The Economy as Foundation of Social Life
Karl Marx argues that the different kinds of social relations that are generated by the
economic production of human beings of a particular society shape the entire life, beliefs, and
activities of that society.
* Culture of poverty - coined by Oscar Lewis
The people in the culture of poverty have a strong feeling of marginality, of
helplessness, of dependency, of not belonging. They are like aliens in their own country,
convinced that the existing institutions do not serve their interests and needs. Along
with this feeling of powerlessness is a widespread feeling of inferiority, of personal
unworthiness.
The distribution of wealth in society will always be dependent on the economic structure of society. One
of the major impacts of economy, therefore, on society is on defining the status and class of individuals
within society.
* Class – refers to relations among people who share
the same class interest in relation to the means of
production.
Types of class according to Marx:
1.Bourgeoisie
2.Proletariat
3.Petty bourgeoisie
4.Peasant
5.Lumpenproletariat
1. Bourgeoisie – owners of the means of social production and employers of wage labor
2. Proletariat – working class; no means of production of their own; sell their labor-power
in order to live
3. Petty bourgeoisie – class of educated individuals; big landowners who exploit the labor of
peasants
4. Peasant – landless farmers
5. Lumpenproletariat – “dangerous class”; “social scum”; sell their services to the bourgeoisie
System of Stratification as Source of Inequality
Max Weber defined class as a category of individuals who:
1.have in common a specific causal component of their life chances in so far as
2.this component is represented exclusively by economic interests in the possession of goods
and opportunities for income, and
3.it is represented under the conditions of the commodity or labor market
Weber distinguished status from class as the t wo principal bases of social stratification.
•Class – social differences based on economic divisions and inequalities
•Status – differentiation of groups in the “communal” sphere in terms of their social honor and
social standing
Karl Marx argues that the different kinds of social relations that are generated by the
economic production of human beings of a particular society shape the entire life, beliefs, and
activities of that society.
* Culture of poverty - coined by Oscar Lewis
The people in the culture of poverty have a strong feeling of marginality, of
helplessness, of dependency, of not belonging. They are like aliens in their own country,
convinced that the existing institutions do not serve their interests and needs. Along
with this feeling of powerlessness is a widespread feeling of inferiority, of personal
unworthiness.
The distribution of wealth in society will always be dependent on the economic structure of society. One
of the major impacts of economy, therefore, on society is on defining the status and class of individuals
within society.
* Class – refers to relations among people who share
the same class interest in relation to the means of
production.
Types of class according to Marx:
1.Bourgeoisie
2.Proletariat
3.Petty bourgeoisie
4.Peasant
5.Lumpenproletariat
1. Bourgeoisie – owners of the means of social production and employers of wage labor
2. Proletariat – working class; no means of production of their own; sell their labor-power
in order to live
3. Petty bourgeoisie – class of educated individuals; big landowners who exploit the labor of
peasants
4. Peasant – landless farmers
5. Lumpenproletariat – “dangerous class”; “social scum”; sell their services to the bourgeoisie
System of Stratification as Source of Inequality
Max Weber defined class as a category of individuals who:
1.have in common a specific causal component of their life chances in so far as
2.this component is represented exclusively by economic interests in the possession of goods
and opportunities for income, and
3.it is represented under the conditions of the commodity or labor market
Weber distinguished status from class as the t wo principal bases of social stratification.
•Class – social differences based on economic divisions and inequalities
•Status – differentiation of groups in the “communal” sphere in terms of their social honor and
social standing
