Based on the above grounds (income, power, education, prestige), an arbitrary number of layers can be distinguished. The number of allocated layers is determined, first of all, by the tasks that the researcher sets for himself and the specific techniques with which he operates. When producing the most general idea about the social hierarchy of society, it is enough to distinguish three main social layers: the highest, middle and lowest. Distribution of the population among these levels is possible based on all stratification grounds, and the significance of each of them will be determined by the prevailing values and norms in society, social institutions and ideological attitudes.
To the highest layer(approximately 10% of total social composition society) include individuals who occupy the highest positions according to the criteria of wealth, power, prestige, and education. These are influential politicians, bankers, managers of leading companies, prominent representatives of the scientific and creative intelligentsia. The upper layer plays a large role in developing the main directions for the development of society, determining social priorities, and in the development of values and norms, but another layer, the middle layer, acts as the guarantor of the stability of society.
To the middle layer(approximately 60-80% of the total social composition of society) include medium and small entrepreneurs, managers, doctors, lawyers, highly qualified workers, lower management personnel, farmers and some other categories. It is characterized by economic independence, the average level of income for a given society and high level education. Political ideals and the values of representatives of the middle class are determined, as a rule, democratic principles and prestige orientation labor activity, law-abidingness and demands on the state to protect laws and human rights. Stable development and confidence in tomorrow are beneficial to the middle class because they allow them to realize their life plans, so they defend these social priorities. In terms of its status position, the middle layer seems to smooth out the contradictions of the extreme (higher and lower) layers and soften the social situation.
To the lowest layer include persons with low incomes and employed primarily in unskilled labor, as well as various declassed elements (unemployed, vagabonds, etc.).
P. Sorokin considered the fact that a poor person (family) spends almost all of his income on food as a sign of poverty. The rich spend only 5-7% of their income on food. Therefore, it is customary to distinguish between absolute and relative poverty. Absolute poverty is a state where an individual is unable to satisfy even basic needs with his income. Relative poverty is an indicator of how much one individual is poorer than another, the inability to maintain the standard of living accepted in a given society.
Ideas about the scale of poverty also differ depending on the level of well-being of society. Evidence of this is the content of the “consumer basket” - a conditional set of food products that corresponds to the minimum wage. For example, in Russia it includes 11 types of food products: flour, salt, sugar, bread, milk, pasta, meat (fish), eggs, butter, vegetables, tea. For comparison: in Sweden this list contains 113 items and is supplemented by such “unnecessary” products for us as strawberries, champignons, chocolate, dessert wine, cocoa, raspberries and another 107 items.
However, poverty is not only low income, but a special way of life, norms of behavior and psychology, passed on from generation to generation. Poverty begets poverty. The larger the number of this layer, the less stable the situation in society. An increase in the lower social stratum results in a decrease in the level of culture and loss of standards for society professional activities, and ultimately - degradation.
Levels of stratification give an idea of the vertical cross-section of society. A vertical slice of society that reproduces its hierarchical structure is called stratification profile, which shows what part of the population belongs to the lower, middle and upper layers and, therefore, what is the level of inequality in a given society.
In a stable, economically developed society, the stratification profile has the shape of a diamond and the following proportions: the majority is the middle layer (up to 80%), and the highest and lowest balance each other in numbers (5-10%). In a crisis, unstable society, the stratification profile has the shape of a pyramid, the heaviest, most massive part of which is the lowest layer. The more numerous it is, the more complex the socio-economic situation in society. For example, after the economic crisis of 1998, in Russia the poor were 70%, the middle class was 25%, and the rich were 5%.
Social mobility.
The inviolability of the hierarchical structure of society does not mean that there is no movement within it. Social structure characterized by mobility, variability, mobility.
Social mobility– a set of movements of individuals in social space, accompanied by changes in their status.
The Russian-American sociologist P. Sorokin made a great contribution to the creation of the concept of “social mobility”. It was he who introduced the concept of “social mobility” into scientific circulation, by which he meant any movement of individuals or groups in society between different status positions and in the system social stratification.
Based on the directions of social movements, a distinction is made between vertical and horizontal mobility. Vertical mobility always associated with an increase or decrease social status. At the same time, the transition to a higher social position is called upward mobility (promotion), and to a lower one - downward mobility (demotion). It has been noted that upward mobility is performed by individuals voluntarily and with great pleasure, while downward mobility is forced.
Horizontal mobility involves social movement not associated with a change in social status, i.e. from one social group to another, located at the same level. For example, the transition from Orthodoxy to Protestantism, from one family (parental) to another (one’s own), changing one citizenship to another. Such movements, as a rule, do not change anything in the status position of the individual.
One can also distinguish between intergenerational and intragenerational mobility. The first demonstrates the change in the status of children compared to their parents. For example, children can achieve under the influence of various social factors higher social position or, conversely, sink to a lower level than their parents. Intragenerational mobility occurs where the same individual, apart from comparison with his parents, changes social positions several times throughout his life. This kind of mobility is called a social career.
A type of horizontal mobility is geographic mobility - moving in physical space from one place to another while maintaining the same status (for example, international tourism, moving from city to village, transferring from one educational institution to another). If a change of location is added to a change of status, then geographic mobility turns into migration.
As P. Sorokin showed, vertical social mobility exists in almost all types of societies. However, moving from one social stratum to another always requires some effort. The parameters of vertical social mobility depend on the specific historical situation in society, i.e. change in space and time. To quantify social mobility, indicators of its speed and intensity are usually used. P. Sorokin defined the speed of social mobility as the vertical social distance that an individual travels up or down in a certain period of time.
Modern society will be distinguished by high rates of social mobility, which is associated with the needs of socio-economic, scientific and technical development, with the need for an influx of highly educated specialists into key social positions. Opportunities for social mobility depend both on society and its social organization, and on the individual. Ways to overcome barriers in the process of socialization are called channels of social mobility. The main ones: education, advanced training, political career, change in social environment, marriage, etc.
Using channels suitable for a particular society, an individual has the opportunity to increase his social status. In history there has never been absolutely closed societies, as well as those in which vertical social mobility would be absolutely free, and the transition from one social stratum to another would be carried out without any resistance. If mobility were absolutely free, then society would not be able to form stable strata.
Thus, within the strata there is a kind of “sieve” that sifts individuals, allowing some to rise and leaving others in the lower strata. This role is performed social institutions, applying their selection mechanisms. Such an “elevator” is not ready to deliver every “passenger” to their address. However, rising to a higher social stratum can be easier than gaining a foothold in it. To gain a foothold in a new stratum, it is necessary to accept its way of life, organically fit into its sociocultural environment, and build your behavior in accordance with accepted norms and rules. This process is quite painful, since a person is often forced to reconsider his value system and, at first, control his every action. Adaptation to a new sociocultural environment requires high psychological stress, which is fraught with nervous breakdowns. A person may find himself an outcast in the social stratum to which he aspired or in which he found himself by the will of fate, if we are talking about a downward movement.
This phenomenon of a person being, as it were, between two cultures, associated with his movement in social space, is called in sociology marginality. A marginal is an individual who has lost his usual social status, is deprived of the opportunity to engage in his usual type of activity, and, moreover, has found himself unable to adapt to the new socio-cultural environment of the stratum within which he formally exists. Marginality is an inevitable accompaniment of social mobility. Every person has become marginalized at least once in their life, and many find themselves in this state quite often. With mass migration, marginal groups are formed (unemployed, homeless, beggars, refugees). Marginalized groups create their own subculture and begin to reproduce themselves. They can pose a serious danger to society if they grow in numbers, since they are often hostile to the basic values of a given society.
Currently, throughout the world and in Russia, in particular, this type of social mobility as migration has acquired significant proportions - the process of moving people associated with a change in place of residence. There are three main factors contributing to this process: pushing, attraction, migration channels:
· pushing out is caused by difficult conditions of existence of an individual in his native place (wars and ethnic conflicts, economic crises, etc.);
· attraction is a set of attractive aspects or better conditions for living in other places;
· migration channels – transport capabilities, information awareness, language barrier, obtaining permission to leave, etc.
Migration is divided into irrevocable, temporary, seasonal (at certain times of the year), pendulum (regular trips, for example, from one’s native place to other places to earn money). There is also a distinction between external migration (moving from one country to another) and internal migration (within one country). Up to certain limits, all types of migration are considered natural and normal. However, excess migration can lead to a change in the demographic composition of the region (for example, the departure of young people, “aging of the population,” a drop in the birth rate, etc.), a shortage or excess of labor, and many other consequences. Therefore, migration must be regulated by the state.
Security questions:
1.What is inequality and what are the reasons for its occurrence?
2. What is the social meaning of inequality?
3. What are negative consequences inequality?
4. How are inequality and stratification related?
5. What bases of social stratification do you know?
6. What stratification criteria do you know?
7. Describe the main social strata.
8. What is the role of the middle social stratum in the life of society?
9. What is social mobility? What types of mobility do you know?
10. What is a “marginal personality”?
11. What channels can you use to increase your social status in society?
12. What are the social consequences of migration?
Literature:
45. Barber B. The structure of social stratification and trends in social mobility // American Sociology. M., 1972.
46. Weber M. Basic concepts of stratification // SOCIS, 1994, No. 5.
47. Giddens E. Sociology. M., "Editorial URSS", 1999.
48. Giddens E. Stratification and class structure // SOCIS, 1992, No. 9.
49. Dobrenkov V.I., Kravchenko A.I. Sociology in 3 vols. M., INFRA – M, 2000.
50. Kravchenko A.I. Sociology: Textbook for universities. - M.: Academic Project, 2002.
51. Mills R. The Power Elite. M., 1959.
52. General sociology: Textbook/Under general. ed. Prof.A. G. Efendieva.-M.: INFRA-M, 2002.
53. Osipov G.V. Sociology. M.: Mysl, 1996.
54. Radaev V., Shkaratan O.I. Social stratification. M., 1996.
55. Smelser N.J. Sociology. M.: “Phoenix”, 1994.
56. Sorokin P. Man. Civilization. Society. M., 1992.
57. Sociology: Fundamentals general theory. Under. ed. Osipova G.V.M.: “Thought”, 1998.
58. Frolov S.S. Fundamentals of Sociology. M., “Gardariki”, 1999.
59. Encyclopedic Sociological Dictionary / Ed. ed. Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences G.V. Osipova. - M.: ISPI RAS, 1995.
Key concepts:
b. social stratification
c. social structure
f. estate
g. stratification profile
h. stratification criteria
i. social mobility
j. vertical mobility
k. horizontal mobility
l. marginality
m. migration
n. social mobility channels
o. group mobility
p. individual mobility
Speaking about the topic of the legal status of certain social groups of the population in Ancient Rus', it is necessary to highlight the fundamental provisions that determined the importance and relevance of the research being carried out. The democratization of our society and the appeal to universal humanistic values are associated with the study of history. It is necessary to know the origins of ideas, the struggle of opinions, to be able to accurately and impartially analyze the past in order to identify promising historical trends and the logic of development, and determine ways to further improve the economic and socio-political structure of society.
Currently, heated discussions are arising about various institutions in the history of the social structure: the relationship between the collective nature of Russian agriculture (community) and individual peasant farming (family farming); forms of ownership and method of organization labor collective; determinants of development of productive forces in agricultural production; cooperation and integration in the agro-industrial complex; relationship between property and political power etc. Practical conclusions can contribute to achieving the highest results in socio-economic production and the effective functioning of the economy.
Since ancient times, the basis of the Russian economy has been agriculture. Many modern phenomena and actions are taken on the basis of the historical past. Therefore, to understand the present, you need to know history.
Target course work- review and analyze legal status certain social groups of the population in Ancient Rus'.
Coursework objectives:
–consider social order Old Russian state,
–list the types of social groups and their legal status,
– analyze the political, cultural and economic stratification in the Old Russian state.
Object of study: socio-economic and socio-legal differentiation of the population in Ancient Rus'.
Subject of research: the legal status of certain social groups of the population in Ancient Rus'.
The course work uses the following principles and methods:
The scientific principle is manifested in the fact that the course work uses sources whose authenticity and accuracy are based on given time there is no doubt;
The principle of objectivity lies in the fact that the course work used printed materials reflecting different versions and views on the process of formation of ancient Russian feudal law;
The method of historicism was reflected in the fact that we considered Old Russian feudal law both in the dynamics of our own development (the process of codification) and in the context of the development of the Old Russian state as a whole;
The formal legal method consists of a formal legal analysis of events and facts of legal significance;
The bibliographic method is based on the fact that in order to write a term paper, scientific and educational literature, dedicated to the history of the ancient Russian state and law of the 9th - 16th centuries.
When writing the course work, the texts of treaties between Rus' and Byzantium and Russian Truth, as well as educational literature, monographs and articles from specialized periodicals were used as sources.
1. Social structure and legal status of the feudal population of Ancient Rus'
1.1. Social structure of the population of Ancient Rus'
To characterize the socio-political system of Ancient Rus', which is schematically presented in Figure 1, you can use such sources as the Russian Pravda code of laws.
Figure 1. Social structure of the population of Ancient Rus'
“Russkaya Pravda” calls the main population of the country free community members - lyudin or people (hence: collecting tribute from peasants - community members - polyudye).
"Russkaya Pravda", considering the people, indicates that they united into a rural community-rope. Verv had a certain territory, and there were separate economically independent families in it.
The second large group of the population is the Smerds. These may not be free or semi-free princely tributaries. Smerd had no right to leave his property to indirect heirs. It was handed over to the prince. With the development of feudal relations, this category of population increased at the expense of free community members.
The third group of the population is slaves. They are known as different names: servants, slaves. Servants is an early name, serfs - a later one. "Russian Truth" shows slaves completely without rights. A slave had no right to be a witness in court. The owner was not responsible for his murder. Not only the slave, but also everyone who helped him was punished for escaping.
There were two types of slavery - complete and incomplete. Sources of complete slavery: captivity, selling oneself into slavery, marrying a slave or marrying a slave; entering the service of the prince as tiun, housekeeper, military headman and failure to conclude an agreement, etc. However, total slavery was not uniform. The bulk of slaves performed menial work. Their heads were valued at 5 hryvnia. Slaves—overseers, managers, and housekeepers—were on another rung of the social ladder. The head of the princely tiun was valued at 80 hryvnia; he could already act as a witness at the trial.
Partial slaves-purchases appeared in the 12th century. A purchase is a bankrupt community member who went into debt bondage for a certain loan (kupa). He worked as a servant or in the fields. Zakup was deprived of personal freedom, but he retained his own farm and could redeem himself by repaying the debt.
A small group of the dependent population of Rus' were the ryadovichi. Their lives were also protected by a five-hryvnia fine. Perhaps these were tiuns, housekeepers, elders, husbands of slaves, etc. who had not gone into servitude. Judging by the Russkaya Pravda, they were petty administrative agents.
Another small group is outcasts, people who have lost their social status: slaves who were set free, community members expelled from the ropes, etc. Apparently, outcasts joined the ranks of city artisans or the princely squad, especially during the war.
A fairly large group of the population of Rus' were artisans. As the social division of labor grew, cities became centers for the development of crafts. By the 12th century there were over 60 craft specialties; Russian artisans sometimes produced more than 150 types of iron products. On foreign market Not only flax, furs, honey, wax were supplied, but also linen fabrics, weapons, silverware, spindle whorls and other goods.
The growth of cities and the development of handicrafts is associated with the activities of such a group of the population as merchants. Already in 944, a Russian-Byzantine treaty allowed us to affirm the existence of an independent merchant profession. It should be remembered that every merchant in those days was also a warrior. Both warriors and merchants had one patron - the god of cattle Veles. Important trade routes along the Dnieper and Volga ran through Rus'. Russian merchants traded in Byzantium, in the Arab states and in Europe.
Free residents of cities enjoyed the legal protection of Russian Pravda; they were covered by all articles on the protection of honor, dignity and life. Special role the merchants played. It early began to unite into corporations (guilds), called hundreds.
It is also necessary to highlight such a group of the population of Ancient Rus' as warriors (“men”). The warriors lived at the prince's court, participated in military campaigns and collected tribute. The princely squad is an integral part of the administrative apparatus. The squad was heterogeneous. The closest warriors formed a permanent council, the “Duma.” They were called boyars. The prince consulted with them on important state affairs (the adoption of Orthodoxy by Vladimir; Igor, having received an offer from Byzantium to take tribute and abandon the campaign, convened a squad and began to consult, etc.). Senior warriors could also have their own squad. Subsequently, the boyars acted as governors.
Junior vigilantes performed the duties of bailiffs, fine collectors, etc. The princely warriors formed the basis of the emerging class of feudal lords.
The squad was a permanent military force that replaced the general arming of the people. But militias For a long time they played a big role in wars.
1.2. Features of the legal status of feudal lords
In the process of development of feudal relations, the process of transformation of the tribal nobility into land owners and feudal lords took place everywhere. Direct seizures of communal lands contributed to the growth of feudal land ownership and accelerated the formation of a class of feudal lords.
Higher social group V Kievan Rus there were great and appanage princes. They were the largest landowners in Rus'. There is not a single article in Russkaya Pravda that directly defines the prince’s legal status. And this, apparently, there was no need. The concentration of legislative, executive, military and judicial power in his hands made him the supreme owner of all lands that were part of the principality. One of the initial ways to establish princely ownership of land was the financial and administrative reform of Princess Olga. By abolishing polyudye and replacing it with certain rates of tribute and other duties, she thereby marked the beginning of the transformation of tribute into feudal rent. Another way to establish the prince's ownership of land was the construction of cities on the outskirts of princely villages, where princes exploited serfs and landless peasantry: purchasers, outcasts, etc.
“Old Russian culture” - Onfim is a Novgorod boy who studied 800 years ago. Wax tablet. HAINTY SOPHIA – Divine Wisdom. How were schoolchildren taught in ancient Rus'. Wrote. Church of St. Sophia in Novgorod. Clay tablet. Old Russian alphabet. Dmitrievsky Cathedral in Vladimir. Onfim. Birch bark. Kyiv Cathedral of Hagia Sophia 11th century Ukraine, Kyiv.
“Periods of Old Russian Literature” - Tale - tells about the most important historical events. Old Russian literature existed and developed over seven centuries. Fifth period - the era of Moscow centralized state. Genres ancient Russian literature. Invasion of Khan Batu into Rus'. Autograph of “The Life of Habakkuk” with a note from Elder Epiphanius.
"Ancient Russian architecture" - Naves. Vladimiro-Suzdal. Arcature belt. Golden Gate. Bogolyubovo. Assumption Cathedral. Features of ancient Russian architecture. Church of St. George, Novgorod, 12th century. Terms. Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, 1051 The basis of ancient Russian architecture is the Byzantine cross-dome system. St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv 1037
“Old Russian icon painting” - Nowhere and never has the icon played such a big role as in Russia. Iconography remained the core ancient Russian culture until the end of the 17th century, when in the era of Peter the Great it was supplanted by secular forms fine arts. Old Russian icon painting. Icons here have long been an indispensable part of every building - both temple and public - civil, and just a residential building.
“Old Russian Church” - In the Karelian language “Place of games”. Temples of Moscow. Dmitrievsky Cathedral. Old Russian architecture. Belfry of the Moscow Kremlin. City of Vladimir. Monastery tower. Bell tower of Ivan the Great in the Kremlin, 14th century. The Intercession Church, unlike the Transfiguration Church, is winter and warm. Church of the Transfiguration. Russian culture.
“Old Russian Lives” - Therefore, the author asked for additions and amendments. Printing press there wasn't. We approached the book “with clean hands” - reverently.” (academician Chronicle story about the murder of Boris and Gleb. We believe that our goal has been achieved. The literature was anonymous. The accomplishment of the feat by Euphrosynus of Sinozersky.
The term “social strata” appeared in the 20th century. These units of social hierarchy unite people with a certain set of traits and characteristics.
Social classes and strata
The layers are a tool of social stratification - dividing society according to different criteria. Scientists have been studying this problem since ancient times. Social strata as a concept appeared in the 20th century. Before this, other units of hierarchy were common - castes and estates.
In the 19th century, the doctrine of social classes was popular. This phenomenon was first studied by Adam Smith and David Ricardo, classics of political economy. Class theory was most fully developed and revealed by the German scientist Karl Marx. Modern social strata have adopted some features from his teachings.
Dichotomous division of society
Social strata are characterized by classification according to several defining characteristics. power, education, leisure and consumption. These indicators are signs of inequality between different members of society.
There are several models for dividing the population into strata. The simplest idea is the idea of dichotomy - the duality of society. According to this theory, society is divided into masses and elites. This specificity was especially characteristic of the most ancient civilizations. In them, the pronounced was the norm. In addition, in such societies, castes of so-called “initiates” appeared - priests, leaders or elders. Modern civilization has abandoned such social structures.
Social hierarchy
According to modern society, layers of society have certain status characteristics that unite people. Between them there is a feeling of connectedness and belonging to the same community. In this case, the layer indicators carry only the assessment “better - worse” or “more - less”.
For example, when it comes to education, people are divided into those who have completed school or university. Similar associations can be continued when talking about income or career growth individual. In other words, social strata of society have a strict vertical hierarchy. This is a kind of pyramid, at the top of which are the “best”. If, for example, we compare basketball fans and folklore fans, then their difference will not be vertical, but horizontal. Such groups do not fall under the definition of social strata.
Concept of status
The main category in the theory of social strata is status. It is he who is of key importance in the modern stratification of society. The current social strata of the population differ from the classes of the 19th century in that a person is not tied to any group for life. What does this look like in practice? For example, if a boy was born in but studied well and, thanks to his talents, was able to achieve a high career position, then he certainly moved from one layer to another.
The status implies that the person who belongs to it must meet certain requirements. They concern the ability of a member of society to consume and produce goods. For status, and therefore for the social stratum, it is important to adhere to the lifestyle established as a norm.
Welfare and work
The characteristics by which representatives of social classes are divided can be divided into several groups. For example, they are associated with economic situation person. This group includes the presence of private property, the size and types of income. In general, these signs can be described as the level of material well-being. According to this criterion, poor, middle-income and rich strata are distinguished. You can also give examples of low- and high-paid workers living in public housing, property owners, etc.
The concept of social stratum concerns the phenomenon of division of labor. This hierarchy refers to a person's professional skills and training. The work of each individual finds a different application, and it is in this difference that the next social layer is reflected. For example, we can distinguish workers employed in agriculture, industry, service sector, etc.
Power and influence
Power is no less important in the social hierarchy. They are determined by a person’s ability to influence others. The source of such abilities can be a high position held or the possession of socially important knowledge. In this hierarchy, ordinary workers can be distinguished into municipal enterprise, managers in small businesses or, for example, government leaders.
Signs of influence, authority and prestige are included in a separate group. IN in this case the assessments of others play a big role. This indicator cannot be objective, so it is very difficult to measure and define it within any specific framework. According to this characteristic, we can distinguish famous cultural figures, representatives of the state elite, etc.
Minor signs
The main features according to which the modern stratification of society is built were described above. However, besides them, there are also secondary features. They do not have a decisive meaning, but also influence the position of the individual in the overall hierarchy. Which social strata are present in society to a greater or lesser extent does not directly depend on these traits. Their character is auxiliary.
Ethno-national characteristics in different societies influence a person’s position to a different extent. In multicultural countries, this quality does not play a role at all. At the same time in modern world there are still enough countries where conservative national sentiments reign. In such societies, belonging to another ethnic group may be a decisive factor in determining whether a person belongs to one or another social stratum.
Other such characteristics are gender, age, religious and cultural traits person. Their combination influences the individual’s social circle and interests. It is also worth noting a sign associated with the place of residence. In this case, we are mainly talking about the big difference between city dwellers and villagers.
People with a specific social status
Belonging to a particular group in society also depends on certain qualities and psychological attitudes of a person. In this series, scientists highlight a marginal position in society. It includes the unemployed, people without permanent residence, and refugees. In some societies, this may also include the disabled and pensioners, whose living conditions are noticeably worse than the rest of the population. Such a social gap arises in countries where there is an irresponsible state. If the authorities cannot provide the population with basic signs of a comfortable life, there will be more and more such marginalized people over time.
People with illegal behavior also have a specific status. These are citizens who have been convicted of their crimes. These include representatives of the criminal world, persons imprisoned in prisons and other correctional labor institutions. People who find themselves in a marginal or criminal group, as a rule, cannot climb the social ladder on their own or do not want to do so at all.