Question 1

The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, is an example of how:

Accepted Answer

A)   flexible accumulation often funds investment in city infrastructure.
B)   the circulation of water is a natural process that man cannot truly control.
C)   the distribution of water is related to social power along intersecting lines of class, race, gender, and age.
D)   hydro-social processes increase the level of lead in drinking water. C

Question 2

Egalitarian societies depend on sharing which of the following in order to ensure group success?

Accepted Answer

A)   children
B)   resources
C)   weaponry
D)   sexual partners B

Question 3

Why is Karl Marx considered an important theorist in the study of class?

Accepted Answer

A)   Marx developed the concept of the bourgeoisie.
B)   Marx was the first thinker to consider the role of the economy in society.
C)   Marx built on the work of Max Weber.
D)   Marx focused on capitalism as it pertained to workers and inequality. D

Question 4

Carmen's parents enroll her in AP Honors French, where the content of the class is more academically demanding than the general French class. They also spend their summer vacation in France and hire a tutor to help Carmen study for the AP Honors French test. What are Carmen's parents attempting to help her acquire?

Accepted Answer

A)   French resources
B)   habitus
C)   cultural capital
D)   group ideology

Question 5

Compare the water crises of the poor urban settlers in Mumbai, India, and the residents of Flint, Michigan.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Compare the water crises of the poor...

Question 6

Of all the systems of stratification and power in a society, which of the following is often considered the most difficult to see clearly and to discuss openly?

Accepted Answer

A)   race
B)   ethnicity
C)   gender
D)   class

Question 7

What is a significant defining characteristic of a ranked society?

Accepted Answer

A)   Wealth is inherited but prestige and status are determined by individual merit.
B)   Wealth is redistributed according to each person's status and prestige.
C)   Wealth, prestige, and status are equal among all members of the group.
D)   Wealth is not stratified but prestige and status are.

Question 8

In Mumbai, how do people without permanent, legally-recognized residences gain access to water?

Accepted Answer

A)   Bottled water is the cleanest, most inexpensive option.
B)   They use social relationships to access water and illegally take water from public pipes.
C)   They get it from hotels when guests accidentally leave the taps running.
D)   City officials make municipal water supply is made available to poor people living in shanty towns.

Question 9

Mr. Turner owns a nuclear power plant that sells electricity to the residents of Springville. He is a member of the:

Accepted Answer

A)   bourgeoise.
B)   proletariat.
C)   Habitus.
D)   middle class.

Question 10

The advent of intensive agriculture as a primary means of subsistence signaled a change in what aspect of human social structures?

Accepted Answer

A)   an increase in the number of egalitarian societies
B)   a decline in the number of egalitarian societies
C)   a rise in the amount of food sharing that took place between different groups
D)   an increase in the number of people that were overweight

Question 11

According to Marx, why were the proletariat unable to develop a political awareness of their class position while the bourgeoisie were able to do so?

Accepted Answer

A)   The proletariat lacked interest or motivation to do so, while the bourgeoisie were well connected politically and able to exploit their class position.
B)   The proletariat were continually occupied with the struggle to make ends meet, while the bourgeoisie developed ways to keep the proletariat divided.
C)   The proletariat were not as intelligent as the bourgeoisie.
D)   The proletariat were entirely accepting of their position in society and recognized that class division is innate in any society.

Question 12

Leith Mullings's work using intersectionality emerges out of a long history of anthropological fieldwork. What characterizes this variety of fieldwork?

Accepted Answer

A)   It is holistic.
B)   It is interpretive.
C)   It is class based.
D)   It is global.

Question 13

When the Kwakiutl of the Pacific Northwest perform a potlatch, there may be times when the excess of gifts is actually destroyed rather than given away. Why is this done?

Accepted Answer

A)   It avoids giving excess resources to those who do not need them.
B)   It avoids giving excess resources to others who may be future enemies.
C)   It can reinforce the generosity of the chief by demonstrating his willingness to waste resources.
D)   It can reinforce the prestige of the chief by demonstrating his capacity.

Question 14

The potlatch is a ceremony of Kwakiutl people of the Pacific Northwest that serves both practical and ceremonial functions, in that it redistributes resources for the benefit of the group and it establishes the chief's social status and prestige by displaying his capacity for generosity. Give two examples of similar gift-giving practices in your own society. What is the function of gift giving in these examples -how does it benefit the giver, the receiver, and the social group generally? What would happen if an individual did not give a gift? What influences may be changing these gift-giving practices? Do you think they will continue in the future?

Accepted Answer

The answer of The potlatch is a ceremony of Kwakiutl...

Question 15

Hydraulic citizenship is:

Accepted Answer

A)   the right to water.
B)   increasingly common due to global migration.
C)   a legal granted to resident aliens in Mumbai.
D)   granted to every resident of Mumbai.

Question 16

Since the mid-1970s, how has class inequality in the United States changed?

Accepted Answer

A)   It has decreased as income and wealth have been disbursed from the wealthy elite down to the middle- and lower-class social strata.
B)   It has increased due to decreasing tax rates for the wealthy and stagnating salaries for the middle class.
C)   It has held steady, as tax breaks for the wealthy have been balanced by increased salaries in the middle class.
D)   It has decreased as a result of increased tax rates on the wealthy and redistribution of benefits to the poor.

Question 17

Karl Marx, Max Weber, Pierre Bourdieu, and Leith Mullings are four theorists who have examined class as a system of social stratification. Which of the four approaches do you find the most effective tool for examining class in society today? Briefly describe the approach and compare it to the other approaches. Why is this one more convincing? Given the increasingly global nature of our societies and economies, do you believe this approach will continue to be useful in examining class systems in future societies? Or, will additional approaches will be needed to more fully examine class systems in the future? Explain,

Accepted Answer

The answer of Karl Marx, Max Weber, Pierre Bourdieu, and...

Question 18

Toma is a Ju/Huansi, who grew up in a hunter-gatherer society. He tells you about a successful hunt he went on as a young man during which he killed an animal large enough to supply many meals. When he returned home, he most likely:

Accepted Answer

A)   smoked and dried the meat to store it in case of future scarcity.
B)   bartered it for the food gathered by the women in his band.
C)   divided it among the members of his band.
D)   threw a feast in order to increase his status and prestige.

Question 19

Which society is based on the sharing of resources to ensure group success and has relatively low hierarchy and violence?

Accepted Answer

A)   matriarchal
B)   stratified
C)   ranked
D)   egalitarian

Question 20

Economists report that the income and wealth gaps in the United States are widening. What is the difference between income and wealth? Can an individual have high income but little wealth? What are some explanations for the income and wealth disparities that exist in the United States today? Why are the U.S. income and wealth gaps widening despite economic globalization and access to educational opportunities? How do income and wealth affect one's social mobility? How do other systems of social stratification affect an individual's income and wealth??

Accepted Answer

The answer of Economists report that the income and wealth...

Exam 10: Class and Inequality