Viewpoints on stratification
A. Functional view point on stratification
- According to Emile Durkheim, all societies view some activities as more important than others.
- Another feature of this viewpoint is that human differing number of talents. Thus, the most talented persons must perform the most valued functions for which they will get higher rewards and vice-versa.
B. Marx’ viewpoint on stratification
- According to Marx, human history can be divided into phrases (examples: feudalism, capitalism etc.) based on mode of production.
- For Marx, economic organization is the aspect of society on which other institutions are based.
- In each economic organization there is a ruling class that owns and controls the means of production. In feudal society these two classes are: the nobles and the serfs.
- In a capitalist society, they are the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.
- Bourgeoisie do not actually use the means of production to produce wealth. Instead, this work is performed by members of the working class or proletariat who produce wealth but neither own nor control any means of production. Thus, economic class is the main basis for social stratification in Marxist literature
C. Max Weber’s view point on stratification
- Max Weber identified three major components of inequality in the society which produced social stratification. Those three components were economic or class order, based upon class situation; social order, based upon the distribution of social honour; and the political order based upon the distribution of power.
- Thus, classes are stratified according to their relation to the relation to the production and acquisition of goods whereas status groups are stratified according to the principle of their consumption of goods as represented by special style of life and the third unit in Weber’s analysis or stratification is made up of people organized for the per suit of power and a party may be almost identical. In this way, unlike Marx who focused on only economic class as the major basis for stratification.
- Max Weber also included social prestige and political power besides economic class as equally important dimensions of social stratification.