Inequality

5 Pages 1360 Words

As we prosper through time, inequality is slowly less evident. A lot of people don't realize that although things are improving with time, inequality is still prominent in our society. The people that are failing to realize that there still is inequality are the fortunate ones. They rise well above the poverty line, and usually live relatively economically sound lives. They are the people who are supplied with our society's benefits. On the other hand, the people that are in pursuit of social change, and constantly bring attention to issues of equal rights and privileges, are often the people that do not have them. This paper will illustrate some of the sociological facets of class, race, and gender, and how they are interwoven with other dimensions of social stratification.
Some people believe that stratification has beneficial consequences. Of course, these people are on the higher end of the stratification hierarchy, which makes it easier for them to agree with that statement. “There seems no place where hierarchical status orderings aren’t discoverable.”(Fussel, Class, p.9) They believe that the harder one works the more they will achieve, thus promoting production in society. However, individuals at the lower end of the stratification system disagree with that. Their social status prevents them from achieving their best because all of their benefits and advantages are given to those of higher status, “certain limits have been placed on their capacity to ascend socially…” (Fussel, Class, p.7) The lower class is instantly denied society’s privileges, which tends to discourage them, often leaving them feeling helpless. Unfortunately, this helplessness tends to be viewed by many higher classed people as laziness. What is not realized is that stratification is a character of society, and not just a reflection on individual differences. Stratification is universal but variable. It involves beliefs and persists over gene...