CHAPTER 14
Social Stratification: Theories and Related Concepts
Introductory Remarks
Sociologists and social anthropologists studying social structures are generally impressed by the fact that social inequality is a universal feature. Even those who talk of equality in ideological terms acknowledge the existing inequalities and forcefully advocate the desirability of an egalitarian society. Such a society is their dream, not an existential reality.
In all societies—simple or complex—power, or prestige, or even property (in fact, all kinds of wealth) is unevenly distributed in its populace. There are both biological and sociological differences that account for this disparity.
Biologically, the population is divided into (i) various age groups—from ...
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