Differences between rural and urban society
- social organization
Family, marriage, position of men and women, neighbourhood, we –feeling and inequality of classes are some of the examples of social organization. In the rural areas families are comparatively maintain close intimacy, follow joint family system than the families in the urban areas. Rural people preferred arrange marriage whereas urban families accept love marriage and freedom in the selection of life partner. In towns, compared to the village divorce rate is also increased. Women in general are discriminated and oppressed in rural and remote areas than in urban areas. In the rural areas we-feeling is found to be stronger than in the urban community.
- Social restrictions
The rural communities are mostly guided by folkways and mores. On the other hand, the urban societies do not exercise much control over the individuals. In the words of Kingsley Davis,” he/she can escape the oppressive control of any primary group when he/she wishes, simply by disappearing into the sea of strangers”. But the control of government laws and security are more common in the towns than in the village.
- Social relations
In the village relation of the individual is usually with primary groups, family, relatives compared to secondary group relationship in the urban society.
- Social interaction
Social relations in the village are smaller and those that to exist are personal in rural village compared to urban society. conflict in the village are usually direct while the conflict is comparatively speaking indirect in the urban context.
- Social mobility and stability
In the words of Sorokin and Zimmerman, “the rural community is similar to calm water in a pail and the urban community to boiling water in a kettle, stability is the typical trait for the one, mobility is the typical for the other “. In the rural areas the members are more strongly attached to their social status. In the urban area they are shifted from either engaged in industry and / or tertiary services form the main basis of urban economy.
- Social stratification
The rural society is not classless, nevertheless, the number of social classes is less in rural society than in urban society. Likewise, stratification is also seen in gender relations. women are mostly dominated and discriminated in terms of getting opportunities simply because of hierarchical stratification. This kind of discrimination found more common in the rural areas compared to urban areas. Movement from one class to another is easier in the urban context than in rural societies.
- Social solidarity
The rural society has a unity based on similarities and informal and no contractual relationship. Urban solidarity is based on differences and dissimilarities, which arise out of division of labour and specialization and formal and contractual relations.
- Population density
Population density is low in the rural society, may be due to agricultural occupation, compared to multi-discipline occupation results high populations density in the urban society.
- Occupation
Most agricultural and allied occupations are the basis of rural economy. urban communities, on the other hand, exhibit a wider spectrum of occupational patterns. Urban dwellers are more specialized in terms of their occupation. They are either engaged in industry and /or tertiary services from the main basis of urban economy.
- Environment
Rural society is close to nature whereas urban society is far from nature, may result pollution.
- Population structure
Mostly people in the rural areas are homogenous in character, but heterogeneity found in the urban areas.