Topic > Discussion on the question of whether inequality is truly inevitable

IndexSummaryIntroductionKarl Marx on social inequality: Marxist ideologyMax Weber on social inequality: class, status and partyDavis and Moore on social inequality: the functionalist perspectiveConclusionWorks CitedSummaryThe concept of inequality is vast and complex. Sociologists share multiple perspectives: one principle links to another; others standing alone. Karl Marx saw inequality in terms of ownership of wealth and control of material goods, which also manifests itself in ideological perceptions. An assessment of Marx states the view as simple as it does not consider all other forms of inequality present in society. Max Weber discussed Mark's views on social inequality. Inequality is more complex than Marx described, Weber said. He defined power as the ability to persuade others to do one's will and further stated that it had numerous sources such as ownership of property, social status, physical strength, and education. On the other hand, sociologists Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore believed that unequal allocation of society's rewards was essential to encourage people and reflect their own importance, because that is how a society should be shaped. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Introduction The term social inequality describes a condition in which members of a society have different amounts of wealth, prestige, or power. Some degree of social inequality is found in every society. When a system of social inequality is based on a hierarchy of groups, sociologists call it stratification: a structured ranking of entire groups of people that perpetuates unequal economic rewards and power in a society. Ascribed status is a social position assigned to a person regardless of that person's characteristics, for example, being a queen is an ascribed status, as is being a woman. In contrast, achieved status is a social position achieved by a person largely through his or her own efforts. This can be positive or negative so a person can be an ex-convict or a judge. These are achieved statuses. Individuals are more or less affected by social inequality due to numerous reasons, including gender, economic position, religion, ethnicity, race, and even sexuality. People also live in areas that differ in culture, economic resources and potential. Together, an individual's personal attributes and how they are inferred, along with their family background and the political, social, and economic contexts in which they live, shape their specific attitudes, life course, and chances of experiencing life styles. civil and adequate life. Karl Marx on Social Inequality: Marxist Ideology Karl Marx (1818 – 1883) was motivated by concern for workers living in terrible poverty while all around was great wealth and power. He believed in working towards a classless society. Marxism is often called a conflict theory. Marxists see society as divided by conflict between the social groups that compose it. Marx believed that social change was the natural order of societies. In any form of society there are only two classes of people. These are the bourgeoisie who own and control all the assets. Those who work for them are the proletariat and possess nothing other than their ability to work. The bourgeoisie is able to control the proletariat through two mechanisms. It is about direct control through the exercise of power andindirect control of people's minds through the use of ideology or ideas. It is the second means of control that is the most dangerous, because people come to accept certain ideas as true or self-evident without truly questioning them. We accept that some people are rich and some poor as part of everyday life and so there is very little challenge to the idea that the greed and selfishness of the rich is acceptable and should be copied by the rest of us. Religion has played an important role here too because it teaches people to seek reward in heaven and not equality on earth. Marx also recognized gender inequality, which he believed would follow the end of all inequality. Feminists have taken Marxist ideas and developed them into an analysis that places gender inequalities as equally significant as class inequality. Marx predicted that capitalism would be overthrown when workers rebelled against their masters and created a class-free society. He thought this would happen during his lifetime or shortly after his death. This clearly did not happen. Max Weber on social inequality: class, status and party According to Max Weber (1864 -1920), social inequality has three main types of inequality. The first is “CLASS” and is mainly based on the market, while the second is “STATUS” – also known as Stand in German. And the third type of stratification is the “PARTY” in which power is distributed. Weber emphasizes that the two forms of stratification emerge from two different parts of society. Status, with its emphasis on honor, derives from the Gemeinschaft, while class emerges from the Gesellschaft. And the Party emerges from both. Weber also drew the conclusion that Status and Class are fundamentally different, although they are related. While the former has its roots in rational calculation, the latter in abstract emotion, therefore they cannot be mixed. Indeed, when the two are separated, analysts get a much clearer view of the systems and how different types of inequality continue. Weber argued that people create groups and organizations that tend to look after their own interests, thus sustaining and reproducing social inequality. Status is formed by the tendency of people to judge each other. While Karl Marx believed that society would become more polarized, Weber argued that more and more social classes would develop in capitalist society. Davis and Moore on Social Inequality: The Functionalist Perspective Functionalists see society as made up of shared values. They assert that inequality and stratification are practical for society and a source of social order. Davis and Moore proposed this theory in 1945. For them, stratification is a system of status positions and jobs. Davis and Moore went on to argue that society needs to fill the most important and difficult jobs with the most talented and hard-working people. If people were all paid the same, regardless of the work they did, they would take the easiest jobs and do as little training as possible. There would be no incentive to work hard and follow difficult training courses. The company ensures that the highest pay and best working conditions go to those who are willing to put in the time and effort to work hard for them. The high rewards serve as motivation for the years of work and preparation required for the difficult and responsible careers that some people choose. However, the functionalist approach generally ignores issues related to structural inequality because it does not consider social factors such as racial discrimination, lack.