Social Structure Stratification and Institutions

Identify four important functions of the family for society. Families are essentially the building blocks of society. Family units serve as the nursery for the citizens that become the population of a society. In other words, families are responsible for the development of children into the adults will later collectively be society. As each of us in influenced and formed by our surroundings, so too is our society. Because society is a larger population, it may be harder to influence and change from singular events and yet it is a fluid thing that can be influenced for the good or the bad. Families are so important to society because they are the foundation society is built upon. The values of the families will be reflected in society at large.  Biological and Psychological Functions: Reproduction: Reproduction provide the chance to give birth to the children. These children are the nucleus of society and perpetuates human race. Provision of Food, Housing and Clothing: Family provid...

How does Marx’s view of social stratification differ from the Davis-Moore thesis?  KARL MARX Marxian Perspective: For centuries, sociologists have analyzed social stratification, its root causes, and its effects on society.  Theorists Karl Marx and Max Weber disagreed about the nature of class, in particular. Other sociologists applied traditional frameworks to stratification.  T he whole Marxian perspective about social stratification revolves round the concept of social classes. No theorist stressed the signifi­cance of class for society and for social change more strongly than Karl Marx. Marx viewed class differentiation as the crucial deter­minant of social, economic and political inequality. According to Marx, there is always a dominant and a subordinate class- a ruling class and a subject class.  The former (ruling class) is the class which owns the means of production and the latter (subject class) sells its labor to survive.  The relationship between the...

Identify some signs and symbols used by people in your community which relate to the kind of role they are playing in society and the status which they occupy. For eg. the  “mangalsutra” or gold necklace that your mother or wife or you may be wearing which denotes your/her married status. Write a note of one page  on “Role Signs” and discuss it with other students. A role is the expected pattern of behaviors associated with members occupying a particular position within the structure  of the organization.   Role signs  are visible indications of the role. Like the mangalsutra denotes that the lady is married, a lady wearing sindoor also depicts that the lady got married recently.  Similar to the after marriage symbols wearing a ring in the ring finger symbolizes that the person is going to get married. Men wear rings in their right ring finger and women in their left ring finger.  The International Symbol of Access (ISA) is an internationally acce...

Prepare a chart of all the roles that you play as a member of your society, beginning from your family. Relate the kind of status that you occupy as per that role and what are the duties or privileges that you enjoy as a result of your status. Write an essay of about two pages on “My Role and Status in My Society”. Compare your essay with your peers at your study center and discuss the topic with your faculty. My roles and status in my society: Grand daughter Niece Sister Sister-in-law Friend A pet owner A entrepreneur A citizen of this country A student  Daughter I am a daughter of a couple who both work in the service sector and I hold the privilege of belonging to a middle class working family. I am an only child. I appreciate the privilege of having parents who support me and love me, who provide me with everything I want and need, who spend time with me and ask me about my feelings, they are my friends first and then my parents and I am grateful for the bond we share. My role ...

Activity 6  Gender Today: Are Men Being Left Behind? In the recent New York Times essay, "It has become increasingly hard for them to feel good about themselves." says Thomas Edsall reviewing a variety of research studies highlighting the plight of young men in America. When the term 'gender inequality' pops up all of us think about how men dominate the society and women are being left behind. Whenever someone asks us about the roles of a female we immediately say, "  Women are the  primary caretakers of children and elders  in every country of the world." Due to this throughout the world people believe that women are falling behind in the society. But is that really how it is? Lets take a look from male perspective.  Since the beginning men were considered superior because of which they were provided with more privileges. As decades passed, people started to believe in equality. They started supporting female birth, giving opportunities to women in every se...