Social stratification

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Social Stratification
Caste
Class
Race



Submitted to:
Mr. Renjith R.
School of Social Work,
Marian College,
Kuttikkanam.
Submitted by:
Bimal Antony,
1
st
MSW,
School of Social Work,
Marian College,
Kuttikkanam.
Date of Submission:
10
th
November 2010.

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Introduction
Social Stratification can be said as the hierarchical arrangement of individuals into
divisions of power and wealth within a society. Caste, Class, Estate acts as tools for
stratification. Stratification derives from the geological concept of ‗strata‘ which means layers,
created by natural processes.
Definitions
―An arrangement of any social group or society into a hierarchy of positions that are
unequal with regard to power, property, social evaluation and psychic gratification.‖
:- Melvin Tumin
Origin of Social Stratification
As societies evolved and became more complex, they began to elevate some members.
All societies stratify their members. A stratified society is one in which there is an unequal
distribution of society‘s rewards and in which people are arranged hierarchically into layers
according to how much of society‘s rewards they possess.
Hunting and Gathering Societies
Hunting and gathering societies had little stratification. Men hunted for meat while
women gathered edible plants, and the general welfare of the society depended on all its
members sharing what it had. The society as a whole undertook the rearing and socialization of
children and shared food and other acquisitions more or less equally. Therefore, no group
emerged as better off than the others.
Horticultural, Pastoral, and Agricultural Societies
The emergence of horticultural and pastoral societies led to social inequality. For the first
time, groups had reliable sources of food: horticultural societies cultivated plants, while pastoral
societies domesticated and bred animals. Societies grew larger, and not all members needed to be
involved in the production of food. Pastoral societies began to produce more food than was
needed for mere survival, which meant that people could choose to do things other than hunt for
or grow food.
Division of Labor and Job Specialization
Division of labor in agricultural societies led to job specialization and stratification.
People began to value certain jobs more highly than others. The further someone was from actual
agriculture work, the more highly he or she was respected. Manual laborers became the least
respected members of society, while those engaged in ―high culture,‖ such as art or music,
became the most respected.

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As basic survival needs were met, people began trading goods and services they could
not provide for themselves and began accumulating possessions. Some accumulated more than
others and gained prestige in society as a result. For some people, accumulating possessions
became their primary goal. These individuals passed on what they had to future generations,
concentrating wealth into the hands of a few groups.
Industrialized Societies
The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain in the mid-1700s, when the steam
engine came into use as a means of running other machines. The rise of industrialization led to
increased social stratification. Factory owners hired workers who had migrated from rural areas
in search of jobs and a better life. The owners exploited the workers to become wealthy, making
them work long hours in unsafe conditions for very low wages. The gap between the ―haves‖ and
the ―have-nots‖ widened.
The Improvement of Working Conditions
By the middle of the 1900s, workers had begun to secure rights for themselves, and the
workplace became safer. Wages rose, and workers had something they had never had before:
buying power. They could purchase homes, automobiles, and a vast array of consumer goods.
Though their financial success was nothing compared to that of their bosses, the gap between the
two was narrowing, and the middle class grew stronger.
The increasing sophistication and efficiency of factory machines led to the need for a
different kind of worker—one who could not only operate certain kinds of equipment but could
also read and write. The classification of the skilled worker was born. A skilled worker is literate
and has experience and expertise in specific areas of production, or on specific kinds of
machines. The division arose between skilled and unskilled workers, with the former receiving
higher wages and, as some would say, greater job security.
Postindustrial Societies
The rise of postindustrial societies, in which technology supports an information-based
economy, has created further social stratification. Fewer people work in factories, while more
work in service industries. Education has become a more significant determinant of social
position. The Information Revolution has also increased global stratification.
Historical Stratification Systems
All societies are stratified, but the criteria used to categorize people vary widely. Social
stratification has taken many forms throughout history, including slavery, the estate system,
indentured servitude, the caste system, and the class system.

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Slavery
Slavery is a system of stratification in which one person owns another, as he or she would
own property, and exploits the slave‘s labor for economic gain. Slaves are one of the lowest
categories in any stratification system, as they possess virtually no power or wealth of their own.
The Estate System
An ancient stratification system that no longer exists today was the estate system, a three-
tiered system composed of the nobility, the clergy, and the commoners. During the Middle Ages,
much of Europe was organized under this system.
Nobility
Members of the nobility had great inherited wealth and did little or no discernible work.
They occupied themselves in what we would term leisure pursuits, such as hunting or riding.
Others cultivated interests in cultural pursuits, such as art and music.
To ensure that their inherited wealth passed smoothly from one generation to the next
without being dispersed to members of the extended family, the nobility of the Middle Ages
practiced the law of primogeniture. The word primogeniture comes from Latin and means ―first
born.‖ The nobility‘s law of primogeniture stipulated that only a first-born son could inherit his
father‘s wealth.
Clergy
The eldest son was guaranteed a healthy income upon the death of his father, but other
sons had to find their own means of income. Few, if any, were trained for work, so many became
members of the Roman Catholic clergy, a body of religious officials. The clergy was very
powerful in European society in the Middle Ages, and membership offered long-term job
security and a comfortable living. The higher up the ladder a priest went, the more power he had
over the masses.
Commoners
The third tier of the estate system consisted of the masses of people known as the
commoners. They spent their lives engaged in hard physical labor, with virtually no chance of
moving up in society.
Indentured Servitude
Some commoners, searching for a way out of their situation, found it by agreeing to indentured
servitude, in which one individual agrees to sell his or her body or labor to another for a
specified period of time. Once the time period is over, the individual may leave. Indentured
servitude differs from slavery in that the individual chooses to enter into the agreement, while
slaves have no say in deciding the course of their lives.

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Theories of Stratification
Economic Determinism / Conflict Theory

The conflict theory approach argues that individuals at the top of social hierarchies are
there at the expense of people in lower positions. People higher up in the hierarchy will use their
power to strengthen both the hierarchy and their standing in it.
According to Marx who proposed this theory, economic factors are responsible for the
emergence of different social strata or classes. Thus there are in every society two mutually
conflicting societies – the rich and the poor or the class of the capitalists and the class of the
workers.
Functionalist Theory

This theory emphasizes the integrating function of social stratification based upon
individual merit and reward. Kingsley Davis, P.A. Sorokin, MacIver and others rejected the
conflict theory of Marx. Sorokin attributed social stratification mainly to inherited individual
differences in environmental conditions. According to Kingsley Davis stratification has come
into being due to the functional necessity of the social system. The main functional necessity is
―the requirement faced by any society of placing and motivating individuals in the social
structure.‖
All social system shares certain functional prerequisites which must be met if the system
is to survive and operate efficiently. One such prerequisite is role allocation and performance.
This means that all roles must be filled. They will be filled by those best able to perform them.
The necessary training for them is undertaken and that the roles are performed conscientiously.
Davis and Moore argue that all societies need some mechanism for insuring effective role
allocation and performance. This mechanism is social stratification which they see as a system
which attaches unequal rewards and privileges to the positions in society. They concluded that
social stratification is a device by which societies insure that the most important positions are
conscientiously filled by the most qualified persons.
Dependency Theory
Dependency theory is the body of theories that propound a worldview suggesting the
wealthy countries of the world need a peripheral group of poorer countries to remain wealthy.
Wealthy nations are seen as the core countries; poorer nations are seen as the peripheral
countries (with some countries falling in between). Core countries extract resources from the
periphery countries and eventually return those resources as manufactured goods. This works to
maintain the superiority of the core countries by stripping the periphery countries of their natural
resources and forcing them to buy manufactured goods at high prices - the proceeds going to the
people and corporations of the core countries. Thus, poor nations provide natural resources,
cheap labour, a destination for obsolete technology, and export markets for the wealthy nations.

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Characteristics of Social Stratification

It is Social.
It does not represent biologically caused inequalities. Biological traits do not determine
social superiority and inferiority until they are socially recognized and given importance.
The stratification system is (i) governed by social norms and sanctions, (ii) is likely to be
unstable because it may be disturbed by many factors and (iii) is intimately connected with the
other systems of society such as political, family, religious, economic, educational and other
institutions.
It is Ancient.
Stratification was present even is small wandering bands. Age and sex were the main
criterion of stratification then, difference between the rich and the poor, powerful and humble,
freeman and slaves was there in almost all the civilizations.
It is Universal.
Differences between the rich and the poor, the haves and have nots are present
everywhere. Stratification is not limited to any society or region.
It is in Diverse Forms.
It is never been uniform in all the societies. Roman society was stratified into two strata :
the patricians (aristocrat family of ancient rome) and the plebians (common people). The ancient
Aryan society into four varnas. The greek society into freeman and slaves. The ancient Chinese
into mandarins, merchants, farmers and so on.
It is consequential.
The system refers to two main kinds of consequences. (i) life chances and (ii) life styles.
Life-chances refer to such things as infant mortality, longevity, physical and mental illness,
childlessness, marital conflict, separation and divorce. ‗life-styles‘ include suchg matters as the
mode of housing, residential area, one‘s education, means of recreation, relationship between the
parents and children and so on.
Social Stratification and Social Mobility
Social mobility may be understood as the movement of people or group from one social
status or position to another status or position. For example, the poor people may become rich,
peon becoming the bank manager, farmer becoming minister etc.

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Vertical Social Mobility
This refers to the movement of people from one status to another. It involves change in
class, occupation or power. Examples: from poor to middle lass
Horizontal Mobility
This is a change in position without a change in status. It indicates a change in position
within the range of the status. Example a teacher leaving from one school and joining another.
Inter- and Intra-generational mobility
Intra-generational mobility ("within" a generation) is defined as changes in social status over a
single life-time. Inter-generational mobility ("across" generations) is defined as changes in social
status that occur from the parents' to the children's generation.
Caste
―A collection of families, bearing a common name, claiming a common descent, from a
mythical ancestor , human and divine, professing to follow the same hereditary calling and
regarded by those who are competent to give an opinion as forming a single homogenous
community.‖ :- Sir Herbert Risely.
India’s Caste System
The Indian government officially outlawed the caste system in 1949, but vestiges of it
remain today. The system originated with the Hindu religion, which subscribes to the concept of
reincarnation, the belief that while the physical body dies, the soul of a person is immortal and
goes on to be reborn into another body.
The Five Castes
The Indian caste system has existed for about 3,000 years. There were four original
castes, and one caste so low that it was not even considered to be part of the caste system:
The Brahman caste usually consisted of priests or scholars and enjoyed a great deal of
prestige and wealth.
The Kshatriya caste, or warrior caste, was composed of those who distinguished
themselves in military service.
The Vaishva caste comprised two sets of people—business-people and skilled
craftspeople.
The Shudra caste consisted of those who made their living doing manual labor.

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The Harijan, Dalit, or Untouchable caste was thought to comprise only inferior people
who were so repulsive that an individual who accidentally touched one would have to engage in
extensive ritual ablutions to rid himself or herself of the contamination.
The Beginning of the caste system
There are different theories about the establishment of the caste system. There are
religious-mystical theories. There are biological theories. And there are socio-historical theories.
The religious theories explain how the four Varnas were founded, but they do not
explain how the Jats in each Varna or the untouchables were founded. According the Rig Veda,
the ancient Hindu book, the primal man - Purush - destroyed himself to create a human society.
The different Varnas were created from different parts of his body. The Brahmans were created
from his head; the Kshatrias from his hands; the Vaishias from his thighs and the Sudras from his
feet. The Varna hierarchy is determined by the descending order of the different organs from
which the Varnas were created. Other religious theory claims that the Varnas were created from
the body organs of Brahma, who is the creator of the world.

The biological theory claims that all existing things, animated and inanimated, inherent
three qualities in different apportionment. Sattva qualities include wisdom, intelligence, honesty,
goodness and other positive qualities. Rajas include qualities like passion, pride, valour and other
passionate qualities. Tamas qualities include dullness, stupidity, lack of creativity and other
negative qualities. People with different doses of these inherent qualities adopted different types
of occupation. According to this theory the Brahmans inherent Sattva qualities. Kshatrias and
Vaisias inherent Rajas qualities. And the Sudras inherent Tamas qualities.
The social historical theory explains the creation of the Varnas, Jats and of the
untouchables. According to this theory, the caste system began with the arrival of the Aryans in
India. The Aryans arrived in India around 1500 BC. The fair skinned Aryans arrived in India
from south Europe and north Asia. Before the Aryans there were other communities in India of
other origins. Among them Negrito, Mongoloid, Austroloid and Dravidian. The Negrito have
physical features similar to people of Africa. The Mongoloid have Chinese features. The
Austroloids have features similar the aboriginals of Australia. The Dravidians originate from the
Mediterranean and they were the largest community in India. When the Aryans arrived in India
their main contact was with the Dravidians and the Austroloids. The Aryans disregarded the
local cultures. They began conquering and taking control over regions in north India and at the
same time pushed the local people southwards or towards the jungles and mountains in north
India.
The Aryans organized among themselves in three groups. The first group was of the
warriors and they were called Rajayana, later they changed their name Rajayana to Kshatria. The
second group was of the priests and they were called Brahmans. These two groups struggled

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politically for leadership among the Aryans. In this struggle the Brahmans got to be the leaders
of the Aryan society. The third group was of the farmers and craftsmen and they were called
Vaisia. The Aryans who conquered and took control over parts of north India subdued the locals
and made them their servants. In this process the Vaisias who were the farmers and the craftsmen
became the landlords and the businessmen of the society and the locals became the peasants and
the craftsmen of the society.
Characteristics of Caste in India
• Basis is kinship
• Associated occupation
• Clearly separated, self-regulating groups
• No individual mobility in one lifetime
• No inter-caste marriage
• Religious interpretation ranked by purity
Class
―A social class is the aggregate of persons having essentially the same social status in a given
society‖. :- Ogburn and Nimkoff
Class depends largely on economic differences between groups – differences in income
and wealth, possession of material goods and life chances.
In a class system, an individual‘s place in the social system is based on achieved statuses,
which are statuses that we either earn or choose and that are not subject to where or to whom we
were born. Those born within a class system can choose their educational level, careers, and
spouses. Social mobility, or movement up or down the social hierarchy, is a major characteristic
of the class system.
Classifications of Class
Sociologists have given three-fold classification of classes which consists of - upper
class, middle class and lower class. Sorokin has spoken of three major types of class
stratification -they are economic, political and occupational classes. Lloyd Warner shows how
class distinctions contribute to social stability. Veblen analyzed the consumption pattern of the
rich class by the concept of conspicuous consumption. Warner has classified classes into six
types- upper-upper class, upper-middle class, upper-lower class, lower-upper class, the lower
middle class and lower class. Anthony Giddens's three class model is the upper, middle and
lower (working) class.

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Nature and Characteristics of Social Class.
A Status Group
Achieved Status and not Ascribed
Universality
Mode of feeling
a) Feeling of equality
b) Feeling of inferiority
c) Feeling of superiority
Element of Prestige
Element of Stability
Mode of Living
Open Group
Economic Group
Race
Race and ethnic relations are the patterns of interaction among groups whose members share
distinctive physical characteristics or cultural traits.
"Racial group is a kind of ethnic group, one that is set apart from others by some
combination of inherited biological traits such as - skin colour, facial features, and stature."
:- N. J. Smelser
The three major races in the world are Negretoid, Mangloid and Caucasian.

Conclusion
The study of social stratification, class, caste, race are all necessary for a social worker to
understand the community the worker works with. These factors are the common norms that a
society is based upon.
References

http://www.sociologyguide.com/social-stratification/index.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_stratification

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http://www.hindunet.org/varna/index.htm
http://adaniel.tripod.com/castes.htm