Social Stratification

Social Stratification

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Social Stratification

Social Stratification is the categorization of people living in society into the groupings based on their socioeconomic ties which can be further described as wealth, income, race, education and authority. Stratification is a way to identify the social structures and resources in society ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"oJyu90hK","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Berry, 2016)","plainCitation":"(Berry, 2016)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":209,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/GBCLPYH4"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/GBCLPYH4"],"itemData":{"id":209,"type":"book","title":"The Power of Looks: Social Stratification of Physical Appearance","publisher":"Routledge","number-of-pages":"154","source":"Google Books","abstract":"There is a saying that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, implying that beauty is subjective. But can it be said that 'better looking' people have more social power? This book provides a fascinating insight into the social stratification of people based on looks - the artificial placement of people into greater and lesser power strata based on physical appearance. The author analyzes different aspects of physical appearance such as faces, breasts, eye shapes, height and weight as they are related to social power and inequality. For example, tall people are often associated with power, with tall people being seen publicly as more capable and thus more deserving of power than shorter people. The author moreover assesses how people's physical appearance affects their chances of marriage, employment, education, and other social and economic opportunities. The book contributes to and differentiates itself from current literature by emphasizing sociological theory - including constructionism and critical theory - and research to understand the phenomenon of social aesthetics, a term coined by the author to refer to the social reaction to physical appearance.","ISBN":"978-1-317-01957-2","note":"Google-Books-ID: fhygCwAAQBAJ","shortTitle":"The Power of Looks","language":"en","author":[{"family":"Berry","given":"Bonnie"}],"issued":{"date-parts":[["2016",2,24]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Berry, 2016). Those who would have more resources will be placed on the top of the social stratification. And those having a smaller number of resources will be placed on the bottom of the structure. Social stratification can be meant as a form of social inequality.

Social stratification can be understood as macro-level stratification and micro-level stratification. The macro-level includes wealth distribution and also income in the society which results in inequality on a societal level and the world ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"KoPgsCju","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Collins, 2000)","plainCitation":"(Collins, 2000)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":212,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/7XZG3ZZ4"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/F0XOCTdk/items/7XZG3ZZ4"],"itemData":{"id":212,"type":"article-journal","title":"Situational stratification: A micro-macro theory of inequality","container-title":"Sociological theory","page":"17-43","volume":"18","issue":"1","author":[{"family":"Collins","given":"Randall"}],"issued":{"date-parts":[["2000"]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Collins, 2000). Haiti is considered the poorest country among western countries where people lack basic facilities of life such as health, food, shelter, education, security, and access to water. Haiti was invaded by Columbus; the natives were peaceful but the discovery with swords and other weapons and cholera changed the destiny of the natives of Haiti. It remained under the rule of French colonials for years. There was a wave of cultural invasions in the country. Slavery was encouraged at an early age.

In Haiti, people lack educational institutions to get an education, but Haiti's education has been privatized, which is a barrier to access education to the people of Haiti. They do not have food, they live in food scarce areas, it was once popular that, people of Haiti used to eat mud cookies because prices were very high and people could not afford the prices. There were markets where food products were available but they were only affordable for the elites who had enough sources and money. International aid programs like the World food program provided food for the children studying in the schools, as it was the only food that children used to eat in one day with the same menu.

In Haiti, people fought racial wars and defeated the enemies but still, they are unable to create opportunities for their development. They think government interventions are important to develop the nation. On the other side, the government introduced the constitution and made changes in the infrastructure. People have only one source which can be exported, the export of mango but this is not enough for the economy of Haiti. The unemployment rate is 75 percent, and people lack opportunities to earn and survive. People lack advanced technology for their agriculture and their daily usage, as they do not have electricity they could use for machinery.

People living in the countryside find earning opportunities by burning wood to produce charcoal and sell it in the market. Deforestation is becoming a problem for people and a source of earning. They also sell other products in the market too like beans, vegetables, and other food products but they have to wait for rain because they lack irrigation systems for agriculture. People in Haiti also suffer because of diseases and lack of health facilities. Health services are available in cities only. On the other side, telecommunication is on the boom because of cheap prices which can help create linkages with the rest of the world and create opportunities for their better life.

Patients die while reaching to hospitals in the cities. For doctors, AIDS is the main problem and it needs to be treated. The Cuban doctors are being sent to Haiti to make better healthcare facilities. International security agencies are there. Locals perceive them as bad because they say that they rape their children. So, they make the government responsible to create opportunities within the state so that social evils would be minimized and people would be able to earn and develop. People define Clorox as extreme hunger, unemployment and lack of facilities. People need to educate their children so that they would be able to earn and live a better life. And people need to change their mindset towards modern ways from cultural beliefs which risk their lives.

References

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY Berry, B. (2016). The Power of Looks: Social Stratification of Physical Appearance. Routledge.

Collins, R. (2000). Situational stratification: A micro-macro theory of inequality. Sociological Theory, 18(1), 17–43.