Theory Essay

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In briefly evaluating the classical and modern explanations of social inequality, it is

essential that we step outside the realm of our own lives, class position, and

discard any assumptions we might have about the nature of inequality. This

process of critical pedagogy allows us to view our world, not from our

perspective, but from a wider, more critical analysis of inequality’s nature. Also, it

should be considered within this wider perspective that all theories of inequality

have a class perspective, where the theorist, based on the position their theory

takes, is making claims from (or for) a particular class (whether they want to or

not). With this in mind, it seems that most of these theories come from fairly elite

class perspectives and, in turn, tend to be more pessimistic about bringing change

to the inequalities they are evaluating. Of the classical (elite) explanations of

inequality, Max Weber’s seemed to be most accepted within the domain of

sociology and other social sciences dealing with modes of inequality. Weber, who

believes that we are living within a sort of “iron cage” which cannot allow us to

look beyond the rules and regulations of our capitalist system, emphasizes the

importance of power relationships in society. Those who are in class positions at

the top of the apex (of power distribution) are the people who, one, hold most of

the power in society, and two, make the choices for the direction and reproduction

of society. The majorities at the bottom of the apex, with very limited power, are

unable to make choices that would bring them to their ends. The core attributes of

the economic system are alienation and the bureaucracy, which create a

dehumanizing effect on the characters within the system. The bureaucracy, with its

rational legal authority, clear division of labor, career systems, and impersonality,

is technologically more perfect than any other system (according to Weber).

Within this structure, Weber describes there being three dimensions of inequality:

class (which correlates with the economy), status (which correlates with the social

aspects of society), and party (which correlates with the political aspects of

society). I believe most of the modern explanations of inequality, at most, help

build upon Weber’s general theories, and at least, reflect the same elitist pessimism

that Weber also holds. The dual-labor market thesis contends that there are two

labor markets (in terms of income), in which the higher income market is of

primary importance and the lower income market is of secondary importance. This

tries to justify those people within high power positions by (somehow) trying to

prove that our system is objectively rewarding higher incomes to professions that

have higher social importance than lower income professions. Similarly, the

functionalist theory of stratification “views societies as social systems that have

certain basic problems to solve or functions that have to be performed if the

society is to survive” (243). So the reason for inequality, for functionalists, is

because our system must reward (with significantly higher incomes) those

individuals who are motivated enough to yield the stresses of such functionally

important positions. The fact that our system reproduces classes into the same

class assumes the neo-classical labor-market theory is correct, in which we have a

perfect system based on an equal opportunity playing field. So, according to these

elite theories, the problem of inequality...

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