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Answer to q. 1
b
Answer to q. 2
Sociologist Erik Wright outlined four criteria for placement in the class structure: (1)
ownership of the means of production, (2) purchase of the labor of others (employing
others), (3) control of the labor of others (supervising others on the job), and (4) sale of
one's own labor (being employed by someone else). Wright assumed that these criteria
can be used to determine the class placement of all workers, regardless of
race/ethnicity in a capitalist society. Wright identified four classes: (1) The capitalist
class holds most of the wealth and power in society through ownership of capital
banks, corporations, factories, etc. The ruling elites or ruling class within this
category hold political power and are often elected or appointed to influential political
positions. The capitalist class is composed of individuals who have inherited fortunes,
own major corporations, or are top corporate executives with extensive stock holdings
of control of company investments. The major sources of income for the capitalist
class are profits, interest, and very high salaries. Members of this class make important
decisions about the workplace, including which products and services to make available
to consumers and how many workers to hire or fire. (2) The managerial classpeople
in this class have substantial control over the means of production and over workers.
However, these upper-level managers, supervisors, and professionals typically do not
participate in key corporate decisions such as how to invest profits. Top professionals
may control the structure of their own work however, they typically do not own the
means of production and may not have supervisory authority over more than a few
people. Members of the managerial class occupy a contradictory class location
between the capitalist and working classes. (3) The small-business class consists of
small-business owners and craftspeople that may hire a small number of employees but
largely do their own work. It is in the small-business class that we find many people's
hopes of achieving the American Dream. Recent economic trends, including corporate
downsizing, telecommuting, and the movement of jobs to other countries, have
encouraged more people to think about starting their own business. As a result, more
people today are self-employed or own a small business than at any time in the past.
(4) The working class is made up of a number of subgroups, one of which is blue-collar
workers, some of whom are highly skilled and well paid and others of whom are
unskilled and poorly paid. Skilled blue-collar workers include electricians and plumbers
unskilled blue-collar workers include janitors and gardeners. White-collar workers are
another subgroup of the working class they include secretaries, other clerical workers,
and sales workers. These workers are at the bottom of the class structure in terms of
domination and control in the workplace. The working class contains about half of all
U.S. employees.
Answer to q. 3
a
Answer to q. 4
a
Answer to q. 5
Educational opportunities and life chances are directly linked. Some functionalist
theorists view education as the elevator to social mobility. Improvements in the
educational achievement levels (measured in number of years of school completed) of
the poor, people of color, and white women have been cited as evidence that students'
abilities are now more important than their class, race, or gender. From this
perspective, inequality in education is declining and students have an opportunity to
achieve upward mobility through achievements at school. Functionalists generally see
the education system as flexible, allowing most students the opportunity to attend
college if they apply themselves to their studies. In contrast, most conflict theorists
stress that schools are agencies for reproducing the capitalist class system and
perpetuating inequality in society. From this perspective, education perpetuates
poverty. Parents with limited income are not able to provide the same educational
opportunities for their children as are families with greater financial resources. Today,
great disparities exist in the distribution of educational resources. Because funding for
education primarily comes from local property taxes, school districts in suburban areas
generally pay higher teachers' salaries, have newer buildings, and provide state-of-the-
art equipment. By contrast, schools in poorer areas have a limited funding base.
Answer to q. 6
c
Answer to q. 7
d
Answer to q. 8
According to sociologist Max Weber, no single factor (such as economic divisions
between capitalists and workers) was sufficient for defining the location of categories
of people within the class structure. Weber stated that the access that people have to
important societal resources (such as economic, social, and political power) is crucial in
determining life chances. Weber developed a multidimensional approach to social
stratification that reflects the interplay among wealth, prestige, and power. Wealth is
the value of all of a person's or family's economic assets, including income, personal
property, and income-producing property. Weber placed categories of people who have
a similar level of wealth and income in the same class. He identified a privileged
commercial class of entrepreneurswealthy bankers, ship owners, professionals, and
merchants who possess similar financial resources. He also described a class of
rentierswealthy individuals who live off their investments and do not have to work.
Weber divided those who work for wages into two classes: the middle class and the
working class. The middle class consists of white-collar workers, public officials,
managers, and professionals. The working class consists of skilled, semiskilled, and
unskilled workers. The second dimension of Weber's system of stratification is prestige
the respect or regard with which a person or status position is regarded by others.
Fame, respect, honor, and esteem are the most common forms of prestige. A person
who has a high level of prestige is assumed to receive deferential and respectful
treatment from others. Weber suggested that individuals who share a common level of
social prestige belong to the same status group regardless of their level of wealth. They
tend to socialize with one another, marry within their own group of social equals, spend
their leisure time together, and safeguard their status by restricting outsiders'
opportunities to join their ranks. The other dimension of Weber's system is powerthe
ability of people or groups to achieve their goals despite opposition from others. The
powerful can shape society in accordance with their own interests and direct the
actions of others. Weber stated that wealth, prestige, and power are separate
continuums on which people can be ranked from high to low. Individuals may be high
on one dimension and low on another. In Weber's multidimensional approach, people
are ranked on all three dimensions.
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