Deck 2: Class

Question 1

In less than 500 words,using one example of your own experience at work,demonstrate the ways that surplus value is generated by workers.

Answer 1

Student response could include a description of surplus value such as the difference between the workers' wages and the value of the goods or services they produce.Describe a work context.Apply the idea of surplus value to the work context. Provide example of how surplus value is generated relevant to this work context.For example working on nightfill for a large supermarket - workers that are physically fit move more stock each shift than workers with less strength.The fit workers create greater surplus value because they produce more each shift.These workers are employed more because they get more done - this is an example of speeding the pace of work to increase surplus value - the difference between wage costs and profits.

Question 2

'The ratio of unpaid or surplus labour time to necessary labour time is the rate of exploitation' .Choose one example of a workplace or type of work and examine the ways that exploitation of workers by surplus labour time occurs.

Answer 2

Student response could include an explanation of Marx's theory of surplus value and exploitation and descriptions of workplace scenarios that illustrate the five points listed on page 24.

Question 3

Select the statement that correctly explains Marxist theory:

A)Capitalism influences the growth of the middle class
B)Inequality in capitalism is determined by people's capacity to consume
C)Unemployment allows the ruling class to increase its wealth over the working class
D)Class division,such as between the proletariat and bourgeoisie,works against the aims of capitalism and impedes success

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Identification of a working class culture has decreased in Australia due to the…

A)Expansion of the middle class
B)Decline in manufacturing employment
C)History of the Labor Party
D)Decline in the welfare state

Question 5

The Gini coefficient is a measure of:

A)National equality
B)Wealth inequality
C)Income inequality
D)Egalitarianism

Question 6

In his book,'The Experiences of Middle Australia',Michael Pusey (2003)accuses the corporate elites of which of the following?

A)Abandoning loyalty to national or community values and becoming detached
B)Abandoning industrial innovation in favour of old money
C)Forcing Australian workers to be highly mobile so that they can move to where the jobs are
D)Forcing Australians to have larger families so that there is an increase in the work force

Question 7

Which of the following conditions is evidence that highly educated professionals are not part of the ruling class?

A)Decline in union membership
B)The instability of their employment
C)Increased education of the working class
D)Growing individualism

Question 8

Which of the following is a reason for the lack of evidence of class in statistical information?

A)People don't know which class they are and cannot fill this in on survey forms
B)Wealth is hard to trace as it is put back into the company
C)People's perceptions that Australia is an egalitarian society
D)The size of the middle class

Question 9

Compare and contrast the significance of wealth and income when determining the level of inequality in contemporary Australia.

Question 10

Who was the first Australian sociologist to investigate the existence of a power elite in Australia?

A)Encel
B)Wild
C)Dempsey
D)Weber

Question 11

Which of the following is an example of a measure designed to extract surplus value from workers?

A)Dividing labour according to specialised tasks
B)Providing paid holidays
C)Encouraging union membership
D)Workplace health and safety

Question 12

The following would be included when calculating wealth:

A)Salary,life insurance and business profits
B)Rental income,collectables,and art
C)Property,superannuation and cars
D)Property,life insurance,dividends

Question 13

The deregulation of the system of arbitration between capital and labour in Australia in the 1980s resulted in an increase in…

A)Industrial action
B)Profits
C)Collective bargaining
D)Class warfare

Question 14

Which of the following was NOT included in the conditions that William Wilson argued would follow the emergence of long-term unemployment in advanced capitalist countries?

A)Crime and drug addiction
B)Depression
C)Marriage between classes
D)Inability to participate in public life

Question 15

Which of the following TWO are accurate in describing the ways in which some status groups achieve social closure?

A)Promoting intermarriage within their group/Crediting themselves with titles and awards
B)Promoting a social structure which supports older generations/Promoting intermarriage within their group
C)Taking an active interest in community values and participating in philanthropy/Promoting a social structure which supports older generations
D)Crediting themselves with titles and awards/Promoting a social structure which supports older generations

Question 16

Which of the following is a key difference between Marx and Weber's views?

A)Weber ties privilege to ownership of manufacturing whereas Marx ties it to ownership of property
B)Marx ties an individual's class to the functions that they perform.For Weber,class is also tied to the sphere of consumption and labour market position.
C)Weber takes into account the importance of lifestyle,whereas Marx is more interested in cultural capital
D)Marx argues being in the middle class reduces exploitation of workers whereas Weber argues they should join political parties

Question 17

Weber distinguished between four economic classes. Which of the following is NOT one of these?

A)Propertied class
B)Working class
C)Underclass
D)Intelligentsia

Question 18

Choose one celebrity and undertake brief research (one or two news or magazine articles)to investigate the ways that they demonstrate cultural capital.Make a list of bullet points which show the type of cultural capital and the ways that this is shown in the article.

Question 19

Marx believes that unemployment leads to the creation of a reserve army of labour which affects employed workers because:

A)Unemployed workers increase competition for jobs and weaken bargaining power for better wages
B)It means that everyone needs to continue on to higher education and gain a degree or trade qualification before they get a job
C)Employed workers have to pay more taxes which are used to provide unemployment benefits to those without work
D)Employed workers have to work much harder to compensate for those who are no longer employed

Question 20

Make a list of short sentences that provide at least five reasons why calculating wealth is not an easy task.

Question 21

Does poverty exist in Australia? In two columns,list in short sentences as many arguments for or against the existence of poverty in Australia.Use examples and sociological references where possible.

Question 22

Measuring poverty in absolute terms highlights the social experiences of the poor.

Question 23

The premise that inequality is inevitable is underpinned by the assumption that…

A)Poverty is relative to wealth
B)The poverty wars are a fallacy
C)Relative poverty is a misconception
D)Poverty and wealth are unrelated

Question 24

Use the concepts of relative and absolute poverty to explain the poverty wars.

Question 25

Which of the following is identified as a structural condition that constrains the opportunities available to the poor?

A)Public transport
B)The idea of the fair go
C)Lack of social capital
D)Centrelink payments