Social Structure And Its Impact On Society

The caste system initially served to maintain strict social boundaries between the invaders and the previous inhabitants. Through the generations, the origins of the caste system were forgotten and it became the general rule of a single society (University of Wyoming, 1997).

The concept of social class has been around for ages and is still a part of today’s society. Social class is not only based on the individual’s wealth but also on their social standing such as; monarchs, priests, nobles, merchants, and peasant class. The peasant class was practically ignored, which means that the higher classes would only pay attention to each other. This can be the case in society today, there are some people who feel that their career makes them higher than a janitor. Even though humans have been around for centuries, social class is still a big issue.

Social order, the fundamental concept that outlines the way that social structures and cultural aspects like beliefs and values come together in order to maintain order in a society. Both Vedic India and Ancient China established a stratified structure that served as an outline to maintaining social order within their civilizations. Those that were in the high class had their spot at the top of the pyramid while others like the working class were at the lowest of the pyramid.

While many people believe that social classes should exist, it is actually proven that each social class affects the other. Without the upper class using the products the lower class makes through farming and factory working, the lower class would not have a need to exist. Without the less fortunate supplying the higher class with their products, the higher class would not be able to live, and therefore would also not exist.

The governing legal, moral and religious codes of ancient civilizations were written and enforced by a minority that exercised power and authority over the majority. This minority consisted of priests, rulers and elites with established power and influence in society. In these codes of early civilizations, there was an overarching emphasis on maintenance of structure and order in society. Simply put, while these codes reflect the conditions, needs and values of the times in which they were formulated, they also unveil the authors’ agendas to preserve their power by maintaining the status quo. Therefore, these codes acknowledge and uphold the prevailing social, gender and racial inequalities as natural conditions of human existence and reveal the manifold biases present in early civilizations.

The social classes of the medieval people of Europe, the Bantu people of Africa, and the people of the Hindu caste system varied greatly. The 3 structures had unique types of people that served the needs of each individual government. The 3 structures were very distinct but they were not exactly polar opposites. The structures also had their unique ways of governing; I will explore these systems and how they mimic and contradict each other. The medieval people of Europe divided people into three groups called estates, the Bantu people did not rely on hierarchy, but instead relied on kin-ship based relations to determine who would rule, and the people of the Hindu caste system had 4 major classes.

Like many other civilizations in this time period, such as China, family structure was purely patriarchal; women were expected to worship their husbands as gods. The patriarchal families and subjugation of women remained consistent throughout the classical era of Indian

Society as a whole has established its own set of norms, group membership, and status’ that individuals have to adapt to in order to fit in. Throughout the years, these norms have changed thus causing individuals to conform so they can be accepted and not labeled deviant. The quote “The individual…is not born a member of society” (Berger & Luckman, 1996:18) means that society is constantly shifting causing individuals to relearn what is normative and deviant so they can be accepted by society.

This joint family, like any social organization, must face problems such as acceptable division of work, relationships and specific family roles. These familial relationships are managed on the basis of a secular hierarchical principle. In fact, all Indians owe respect and obedience to the head of the family, who usually is the father or the oldest man of the family community. In The Gift of a Bride: A Tale of Anthropology, Matrimony and Murder by Nanda and Gregg, it is explained that, “females [are] placed under the perpetual guardianship of first their fathers and elder brothers, then their husbands.” (Nanda & Gregg 22) Thus, all the spending decisions, studies and profession, or marriage, are exclusively the responsibility of the father after the possible discussions with the other men of the family. Age and sex are the basic principles of this hierarchical system. The eldest sons enjoy greater unchallenged authority than their cadets. Of course men have more authority than women, but older married women have an important role within the family. In fact, the authority of a woman depends on the rank of her husband inside the group. Traditionally, the wife of the patriarch rules over domestic affairs and has considerable power over the other women in the community, especially her daughters- in-law.

As far back as society goes, people have been placed in different social categories. Regardless of what standing a person has in society, their status will affect their lives on a daily basis and on a larger scale. It is clear that social status is an ever-present and universal social determinate, since differences between classes are as apparent in ancient civilizations as they are in contemporary society. Evidence of status in ancient communities, such as the Maya, has been preserved for centuries and is still detectable through the study of archaeology. The Mayans were people with a culture deeply rooted in living within a stratified society, where the gap between the elite and the poor was prominent both in life and death (Somerville et

In the early stages of the development of complex societies, many different factors had a powerful impact on the way the societies developed. In some areas of the world, religion was the primary force that led to the creation of organized societies. Other areas developed on trade routes that made it necessary to develop complex societies to incorporate the growth of different economic classes and the wealth they generated into the structure of the government. In each part of the world where complex societies emerged, the communities were responding to different types of challenges and the

Social class describes the different "layers" that exist in society. These "layers," or classes in society, are a division that civilization has been running on ever since the beginning of mankind. In most modern societies, our system of social class division is one of opportunity. We experience a good deal of social mobility, where people through generations or in their own lifetime can move up or down the social scale. By examining the many different perceptions of social class along with S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, it is illustrated that social class has an impact on people while they are growing up, and will usually deny them from rising above adversity.

According to Indianchild.com the India caste system is a hierarchical society. In the Indian caste system, no matter where you live or what religion you are

In my opinion social class is one of the most important characteristics of a civilization.One of the reasons why is because it influences wise career choices.The reason why I think it would influence people is because they would be separated into classes.For example the highest class, the middle class, and the lowest class.The people who consisted of the highest class were land owners, priest, warriors, people of the government, and kings.The people in the middle class consists of merchants, craftsmen, farmers, and fisherman.The lowest class were the slaves.Most of the time the slaves lived in houses that their masters owned.Another reason this would influence people to get good jobs is because you would only be able to get a certain house because of what job you have.The kings would have palaces, and the rest of the top class would have “big houses” (Important Characteristics of a Civilization).The middle class would live in “houses with one or two floors.” (Important Characteristics of a Civilization).Did you know because of social classes “a knowledgeable and educated

Law of Manu, complied between 200-400C.E., gives particular descriptions and prescriptions of dharma. It includes the caste system in Hinduism, the four stages of life, the status of women in the society and so on. Because Law of Manu is one of the most important texts of all legal codes in Hinduism, every Brahman has the obligation to read it at least once in his or her lifetime. Instead of ordering readers to do things, Law of Manu serves as a simple instruction by offering possible actions to certain problems and their consequences.