Chapter 4 - Social Inequality and Social Class

Question 1

______ was One of the most important figures in the development of sociology and the Founder of conflict theory

Answer 1

marx

Question 2

what inspired marx to come up with the conflict theory

Answer 2

Inspired labour unions and worker’s parties, advocating for worker’s right and safe working conditions - fought for socialism and said other academics should too

Question 3

who collaborated with marx

Answer 3

redrich engals

Question 4

Marx argues that ______ struggle is the core struggle in all societies

Answer 4

class

Question 5

______ is “the economic system in which businesses are privately owned and goods are sold on the market for profit - the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie”

Answer 5

capitalism

Question 6

explain the conflict between marx talked about, who was it between

Answer 6

conflict between those who own the means of production (capitalists/bourgeoisie) and those who only own their labour (working class/proletariat)

Controlled by small group of wealthy business owners
Founded on internal tensions that make it unsustainable

Question 7

Marx Argues that historical periods are distinguished by the _____ of _______ of _______ and services that dominated the time

Answer 7

Argues that historical periods are distinguished by the mode of production of goods and services that dominated the time

Question 8

_________ (acc to marx) - groups of people who play different roles in the productive system; capitalism has 2 (bourgeoisie and proletariat)

Answer 8

classes

Question 9

differentiate between the bourgoisie and the proletariat

Answer 9

Bourgeoisie - own means of production and property (any resource that can be used to produce things of value and to generate wealth) eg. land)

Proletariat - own their capacity for labour only; which they sell to capitalists to survive

Question 10

Marx argues that capitalism function and continues to exist through this perpetual exploitation of the workers’ labour and subsequent oppression

explain how this is sustained due to a relationship of reliance between the two gorups

Answer 10

Capitalists cannot exists without workers to labour in their factories; at the same time, workers must have somewhere to sell their labour to make money to survive

Question 11

The proletariat and bourgeoisie depend on each other, but their relationship is unequal - leading to class _______

Answer 11

struggles

Question 12

why does marx think class struggles exist

Answer 12

Marx says class struggles exist because classes want diff things & have diff interests

Question 13

Capitalists want the most _______ _______

Answer 13

surplus value

Question 14

define surplus value

Answer 14

the excess value that workers produce beyond the cost of their labour - the amount of money the capitalists get to keep after paying their worker’s wages

Question 15

what does the capitalists idea of wanting the most surplus value mean for workers

Answer 15

Means keeping wages low
Having workers work quickly
Setting long work hours

Question 16

what do workers want, how does this conflict with capitalists’ desires?

Answer 16

Workers want to make a good wage that allows them to live and support their families
Work under safe conditions
Reasonable number of hours

These desires conflict with the capitalists attempt to make large profit

Question 17

_______ are sets of conscious and unconscious ideas or beliefs that govern people’s lives

Answer 17

ideologies

Question 18

Ideologies such as meritocracy, individualism, progress, expansion and development are so fundamentally intertwined within our [capitalist] economic system, yet they …….?

Answer 18

yet they often seem so natural and invisible that they end up being accepted by those within

Question 19

define meritocracy

Answer 19

the idea that people will achieve backed on their own merit (wealthy ppl got there cause they worked hard, poor people are lazy)

Question 20

who do the dominant ideologies benefit? how are they a disadvantage to the other side?

Answer 20

These ideologies benefit the bourgeoisie and make it more difficult for the proletariats to revolt - promotes the idea that the proletariat can too become rich if they work hard enough

Question 21

The workers in capitalism develop a _____ ___________ - a willingness to believe in ideologies that support the ruling class that are actually disadvantageous to working-class interests

Answer 21

false consciousness

Question 22

Why Marx says capitalists use the state to further their own interests

Answer 22

State is used to sustain class systems

Through media and school curriculum capitalists persuade workers to accept the concentration of power

Question 23

what are th two main criticisms of the manifesto of the communist party?

Answer 23

no longer two simple classes (betite bourgoisie, lumpenproletariat)

Important differences between the time marx was writing in and now - the workers do diff things

Question 24

define the two additional classes (other than bourgoisie and the proletariat

Answer 24

Petite bourgeoisie - small-scale capitalists (shopkeepers and managers)
Don’t necessarily sell their labour - work alongside
the labourers

Lumpenproletariat
Lowest level of working class
Petty criminals and chronically unemployed

Question 25

______ ______ People's beliefs regarding their social class and class interests

Answer 25

class consciousness

Question 26

marx distinguished between two types of class consciousness' "class in itself" "class for itself" Differentiate

Answer 26

“Class in itself” -a category of people with a common relation to the means of production (such as the worker or the proletariat) “Class for itself” - a group organised in active pursuit of its own interests (eg. unionised workers fighting for better working conditions)

Question 27

______ _________ is important for being able to organise a class for itself to advocate for class interests

Answer 27

class consciousness

Question 28

_______- organisations of employees who work together to negotiate a variety of common matters, including pay, benefits, hiring and firing practices, and working conditions

Answer 28

unions

Question 29

______ union _______ describes the percentage of wage earners in a population who are part of a union

Answer 29

trade union density

Question 30

differentiate between overt resistance and covert resistance

Answer 30

Overt resistance - behaviour that is visible and readily recognized by both targets and observers as resistance Covert resistance acts are intentional yet go unnoticed (and thus unpunished) by their targets

Question 31

______ was influenced by marx, and wrote his theory of inequality by looking at the distribution of power in society Agreed that economic power is very important, but added that other, non-economic factors are at play such as. religion

Answer 31

weber

Question 32

what is a difference between marx and weber reguarding defining the classes

Answer 32

marx described 2 groups, weber said there were 4

Question 33

what were weber's 4 classes

Answer 33

Large capitalists - own large factories, farms, or other business that employ large numbers of people Small capitalists (= petit bourgeoisie for marx) - smaller businesses with fewer employees Specialists - doctors, lawyers, and profs with marketable skills and training that they sell through labour Working class (= proletariat for marx) - manual labourers

Question 34

weber discussed ______ _____ where generally high social ______ = high social ______

Answer 34

status groups Generally, high social status = high social class

Question 35

there are exceptions to weber's theory on status = class, give an example

Answer 35

priests who dont make much but have very high status plumbers and electricians make a ton but have little status

Question 36

Individuals can be apart of many ______ _______ but are only in one social ______

Answer 36

many status groupns, one social class

Question 37

Webers last and main dimensions of power is parties what does he mean by "parties"

Answer 37

organisations that attempt to influence social action that focus on achieving some soul in the sphere of power Eg. NDP, LIberals, … But also ones aimed at improving specific social problems (eg. block watch or parent-teacher groups)

Question 38

what is socio-economic status(SES)

Answer 38

a measure of individuals or family's social and economic position relative to others

Question 39

what are the categories of SES

Answer 39

Divided into 3 categories (low, middle, high)

Question 40

how is SES measured

Answer 40

Composite scale that includes measure of income, educational attainment, occupational prestige

Question 41

_______ ______ is movement on a stratification system, such as the class system

Answer 41

social mobility

Question 42

more _______ _______ makes the gap between the rich and the poor is less concerning

Answer 42

social mobility

Question 43

what is an achievemnet-based stratification system

Answer 43

people rank depends on their accomplishments; those who work hard and are diligent achieve high social status or class

Question 44

Ascription-based stratification system

Answer 44

determines an individuals rank by his ascribed characteristics (the features he is born with) If ethnicity, religion, sexes etc hold rank in a society s is this

Question 45

differentiate between intergenerational and intregenerational mobility

Answer 45

Intergenerational mobility - between generation Eg. your parents or grandparents might be working class, but you are upper-middle class Intergenerational mobility - within a single generation eg. your parent were born into the working class but became middle-class during their lifetime

Question 46

what is Intergenerational income elasticity

Answer 46

the statistical relationship between a parent’s and child’s economic standing Higher the number, less social mobility a society had and the greater the role of the parents in predicting the childs SES

Question 47

_________ is a state in which resources (material or cultural) are lacking - is a serious social proble in the world

Answer 47

poverty

Question 48

differentiate between relative and absolute poverty

Answer 48

Relative poverty - the deprivation of one individual in comparison to another Absolute poverty - the life-threatening deprivation of an individual

Question 49

what is the cycle of poverty

Answer 49

how poverty tends to perpetuate itself and is therefore likely to continue for an individual or group unless there is some outside intervention Low income, low education are example of reasons this happens

Question 50

Karl marx understands social class as being based on an individual's relationship to the _______ ____ _______ , what are the two possible relationships in his eyes

Answer 50

means of production either a capitalist who owns the means of production or a worker who only owns their labour power

Question 51

Max weber added the importance of social _______ to marx’s ideas

Answer 51

status

Question 52

from the reading "checking my privilege": what does the saying "check your privilege" imply

Answer 52

this saying strikes down opinions without reguard for their merits, but rather solet on the basis of the person that voices them ie. white males should feel persoanlly apologetic cayse they pull most trings in the world

Question 53

from the reading "checking my priviledge": what is wrong with telling someone to check their priviledge

Answer 53

it says that simply cause you belong to a certain ethnic gorup you should be judged collectively with it can diminish personal accomplishment

Question 54

what ideology is reflected in the reading "checking my priviledge"

Answer 54

meritocracy

Question 55

from the reading "checking my priviledge": what does the author say his privlige is

Answer 55

his grandparents come to america things like education and faith were passed on to him \

Question 56

from the reading "checking my priviledge"'s reply: what does he say the first author is doing

Answer 56

although he says theres no reason to be sorry for ones origins, he says the first author is being blind to inequality

Question 57

from the reading "checking my priviledge"'s reply: what does he acklowledge tha the first author didnt

Answer 57

that he has priviledges that his grandfather didnt

Question 58

from the reading "checking my priviledge"'s reply: what does he say the first author misses

Answer 58

dispite the success their families got dispite their struggles, harmful structural inequalities persist on the basis of class, race, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity

Question 59

the ______ perspective Looks at society and focuses on how various social forces affect harmony, cohesion and solidarity

Answer 59

functionalist

Question 60

the functional perspective sees society as a _______, where the success or failure (or health) of a society rests in how well its ________ “function” in maintaining

Answer 60

system subsystems

Question 61

according to the functionalist perspective Social bounds and moral _______ ensure that people feel their lives are with living

Answer 61

bounds regulation

Question 62

according to the functionalist perspective we must think of society as a whole as a _______, explain

Answer 62

cell there are parts that create power, parts that discrete waste, parts that communicate… when one of those parts isn't functioning properly, the entire cell gets sick

Question 63

according to the functionalist perspective The system ______ ______ to us what we _____

Answer 63

gives back to us what we need

Question 64

in the the functionalist perspective there is innate inequality, why would this be okay?

Answer 64

there is innate inequality - but generally, people are okay with this inequality, as our diversity is what contributes to a healthy functioning system

Question 65

How would a functionalist answer “who decides what's fair”?

Answer 65

A functionalist would rephrase the question as “what ultimately determines what is considered fair” Our shared sense of solidarity - “we owe ut to one another and to be fair” The the functional needs of the system- “without laws and norms, the system would collapse”

Question 66

The functionalist argument for equality according to Warren Buffet (rich dude) is what

Answer 66

We cannot have extreme inequality as we would then lose that sense of “we-ness” These extreme inequalities are not good for the system

Question 67

what type of suicide? willing to sacrifice their own life in order to fulfil some obligation for the group: eg. suicide for a religious or political cause

Answer 67

alturistic

Question 68

what type of suicide? For example, when individuals suffer extreme financial loss, the disappointment and stress

Answer 68

anomic

Question 69

what type of suicide? committed by individuals who are social outcast and see themselves as being alone or an outsider.

Answer 69

egoistic

Question 70

what type of suicide? Individuals are placed under extreme rules or high expectations are set upon them, which removes a person’s sense of self or individuality. Slavery and persecution are examples of fatalistic suicide - where suicide is used to escape

Answer 70

fatalistic

Question 71

who said "we tends to treat social issues simplistically - too often only an issue of individual mindset (eg. depression) - but it's more complicated than that"

Answer 71

durkheim

Question 72

what did durkeim say was more complicated about social issues

Answer 72

It's more complicated for the person individually - personal trouble are often rooted in a border public issues that also require solutions peoples life circumstancesaren't all the same, and thus we shouldn't assume that social outcomes can be explained by the same social causes for everyone

Question 73

what is the division of labour

Answer 73

the dividing up of roles in a system , where the broader operation is fulfilled by these various tasks

Question 74

when people are forced into roles that don't correspond with their natural talents (such as slaver) what is this called

Answer 74

Forced Division of Labour

Question 75

if the norms and institutions are our of balance this is called ______ divisions of labour

Answer 75

anomic

Question 76

the _____ perspective Focuses on the social processes that maintain hierarchy, domination and oppression

Answer 76

conflict

Question 77

according to the conflict persopective Social _______ are often reflect deeper systems that confer power to one group over an “other” group

Answer 77

inequalities

Question 78

according to the conflict persopective The so-called benefits of most inequalities are ____________ that maintains _______ ______

Answer 78

rationalisations that maintain power relations

Question 79

according to the conflict persopective

Question 80

according to the conflict persopective

Question 81

marx's core focus was what

Answer 81

relation people had to economic production of society

Question 82

according to marx capitalism requires the extraction of _______ _____ from the worker

Answer 82

surplus value

Question 83

Who ultimately decides what fair? according to conflict perspective

Answer 83

no one group on particular, but the most prevalent ideas about “fairness” tend to reflect the interests of the powerful

Question 84

wber added social _____ and ______ ______ to marx's ideas

Answer 84

status and part membership (strategic social organizations

Question 85

What is the difference between socioeconomic status, income and wealth?

Answer 85

Socioeconomic status (SES) - measures an individual's or families social and economic positions relative to others Income - all the wages, salaries, profits, rents, and dividends that one has coming in during a given period of time, often measured in years Wealth - a stock of assets owned at a particular time, and signifies common over financial resources (all you have added up)

Question 86

Has economic inequality increased?

Answer 86

Although income is growing overall, it is clearly only growing for the richest (top 20%)

Question 87

social ________ refers to resources available through your social connections, networks

Answer 87

capitol

Question 88

who proposed the significane of social capitol as a resource to get ahead

Answer 88

bourdieu

Question 89

__________ refers to the unearned entitlements - the social opportunities, resources, and advantaged that social inequalities produce, for some relative to others, in our society

Answer 89

priviledge