Summary
Sociology is a science that studies the tendencies of society and the interaction of people. At the same time, the exploration of these trends’ manifestation in various communities and the history of their development is a necessity for understanding the situation in a particular place. For this reason, this paper will examine three key concepts of sociology and the history of their formation to understand their impact in the modern world.
Culture and Society
Culture is a complex and versatile concept that can have different meanings depending on the context, for example, a culture of behavior, a set of art, or society’s traditions. However, all these concepts can be united by the sociological concept of culture, including norms, values, language, art, and traditions (Giddens et al., 2019). Nevertheless, the main feature of culture is that it cannot exist without society, just as society cannot live without culture, and this can be proved on each of its elements.
The main feature of culture is its relationship with the society in which its elements are created and function. Since these values and norms are created by people, without them, culture would be impossible, but these elements of culture create a framework for the interaction of people. For instance, any society values human life, but depending on the culture, murder, and death can be perceived differently, for example, the appropriateness of euthanasia. In addition, material and non-material culture are also a consequence of people’s interaction in society, so traditional songs, dances, and art of cultures can differ significantly.
Moreover, culture and society developed over the centuries and were influenced by the values that dominated that era. For example, the prehistoric community’s goal was to survive in hazardous conditions, so one of the first expressions of culture was rock paintings that depicted hunting scenes (Giddens et al., 2019). Further, with the development of pastoral and agricultural societies, large communities, countries, and empires have aroused, in which culture became a way of uniting people, expressing reverence for people or gods, and entertaining. The next stage of development was industrialization that led to the switch of the majority of the population from working on the land to working in factories, which led to cities’ rapid growth (Giddens et al., 2019). Culture and trade set the goal of mass consumption and also gave impetus to the processes of globalization. Today, many states have entered the post-industrial era, but some courtiers are still industrial or even agricultural, which creates inequality. However, together with the peculiarities of historical development, these differences shape the cultural diversity and values of different societies.
Global Inequality
Modern global inequality is a display of the unequal distribution of economic resources and results from the industrialization and technologization of society. The poverty level of countries is determined by the figures of Gross National Income or the country’s profit per person (CrashCourse, 2017). Those countries with resources and technologies provide their population with all the benefits and stimulate consumer behavior. At the same time, states that lag in industrial and technological development often cannot offer their citizens basic needs, such as quality living conditions, medicine, food, and education. These features are characteristics of modern global inequality.
Moreover, in addition to the states’ unequal economic position, there is also internal poverty in almost every country. Scientists divide poverty into absolute when people cannot get the things necessary to survive, and relative, when people cannot get decent living conditions compared with the majority of society (Giddens et al., 2019). For developed countries, for example, the United States or France, predominantly relative poverty is inherent, while absolute poverty is still widespread for African countries.
However, there are many theories about the origin and overcoming of poverty and global inequality. In other words, a developing country can become rich, as exemplified by emerging economies such as Singapore (Giddens et al., 2019). According to Mestrum (2009), the reason for overcoming inequality is not only social justice but also political stability, a decrease in the political dependence of low-income countries on high-income countries, and a decrease in migration.
The main scientific approaches include market-oriented theory, modernization theory, neoliberalism, and global sociological theories. Representatives of the market-oriented approach say that countries should eliminate government regulation of the market to stimulate economic growth, while neoliberalism speaks of limited government control of business and cuts in spending on social services (Giddens et al., 2019). Representatives of the modernization theory argue that low-income countries should abandon their traditions and use modern technologies and values for productive investment (Giddens et al., 2019). This approach will allow them to stimulate economic development. Simultaneously, the theory of dependence, global capitalism, and world-system theory explains the emergence of inequality by emphasizing the impact on the complex interactions of capitalist countries or transnational corporations that use low-income countries or depend on them (Giddens et al., 2019). Thus, global inequality is a consequence of the unequal distribution of economic resources, causing social injustice.
Race and Ethnicity
Race and ethnicity are social constructs because while some people claim that a persons’ appearance can determine his or her origin, this statement is controversial. For example, although Barack Obama positions himself as African American, he has a white and black parent, so in some countries, he can be perceived as white (“The meaning,” n.d.). The external manifestation of ethnicity can be not obvious, and, for example, people who have lived in the United States for generations can consider themselves Jewish by ethnicity. However, these social constructs cause conflicts in society due to prejudices and stereotypes, as well as feelings of authority over other races and ethics (Giddens et al., 2019). At best, such conflicts cause institutional or individual discrimination, color blindness, or microaggression, but at worst, they can lead to genocide and segregation. At the same time, these tendencies are widespread throughout the world, although the minority that becomes the object of discrimination have different races and ethnicities.
The problem of conflicts around race and ethnicity is also widespread in the United States, although society tries to fight it. For example, Trump’s remarks against migrants from Mexico are clear manifestations of bias and aggression, and recent protests in the US demonstrate that the problem of institutional racism against African Americans has reached its peak (Giddens et al., 2019). This situation indicates that assimilation and multiculturalism are not effective enough in the United States, or that the American society puts insufficient efforts to implement them fully. Besides, these facts demonstrate that race and entitlement are social constructs and people need to change their attitude towards them to resolve the conflict.
Discussion and Conclusion
All the concepts and ideas discussed in the chapters have a direct connection with modern society and each person’s life. First of all, culture, inequality, and race are current trends and problems people need to overcome. Wealthy people in high-income countries can think that poverty does not concern them, but the level of crime, education of society, and its further development depend on this indicator. Understanding and respecting others’ differences in the era of globalization, for example, ethnicity or culture, is also critical for the comprehensive development of the world and the peaceful coexistence of societies. In addition, people can solve most of the global problems only through international efforts. Consequently, all these sociological concepts are directly related to the modern world and the world community, and every person’s daily life.
References
CrashCourse (2017). Global stratification & poverty: Crash course sociology #27. Web.
Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R. P., & Carr, D. (2019). Essentials of sociology (7th ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.
Mestrum, F. (2009). Why we have to fight global income inequality. In Konohen M. & Mestrum F. (Eds.), Tax Justice: Putting Global Inequality on the Agenda (pp. 25-44). London: Pluto Press. Web.
The Meaning of Race and Ethnicity (2016). In Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social Worl [eBook edition]. University of Minnesota.