CONSTRUCTING SOCIETY’S
“CATEGORIES OF DIFFERENCE”
Dr. M. C. Sengstock
SOC 3300 – Inequality
Wayne State University
Web site:
http://users.wowway.com/~marycay910
“CATEGORIES OF DIFFERENCE”
• What Are the Specific “Categories of
Difference” That Exist in Society?
• How Are They Created? … & WHY?
• This Course & The Text Are Specifically
Designed to Describe This Entire Process
• How the Institutions of Our Society Are
Employed to Create & Maintain the Categories
Desired By Those in Power
NEXT STEP: ANALYZING THE
CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY’S
“CATEGORIES OF DIFFERENCE”
• What Are the Specific “Categories of
Difference” That Exist in Our Society?
• How Were They Created? … Perpetuated?
• More Critically, WHY Do We Create Them?
ISSUES TO BE CONSTRUCTED
CRITICAL DIMENSIONS:
• Rationale for the Categories – the WHY?
• Matrix of Domination
CATEGORIES OF DIFFERENCE:
• Race & Ethnicity
• Social Class
• Sex & Gender
• Sexuality
1st ISSUE: THE WHY?
RATIONALE FOR THE CATEGORIES
• Why Do We Do This? Why Do We Have to
Have Categories – Boxes – to Put People In?
• Many Reasons:
– Explanatory
– Functional Reasons (Davis-Moore Thesis)
– System of Exploitation (Marx)
– System of Oppression (Marilyn Frye)
EXPLANATORY
Explain Unknown/Unexpected Characteristics
• Europeans in Era of Exploration
• Encountered Beings They Had Not Anticipated
• Raised Questions About Theology, Philosophy
• Tried to Resolve These Issues
• Were They “Human”? Or “Animal”?
• Should They Be Killed? Married? Converted?
• “RACE” Was Their Explanation
FUNCTIONAL REASONS
(DAVIS-MOORE THESIS)
Society Needs Different Roles/Occupations
• Some Jobs Require More Skills, Training
• People Play Different Functions (Jobs)
• Need to Attract People to Higher Skilled Jobs –
With Higher Training Needs
• Need to Give Them Higher Status to Get Them
to Go Through the Training
SYSTEM OF EXPLOITATION
(KARL MARX)
Powerful People Want to Exploit Others
• Marxist/Neo-Marxist Theory
• Functional Needs? Are You Kidding?
• It’s Exploitation – Pure & Simple!
• Explorers/Capitalists Simply Wanted to Take
Over Land & Make Money!
• That’s Why They Invented Different Categories
SYSTEM OF OPPRESSION
(MARILYN FRYE)
Categories Are Deliberate Oppression
• Category Construction Is More Than Simple
Economic Exploitation
• It Is a Systematic Plan to Dominate
• It Is a Deliberate Plan to Keep the Dominant
Group in Power …
• & to Maintain Other Groups in Their
Subordinate Position
2nd ISSUE:MATRIX OF DOMINATION
Understanding the Structure of Difference
• The System of Oppressing Others (bell hooks)
• The “Matrix of Domination” (Patricia Hill-Collins)
• How The Dimensions of the Inequality System
Interrelate With Each Other
• How the Categories of Difference Interact
– Income vs. Race vs. Ethnic vs. Religious vs. Gender
– EX: Black Woman vs. Black Man vs. White Woman
– How is Discrimination Experienced Differently?
CATEGORIES OF DIFFERENCE:
DEFINITIONS
• Race & Ethnicity
• Social Class
• Sex & Gender
• Sexuality
CONSTRUCTING RACE & ETHNICITY
RACE: Based on Distinctive Physical Traits
• Group Members Perceive Themselves as
Having Different Hereditary Characteristics
• They Are Also Perceived That Way By Others
ETHNICITY: Based on Cultural Traits
• Language, Religion, Family Patterns, Food
Categories Are Hierarchical (High to Low)
• Groups Move Up & Down (Brodkin, Jews, prev. ed.)
CONSTRUCTING RACE & ETHNICITY
(ctd)
• Racial & Ethnic Categories Are Partially
Voluntary
– “Race” is Obvious – Less “Free”
– Some Ethnicities Are Similar (Arab, Italian)
• “Intermediate” Categories Are Not Accepted
– “What ARE You?”
– “Expected” Responses Are Enforced
– “Mixed” Is Unacceptable
CONSTRUCTING SOCIAL CLASS
Complex Components:
• Income
• Wealth
• Government Definitions – “Poverty Line”
• Social Definitions – Stereotypes:
– Assumptions – Impressions
– Generalizations – Application to All
CONSTRUCTING SOCIAL CLASS (ctd)
• Income vs. Wealth
– Income: Total Wages, Salaries, Investment Returns
– Wealth: Total Possessions – Homes, Cars, Planes,
Stocks, Bonds, etc.
• Government Definitions:
– “Poverty Line” – Allows Specific Benefits
– Definitions Woefully Out of Date (1955)
• Omits Modern Transportation, Technology Costs
• 2009: $21,756 vs. $35,000+
• Fails to Recognize Opportunity, Self Esteem, Prejudice
CONSTRUCTING SOCIAL CLASS (ctd)
• Stereotypes of Social Classes:
– Primarily Based on External Characteristics:
UPPER CLASS
Well Dressed
Demeanor
Expensive Car
Expensive Home
Several Properties
Ivy League Educ.
Investments
Old Family “WASP”
Other ?
MIDDLE CLASS
Respectable Dress
Demeanor
Type of Car
Home
College Educated
Managerial Job or
Professional
White or Certain
Ethnic Groups
LOWER CLASS
Dress
Demeanor
Public Transportation
Old Car
Homeless/ Poor Home
Public Assistance
Minority Race
Minority Ethnic
Single Mothers
CONSTRUCTING SEX & GENDER
• “Sex” – Biological Distinctions
– 2 Sexes? Or An Incomplete List of Categories
– 4% of Live Births Have Intersexual Characteristics
– Modern Medical Science “Corrects” the Problem
• “Gender” – Social Distinctions
– Social Expectations Based on Assigned Sex
Categories
– Arranged into a Social System of Gender
THE GENDER SYSTEM
• Socially Defined Roles for Males, Females –
Behaviors Expected of Men, Women
– Men Must Be Masculine: Tough, Loud, Aggressive
– Women Must Be Feminine: Quiet, Submissive
• Hierarchy in the Gender System:
– Men & Masculinity Are Dominant
– Women & Femininity Are Subordinate
GENDER SYSTEM (ctd)
• Nature of Gender Hierarchy
– Patriarchal Society – Males Dominate Females
– Extends To All Spheres: Family, Economy,
Education, Religion, Government, Media
– Reinforced By Everyone: Parents, Teachers,
Bosses, Politicians , Colleagues, Friends
– Ambiguities Are Not Tolerated
CONSTRUCTING SEXUALITY
• Sexuality Includes:
– Attractions – Fantasies – Sexual Behaviors – Self-Identity
• In Western Society:
– Everyone Forced Into 2 Categories: Male OR Female
• Heterosexuality As Relatively Recent Invention
– Men Are Expected to Be Tough; Women, Quiet
• Homosexuality in Modern Society
– Contrast With Earlier Societies – Greeks, Kodiak, Navajo
(Bornstein #13)
– Limited In Many Areas: Marriage, Jobs, Housing, Religion
CONSTRUCTING SEXUALITY (ctd)
• Examples of Sexual Constructions:
– Expectations Regarding Marriage Partners – Who
Is Viewed as a “Good Catch”
– Who Is Allowed to Marry Whom:
• Within Racial or Ethnic Categories
• Acceptable to One’s Family
• Must Marry ACROSS Gender Line – Bringing Home
Same Sex Partner!
• Bans on Homosexual Marriages – Mich & Elsewhere
• Defense of Marriage Act
• Different Treatment of Sex Crimes For Homosexuals
INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT
Institutional Mechanisms for Inequality
(Focus for Last Section of Course)
• Family: Early Inculcation of Race, Gender, Class
• Education: Teaches Skills Needed in Categories
• Economy: Distributes the Correct Resources
• State: Legal Power to Regulate Behavior –
Including the Categories
• Media: Enormous Power to Influence Behavior
NEXT STEP
•
•
•
•
•
Analysis of Specific Instances of the Categories
How They Were/Are Constructed
Why They Were Constructed
Their Impact on Society
How They Persist