Sociology Chapter 12

transmigration (reincarnation)

each person is born into a particular caste as a result of his or her actions in a previous life

caste system

one's rank determined at birth; ascribed characteristics; determines prestige, occupation, residence; India

shudras

peasants, unskilled workers

Brahmans

priests, seers, philosophers

vaishyas

producers, merchants, farmers, artisans, skilled workers

open strat system

...

Purusha's body became four varnas

1) Brahmans 2) Kshatriya 3)vaishyas 4)shudras---scheduled caste or untouchables

3 estates

1) distinguished records of loyalty and military 2)clergy (highest ranking in the church 3) peasants, serfs, villein (legally tied to land), merchants and craftsmen

Weber and different types of power

1)Legitimate power 2)money 3) degree to which people have social status

stratification system commonalities

1)tend to persist a long time 2)are resistant to change 3)bolstered by widely accepted legitimating rationales (help account for the persistence of particular social stratification systems)

what legitimated the feudal system?

BEGAN-the privileges that came from being a member of the first estate were justified because of the personal qualities of each aristocrat; THEN-became based on heredity; social rank assigned by God

proletariat

Latin word proletarius; refers to lowest class of citizens in Ancient Rome; Marx's term for the class of people who survive in modern society by selling their labor to the bourgeoisie

estate system

a person's place in the hierarchy is determined at birth; feudal system in Middle Ages

Legitimate power

authority; power that is seen as justified

Jame Kluegel and Elliot Smith; Class System legitimated

by the principle that the opportunity to get you ahead is available to all

3 forms of stratification

caste, estate, class

dharma

caste-based duties

extremely slavery

chattel slavery, being a legal term for "movable property"

four varnas

colors or grades of being

social stratification

evaluation-ranking-reward system; people at the top are looked upon while people at the bottom are looked down

Bourgeoisie

french for shopkeeper; capitalist/owner stratum; Marx term for the class of people who own the means of production in modern society

hindu creation story

in Rig Veda; universe was born from the sacrifice of the male/female entity Purusha; dismembered by god and the detached parts became the stuff from which the universe was fashioned

class system

it is commonly thought that the best people work their own way into the highest ranks; based on achievement rather than ascribed status

House of Commons

limited to commoners

jati

membership birth to death; associated with particular occupation; not all members work in that occupation

Weber and social stratification

multidimensional; understand the nature of stratification by taking into account economics (market system), dynamics of power and status in society

Marx: "to understand an indivdual's resources,personality, values, and beliefs:

need to understand where he or she stands relative to the means of production

peerages

noble rank ; Lords Temporal; House of Lords opened to peerages

self-enslavement

occurs when people sell themselves into slavery as a way to overcome serious economic insecurity

karma

related to transmigration; Sanskrit meaning fate or work; inexorable application of the law of cause and effect

sociologists when using the word class mean

socioeconomic standing or SES; looks at people's income, education, occupational prestige, and wealth and provide and assessment of the persons place in social strat system

social status and power

status relating to prestige or the degree to which an individual has social honor; focused on occupations

Marx and the concept of class

the most important thing about any society was its economic system, especially the means by which it produced basic survival stuff

Weber definition of power

the probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance; the ability to impose one's will or to get one's way even when faces with opposition from others

Marx and two social classes

upper class=capitalists (owns means of production) ; lower class=workers of the capitalist

Spiritual Lords

upper house includes; archbishop, bishop

Kshatriya

warriors, royalty, administrators

Max Weber and importance of location in social class

where one stood in the market situation; determined by power; dispose of goods or skills for the sake of income in a given economic order

general legitimating rationale

widely accepted beliefs that something is fair and just

stratification legitimating rationale

widely accepted beliefs that the inequalities that exist in a particular society (differences in power,wealth, prestige,etc) are essentially right and reasonable; reflect people's beliefs about why some people are ranked higher than others and why this is fair