ancient civilizations, such as the Aztec, the ery movement is one example. More recent examples
Inca, the Japanese, and the Egyptian, the ruler him- include the civil rights and liberation theology move-
self was believed to be a divine or semidivine being. ments. A variety of churches and denominations are
In pre-twentieth-century China, the emperor had the resolutely against the Establishment in their beliefs. In
“Mandate of Heaven,” meaning that Heaven itself had the political realm, certainly many officeholders attend
granted him secular authority over the vast Chinese church and find ways to work their religious faith into
Empire for as long as he ruled it wisely and humanely. their speeches to certain audiences. But few gain polit-
In traditional India, as we have seen, Hindu beliefs ically by claiming they are God’s chosen officials. Even
about reincarnation and pollution were so intertwined
with the caste system that they both explained and
legitimized its inequities. ideologies Ideas and beliefs that legitimize and reinforce
The preceding examples illustrate a few ways inequalities in stratified societies.
religion serves ideological functions. In stratified
suspicion that a politician thinks he or she is carrying thus creating jobs that eventually trickle down to every-
out divine will is a political liability (although some cit- one. Putting more resources into the hands of the rich
izens will believe it, depending on whether they agree will “grow the economy,” thus benefiting everyone, ac-
with his or her policies). cording to this economic theory (or ideology?).
In brief, with regard to the issue of who has what A second secular ideology is that the elite earn their
and why, most Americans, and Westerners generally, rewards through their own merit and efforts. They
are secularists: they explain the unequal distribution are smarter, more ambitious, hardworking, willing to
of rewards by events here on earth, not by the will of take risks, and so forth. In short, the elite have per-
heaven. sonal qualities that account for their success. This is, of
Ideologies do not have to be based on religion, course, accurate for some members of the elite. Those
however. There are only two essential features of who inherited their wealth or were lucky enough to buy
ideologies: the right stock at the right time or get into (and/or out
of ) the right housing market early enough, however,
1. They justify (legitimize) inequality by affecting
receive the same rewards as those who earned their re-
people’s consciousness, not by threatening or using
wards by performing actual work.
physical coercion.
To the extent that they are widely believed, these
2. They are believable to large numbers of people, two ideas fit with Americans’ other beliefs about the
based on existing cultural knowledge. way people are and how their society works. They
In the first condition, consciousness refers to are compatible with widespread beliefs about human
cultural attitudes, values, worldviews, and so forth. In motivation—people are basically selfish and need
the second condition, believable means that effective strong incentives before they will make the effort to get
ideologies match people’s general ideas about how their a good education and have a responsible career. Such
society works. Ideologies must make sense in terms of ideologies also fit with many American values such
existing cultural knowledge, or they will be ineffective. as individual freedom, progress, the work ethic, and
Secular ideologies as well as religious ideologies can private ownership of property.
have both features. Of course, many Americans do not believe these
Many social scientists argue that secular ideologies two ideas. (If you do not believe them, then they are
take two forms in the modern United States. One is that not effective ideologies for you.) Others believe these
the whole nation benefits from inequality. Because a few ideas are an accurate portrayal of how the whole nation
people are very wealthy, many citizens believe that the benefits from economic inequality. (If you fall into this
middle and lower classes are better off than they would camp, you will think these ideas are objectively true,
be if wealth were distributed more equally. After all, the rather than merely ideologies.) Your personal opinion
chance to get rich motivates people to do their best, and depends on your class, upbringing, ideas about human
we all win when our fellow citizens perform up to their nature, political views, and so forth. Can a compara-
potential. Besides, the accumulation and investment of tive perspective shed any light on the issue of whether
wealth are necessary to create jobs from which poor stratification benefits society at large, or mainly mem-
and middle-class people benefit. The most familiar re- bers of the elite class themselves? To answer this ques-
cent example of this notion are justifications for tax cuts tion, we look at the major theories of inequality.
for wealthy people (note that a tax cut has the same ef-
fect as increasing income). If wealthier people are made
even wealthier, the argument (or ideology?) goes, they Theories of Inequality
will invest their extra income in expanding businesses, Sociologists and anthropologists distinguish two theo-
ries to analyze stratification. One holds that a high de-
gree of inequality in the distribution of rewards is nec-
essary, morally justified, and beneficial to all members
secular ideology Ideologies that justify inequality on of society. This view is called the functional theory of
the basis of its society-wide benefits rather than religious inequality.
teachings, beliefs, and values. A contrary view holds that a high degree of inequal-
functional theory of inequality Theory holding that ity not only is unjust or even immoral but also robs the
stratification is a way to reward individuals who contribute whole society of the benefits of much of its potential
most to society’s well-being. talent, which lies undeveloped in many of those at
the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder. This view is
PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images
American candidates for high office must profess their religious faith to go far, as Rick Santorum, Mitt Romney, and Newt
Gingrich did in the 2012 Republican primary elections. However, candidates who claim to be divinely chosen usually lose also.
known as the conflict theory of inequality. It holds Also, in the functionalist view, inequality is not only
that a high level of inequality offers few benefits to socially useful but also morally justified. If society as
anyone except the elite and, indeed, is harmful to the a whole is to enjoy the fruits of the labor of its small
whole society because of the conflicts it creates and the number of well-trained, talented, and hardworking in-
lack of equal opportunities it entails. dividuals, it is only fair and right that it reward these
individuals with material goods, respect, and control
over public decision making.
Functionalist Theory The functionalist analysis of inequality makes sense.
The functionalist theory holds that inequality is neces- People who do the most valuable things often get great
sary for a stratified society to motivate its most talented rewards. However, it is difficult to measure the social
and hard-working members to perform the most im- “value” of various activities, as the 2007 global finan-
portant roles. Some roles (including jobs) require more cial crisis so clearly shows—from whatever value was
skill and training than others. In most cases, the more added by the financial sector should be subtracted the
skill and training required for a job, the fewer the num-
ber of people qualified to do the job and the more valu-
able their abilities are to the whole group. Functionalists
argue that unequal rewards are effective ways to recruit conflict theory of inequality Theory holding that
the most able individuals into the most socially valuable stratification benefits mainly the upper stratum and is
roles. Unless there are rewards for those with the tal- the cause of most social unrest and other conflicts in
ents most of us lack, they will have no incentive to put human societies.
those talents to work in activities that benefit all of us.
lost value of those who suffered from it. It is reasonable roles. It is a large assumption, however, that those who
that rewards be proportionate to personal qualities like are best able to perform the most important roles are
effort and skill, but the two are not always correlated those who are usually recruited for them. In all systems of
nor can they be measured objectively. stratification, there is a powerful element of inheritance
Two other objections are possible within the frame- of wealth, prestige, and power. Even assuming that most
work of the functionalist theory itself. First, there is members of elite classes of the present day actually earned
no reason to believe that the high degree of inequality their rewards, many will pass their resources along to their
that actually exists in stratified societies is necessary to heirs. Sons and daughters, nieces and nephews, and the
ensure that those with the scarcest talents fill the most like may or may not be talented, hardworking, and merito-
valuable roles. In industrialized nations, for example, rious. Even if elite families do not transmit wealth to their
how many dollars does it take to motivate a qualified children, the latter still have a head start in life from the
individual to manage a major company? In the United extra help they get in education, job prospects, contacts
States, chief executive officers (CEOs) of large corpora- through social networks, and other privileges. Certainly,
tions have enjoyed enormous increases in compensation children born to poor families can and do succeed, but
packages: between 1978 and 2011, CEO compensation they must overcome more obstacles than those born to
increased 725 percent, whereas the compensation of privilege. If every generation were born with nearly equal
workers increased 5.7 percent (both figures are adjusted access to the means to succeed in life, we could be more
for inflation). In 2012, American CEOs earned 273 times confident that those who occupy the most important roles
the compensation paid to workers. This is part of a are those who are best qualified to fill them. What have
40-year upward trend from the 1965 earnings ratio (20), the children of the wealthiest Americans done to earn
the 1978 ratio (29), and the 1995 ratio (123). The highest their inheritance? The functionalist theory that those who
CEO/worker income ratio was in 2000, at 383! receive the highest rewards are most deserving would be
CEOs in 2011 earned over 7 times more than CEOs more plausible if the (metaphorical) playing field in which
earned in 1978. Were the top executives of American people compete were leveled.
companies responsible for a sevenfold increase in pro- Suppose there were some way to calculate the amount
ductivity and profits between 1978 and 2011? How did of inequality that is optimal for a given society. Suppose
they get so much better in 33 years? In 2011, an average further that the society could devise some way of beginning
worker worked 231 days to earn what a CEO earned each generation with everyone on an equal footing, with
in one day. On any given day, is a CEO 231 times more truly equal opportunities to compete. (This could be partly
valuable to the company than an ordinary worker? accomplished by steep inheritance taxes, which are often
Would companies be managed just as well if their opposed by those who in other contexts—such as those
CEOs made only 50 times what their workers made? who oppose the continuation of racial preferences in
Speaking more generally of elites, is there an actual hiring—say they believe in equal opportunity for all.) Then
relationship between the compensation (rewards) of the functionalist theory of inequality might apply. But no
elites and their contributions to their groups or to the stratified society has ever achieved this condition, partly
nation as a whole? Obviously, there is no way to measure because these questions are unanswerable and partly
this relationship. Compensation is mostly set by markets, because the wealthy and powerful would have to consent
but markets respond to supply and demand, not to the to such a change, and they have no incentive to do so.
“value” that some activity or role has for society at large.
For these reasons, one objection to the functional-
ist theory is that no one knows how much inequality is Conflict Theory
needed to motivate people. Nor does anyone know how The conflict theory agrees with the objections to func-
to calculate the benefits that elites actually offer to their tionalism just given. But it goes much further. Conflict
group or to society at large. In brief, there is no reason to theorists claim that stratification is based ultimately on
think that the high degree of inequality that actually ex- control over productive resources, such as land, tech-
ists in some stratified society is necessary for the nation nology, information, and labor. Once elites gain con-
to enjoy the benefits of some degree of inequality. Is there trol over these resources—by whatever means—they
any reason to think that the United States as a nation get other people to do work that benefits themselves.
would be worse off if the wealthiest 20 percent owned How this is organized varies among different kinds of
only 49 percent of the wealth rather than 89 percent? economic systems. In ancient preindustrial states and
Second, functionalists assume the system of stratifi- some chiefdoms, the noble class controlled the land and
cation effectively places qualified individuals in important other productive resources and the commoners had
to provide tribute and labor to the nobility in return themselves receive in wages, or there would be no profit
for the privilege of using it. In parts of feudal Europe, for the capitalists. The difference between the amount
serfs were tied to their estate and ordinarily had strong capitalists receive for the goods they sell and their
rights over the land they worked, but each year they costs (including the amount they pay their workers) is
still had to contribute a certain number of days of work profit. In Marx’s controversial view, profit is based on
or a certain proportion of their harvest to their lord. the exploitation of workers. The belief that workers re-
As for the capitalist economic system, Karl Marx— ceive a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work is merely an
the nineteenth-century “father” of conflict theory— ideology.
argued that capitalist societies include only two funda- Critics of conflict theory say that conflict theorists
mental classes. Members of the capitalist class (or bour- are ideologues themselves, though of a different po-
geoisie) own the factories and tools. Members of the litical persuasion. If one looks for “exploitation” in an
working class (or proletariat) have only one thing to sell economic relationship, one can usually find it. Critics
on the market: their labor. To earn their living, workers of conflict theory claim that the value-laden term
must sell their labor to some capitalist. This seems like exploitation does not adequately characterize relation-
an equitable arrangement. The capitalists buy the labor ships between chiefs or kings and commoners, between
they need to operate their factories, mines, and fields to lords and serfs, or between capitalists and workers.
sell goods and make profit. The workers get the jobs they Conflict theorists play down the valuable services
need to support their families by selling their time and that elite classes perform, such as maintaining social
skills for a wage set by the market for labor (Chapter 8). control, organizing the society for the provision of
But, Marx noted, the goods the workers produce public goods, and accumulating productive resources
must be worth more on the market than the workers (capital) put aside to increase future production.
William Taufic/Cusp/Corbis
Conflict theorists are criticized for being ideologues themselves, though of a different political persuasion than functionalists.
If one wants to find exploitation in Conflict theorists hold that stratification exists and persists because elite classes are able to
exploit others. This woman is boxing up clothing for shipment. Is her employer therefore exploiting her, as Karl Marx claimed?
Many conflict theorists assume it is possible to or- Does anthropology’s comparative perspective
ganize a complex society without rewards as unequal as have anything to say about who benefits from in-
those that exist in real stratified societies. This is an un- equality? In premodern stratified societies, elites did
realistic view of human nature, according to some crit- indeed perform some vital roles for the whole pop-
ics of the approach. They say this is one reason “com- ulation, just as functionalists claim. For example,
munism” has collapsed almost everywhere. Complex elites organized labor to construct and maintain pub-
societies are always hierarchically organized, with cen- lic works projects, provided relief to regions struck
tralized leadership. Many critics believe the functions by famine or hardship, promoted large-scale foreign
of leaders, controllers, and organizers are so valuable trade, and raised a military force to provide for the de-
to society at large that they deserve the rewards they fense of the political unit (see Chapter 12). Some kind
receive. And who is to say what/how much/what kinds of central authority is useful and may be necessary for
of rewards elites deserve? such tasks to be coordinated effectively. Cooperation
on a large scale, involving hundreds or thousands of
people, requires organization. Organizing hundreds
Who Benefits? or thousands of people requires leaders and decision
Contrasting the two theories, we see that functional- makers. Provided they make decisions they believe
ism emphasizes the positive aspects of stratification, are in the public interest, decision makers deserve
whereas conflict theory emphasizes the negative side. rewards.
Functionalists say the class structure benefits soci- On the other hand, elites took on some roles that
ety at large, including the less well-off, who would be probably were created to maintain their positions at
even less well-off without inequality. Conflict theory the top of society. Ordinary people regarded the re-
points to the costs of stratification not just to those ligious functions of elites or of the priests they sup-
on the bottom of the social ladder but also to soci- ported as indispensable to the general welfare, but in
ety at large. A country or other form of society loses fact the rituals did not bring rain, sustain the fertil-
the undeveloped potential of its underprivileged ity of land and females, or assuage the anger of the
members. Societies also suffer the periodic violent gods. That elite classes in ancient civilizations reg-
conflicts (rebellions, revolutions) or the ongoing dis- ulated access to land, irrigation water, and other re-
order (crimes, labor strikes, political dissent) that resources seems socially useful and even necessary, but
sult from a high degree of inequality and inherited it was partly because elites themselves controlled so
privilege. many resources that other people’s access to them
Conflict theorists argue that many of the prob- had to be “regulated.” Governmental elites provided
lems that have afflicted modern North America in the some law and order that benefited everyone, but the
last couple of decades are caused (or at least made elite’s power, wealth, and internal political rivalries
worse) by increasing inequality. Much resentment produced crimes and violent conflicts that otherwise
toward “the system” comes from people’s sense that would not have occurred.
their lives will not get better or are getting worse. From this comparative perspective, we can ques-
Unable to identify the causes of their frustrations, tion whether some of the benefits provided by elites in
some white conservative groups find scapegoats in industrialized nations mean they deserve the rewards
African Americans and Jews, immigrants, the United they receive. Perhaps some of the benefits provided by
Nations, and all those South Asian, South American, elite classes exist only because society’s institutions are
and Chinese laborers who work for “peanuts.” Unable organized in such a way that elites can be well compen-
to make a personally acceptable living in a socially sated. (If there were no role called “attorney,” how often
acceptable manner, inner-city youths turn to drug would you need to pay for one?)
dealing and other kinds of crime. Economic hardship Who benefits from the inequality in stratified societ-
contributes to family breakups. Poorer people need ies? Functionalists are probably correct in assuming that
more social programs, funded by taxpayers, who some degree of inequality is needed for motivation. Most
watch stories in the media about people cheating the people also agree that unequal rewards for unequal efforts
government and so elect representatives who provide and talents is a fair standard. However, we do not know
fewer services—for the poor, at least. More generally, how much inequality is necessary to provide incentives,
the sense of national unity and social responsibility much less whether some particular stratified society—
is undermined by worsening inequality, according to including whichever one you are a citizen of—has approx-
conflict theorists. imately the right amount. We do know that power and
privilege are partly or largely inherited, and, therefore, the Most citizens in stratified societies would benefit
current members of the upper class are not automatically from inequality, if only there were some way to find
more talented and diligent than everyone else. Looking out what the optimum amount of inequality is for a
at other stratified societies, we see that elites do provide particular society, if only there were some way to achieve
some useful services for the population at large. But we this optimum initially, and if only there were some way
also see that many widespread ideas about their functions to ensure that opportunities to succeed and achieve
are “just ideologies.” It is easy to imagine that many of their are equal for children born in varying circumstances.
“essential roles” are useful only under circumstances that But, so far, no known human society has ever achieved
previous elite classes had a hand in creating and that pres- this Utopia.
ent elites use their privilege and power to perpetuate.
SUMMARY
1. Explain egalitarian, ranked, and stratified. The membership is wealth. Studies conducted by
terms egalitarian, ranked, and stratified refer to scholars and by the federal government reveal
societal differences in inequality in wealth, power, differences in income and enormous disparities in
and prestige. Forager egalitarianism is explained the distribution of wealth.
by the frequent movements of camps, the ability
3. Describe how ideologies are important in
of individuals to choose their band affiliation, the
maintaining inequalities in stratified societies.
cultural value placed on sharing and the social
How do the highly unequal distribution of rewards
pressure against making oneself stand out, and
persist? Mobilization of armed force by the elite
the difficulties of maintaining exclusive access to a
is an insufficient explanation. Cultural beliefs
territory. Many horticulturalists also are relatively
that inequality is inevitable, divinely ordained, or
egalitarian, as illustrated by the “big men” of
beneficial to society as a whole provide ideologies
Melanesia. In ranked societies such as Tikopia
that justify and reinforce the power and privilege
of Polynesia, there are a set number of honored
of elite classes. Among many peoples of the past
positions (chiefs, titles) to which only a small
and present, religious beliefs provided ideologies,
number of people are eligible to succeed. Stratified
as exemplified by most ancient civilizations and
societies, found in all ancient civilizations and states
states. In modern countries, ideologies tend to be
and all modern nations, have marked and enduring
more secular, mainly because effective ideologies
inequalities in access to all three kinds of rewards.
must be compatible with people’s overall cultural
2. Discuss the primary differences between castes ideas about how their society works. In the United
and classes. In caste systems, there is little or States, secular ideologies include prevalent ideas
no mobility between castes, the castes are legally about the society-wide benefits of inequality, about
or normatively endogamous, and higher-caste the fairness of unequal rewards for unequal talents
persons consider those of the lowest castes to and efforts, and about how the well-to-do achieved
be unclean or polluting. Castes are best known their wealth.
from India, where they were intimately associated
with the Hindu doctrines of reincarnation and 4. Evaluate the functional and conflict theories
pollution. Classes exist in all modern countries. of stratification. Functionalist and conflict
In the United States, the best criterion of class theories offer sharply contrasting ideas about
stratification. Functionalists hold that societies only because past elites have set up the structure
offer unequal rewards to those individuals who of society so that elite “services” are necessary.
use their talents to perform the most socially Functionalists are correct that some degree of
valuable roles. Conflict theorists claim that inequality in rewards is necessary to motivate
inequality is based ultimately on control over individuals. However, there is no way of knowing
productive resources. Comparisons suggest that whether a given society has the optimal amount.
although elites often do perform valuable services No society ever succeeded in establishing the
for society at large, many of their “functions” are equal opportunity required for the functionalist
illusory. Also, many benefits of stratification exist theory to be correct.

Antro 13. Ünite

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Antro 13. Ünite

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Antro 13. Ünite

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

13 Social Inequality

Ines Gesell/Getty Images

Equalities and Inequalities Maintaining Inequality

Like most mobile hunter-gatherers, the Ju/’hoansi are an egalitarian people.

296 PART III The Diversity of Culture

produced huge fortunes for some centuries, the growth of economies in

western Europeans. In Asia, spices, tea, benefits and costs of globalization.)

organize themselves with a council to pursue their

CHAPTER 13 Social Inequality and Stratification 311

CHAPTER 13 Social Inequality and Stratification 313

314 PART III The Diversity of Culture

You might also like