Exam 1: Foundations

From Class Counts by Erik Olin Wright Wright lays out a typology of class that is informed by both Marx and Weber. He is particularly interested in finding a "location" for categories of individuals who are not incorporated in classic Marxian formulations, namely, employees with varying amounts of job authority and skills/expertise as well as categories of individuals not in the labor force. -Students have no place in Wright's class typology.

From The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois' classic essay charts the impact of slavery as well as post-slavery treatment on the "souls" or psyche of blacks. He views both as equally pernicious and responsible for ongoing marginality and psychological turbulence. -What, according to DuBois, constitutes "the soul" of black folk?

From "Some Principles of Stratification" by Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore Davis and Moore offer a classical "functional" account of stratification. In particular, stratification is viewed as functional for the overall good of society. This perspective emphasizes the functional importance of positions, not the individuals who fill them; filling them ensures that all of the jobs necessary for the sustainability of society will be performed. These roles, however, contribute to the functioning of society to different degrees and the rewards attached to them are a product of how important particular roles are. Individuals who perform these roles are seen as motivated to perform them because there is a natural tendency for the abilities and talents of the individual to find the appropriate role in a social structure. -Explain the role of the government in generating stratification.

From "Class, Status, Party" by Max Weber Weber's notion of stratification is complex and multidimensional. Analytically distinct are three dimensions: 1) class, 2) status, and 3) party. Class is broader than, for example, the Marxian formulation and related to the general economic prospects ("life-chance opportunities") of collectivities; status refers to honorific and status considerations that can be tied to economic rewards; and party refers to similar levels of power exercised particularly in the political arena. -Weber's notion of stratification is broader than that of Marx.

From "The Manifesto of the Communist Party" by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels This piece represents the classic exposition of the growing division between two groups--the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. These groups have antagonistic interests owing to their different positions in the economic means of production that characterizes capitalism. The authors maintain both groups become increasingly polarized from each other as the bourgeoisie progressively own and receive a greater share of economic resources. The proletariat, in contrast, view the bourgeoisie more and more as the enemy who must be opposed as the proletariat progressively experience more exploitation. -What do the authors mean when they say that under capitalism the worker "becomes an appendage of the machine"?

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -DuBois believes that contributions to civilization among racial groups are a product of:

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -Dubois believes that important contributions to civilization have been made by:

From "Class, Status, Party" by Max Weber Weber's notion of stratification is complex and multidimensional. Analytically distinct are three dimensions: 1) class, 2) status, and 3) party. Class is broader than, for example, the Marxian formulation and related to the general economic prospects ("life-chance opportunities") of collectivities; status refers to honorific and status considerations that can be tied to economic rewards; and party refers to similar levels of power exercised particularly in the political arena. -Which of the following would be an example of a "status group" for Weber?

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -Discuss Dubois' view concerning the relationship between racial and national identity.

From "Class, Status, Party" by Max Weber Weber's notion of stratification is complex and multidimensional. Analytically distinct are three dimensions: 1) class, 2) status, and 3) party. Class is broader than, for example, the Marxian formulation and related to the general economic prospects ("life-chance opportunities") of collectivities; status refers to honorific and status considerations that can be tied to economic rewards; and party refers to similar levels of power exercised particularly in the political arena. -How is Weber's notion of stratification broader than just class?

From "Some Principles of Stratification" by Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore Davis and Moore offer a classical "functional" account of stratification. In particular, stratification is viewed as functional for the overall good of society. This perspective emphasizes the functional importance of positions, not the individuals who fill them; filling them ensures that all of the jobs necessary for the sustainability of society will be performed. These roles, however, contribute to the functioning of society to different degrees and the rewards attached to them are a product of how important particular roles are. Individuals who perform these roles are seen as motivated to perform them because there is a natural tendency for the abilities and talents of the individual to find the appropriate role in a social structure. -How do individuals get into various positions?

From The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois' classic essay charts the impact of slavery as well as post-slavery treatment on the "souls" or psyche of blacks. He views both as equally pernicious and responsible for ongoing marginality and psychological turbulence. -What does DuBois mean when he says that blacks experience a "double self"?

From "Class, Status, Party" by Max Weber Weber's notion of stratification is complex and multidimensional. Analytically distinct are three dimensions: 1) class, 2) status, and 3) party. Class is broader than, for example, the Marxian formulation and related to the general economic prospects ("life-chance opportunities") of collectivities; status refers to honorific and status considerations that can be tied to economic rewards; and party refers to similar levels of power exercised particularly in the political arena. -How does Weber define class as an element of stratification?

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -What does DuBois mean by saying "the full, complete Negro message of the whole Negro race has not as yet been given to the world"?

From "The Manifesto of the Communist Party" by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels This piece represents the classic exposition of the growing division between two groups--the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. These groups have antagonistic interests owing to their different positions in the economic means of production that characterizes capitalism. The authors maintain both groups become increasingly polarized from each other as the bourgeoisie progressively own and receive a greater share of economic resources. The proletariat, in contrast, view the bourgeoisie more and more as the enemy who must be opposed as the proletariat progressively experience more exploitation. -The "lumpen proletariat" are a bridge between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie.

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -Why does DuBois believe blacks should advance themselves by becoming self-reliant and develop separate, race-based institutions and organizations?

From "Some Principles of Stratification" by Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore Davis and Moore offer a classical "functional" account of stratification. In particular, stratification is viewed as functional for the overall good of society. This perspective emphasizes the functional importance of positions, not the individuals who fill them; filling them ensures that all of the jobs necessary for the sustainability of society will be performed. These roles, however, contribute to the functioning of society to different degrees and the rewards attached to them are a product of how important particular roles are. Individuals who perform these roles are seen as motivated to perform them because there is a natural tendency for the abilities and talents of the individual to find the appropriate role in a social structure. -Which of the following is not a determinant of the rewards a position yields?

From "The Conservation of Races" by W.E.B. DuBois DuBois is concerned with: 1) the meaning of race in American society, and, 2) identifying how blacks can better succeed in American society. He advocates an approach that emphasizes self-reliance and the formation of separate race-based forms of social organization and institutions. -Dubois maintains that whites should take the lead in helping blacks to overcome the "vices" of daily life.

From "Class, Status, Party" by Max Weber Weber's notion of stratification is complex and multidimensional. Analytically distinct are three dimensions: 1) class, 2) status, and 3) party. Class is broader than, for example, the Marxian formulation and related to the general economic prospects ("life-chance opportunities") of collectivities; status refers to honorific and status considerations that can be tied to economic rewards; and party refers to similar levels of power exercised particularly in the political arena. -How does Weber define status as an element of stratification?

From "Woman Versus The Indian" by Anna Julia Cooper Cooper discusses the plight of women, maintaining they are proud, significant contributors to American society and they should identify with Indians and blacks who share a similar history of oppression. -According to Cooper, women contribute meaningfully to the betterment of American society.