Discuss the evolution of stratification over time, from hunter-gatherer societies to agriculture-based societies to industrial societies to modern capitalist societies today.
What will be an ideal response?
Ans: The earliest societies, based on hunting and gathering, had little social stratification; there were few resources to divide, so differences within communities were less pronounced, at least materially. The development of agriculture produced considerably more wealth and a consequent rise in social stratification. The hierarchy in agricultural societies increasingly came to resemble a pyramid, with a large number of poor people at the bottom and successively smaller numbers of more economically advantaged members in the upper tiers. Modern capitalist societies are, predictably, even more complex: Some sociologists suggest that class stratification resembles a teardrop, with a large number of people in the middle ranks, a slightly smaller number of people at the bottom, and very few people at the top.
KEY: Learning Objective: 7.2: Describe components of social class, including income, wealth, occupation, status, and political voice.
REF: Cognitive Domain: Application
Answer Location: Sociological Building Blocks of Social Class
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