Sociology 4035 SOCIAL STRATIFICATION

Study questions for the first exam

Required readings:

Rothman, Chs.1, 2, 3, and 7

C & T, Introduction: Why Social Inequality Occurs

        Introduction to Economic Inequality
          "The Black Underclass in America" p. 44
          "Life in a Canadian Fast-Food Factory" p. 82
          "Why are so Many People Poor?" p. 88

1. Define social stratification.
2. Define socio-economic status.
3. Define social class within the Marxian tradition.
4. Define social class within the Weberian Tradition.
5. Briefly outline the functionalist theory of stratification.
6. Why is it important to study social stratification?
7. According to E. O. Wright, within advanced capitalist societies it is possible to identify several contradictory class locations. What are they? Why are they called contradictory? Explain, giving examples and discussing the significance of these class positions.

8 Industrialization transformed the U.S. class structure. Why? How? Be specific and give examples.

9. Present and discuss the current patterns of income and wealth distribution in the U.S. and their race and gender variations.

10. According to Wilson, what factors determine the presence and persistence of the black underclass in the U.S.? What are its characteristics? What kinds of policies would benefit and which kind would not benefit the underclass? In your view, is there a white underclass similar in its characteristics to the black underclass? Why?

11. Townsend examines several mechanisms through which the state affected the level of poverty in Britain. What are they. List them and explain their effects. Would it be possible to identify similar kinds of state action in the U.S.? Why? Be very specific, giving examples to illustrate your points.

13. What changes in the food industry does Reiter describe in her article? Can those changes be generalized to other work settings? If so, Which? How do those changes affect the patterns in economic inequality in the U.S. and other countries? How do they affect the relative power of workers and employers? Give examples.

14. The globalization of the economy entails, among other things, that national stratifications are affected by global processes. Examine the relevance of this generalization for understanding changes in U.S. stratification. Give examples to illustrate your points.