Name: Celine Cheah

Student Id: B19030017

1. What are social roles?

Social roles are expected behaviours, obligations, privileges attached to a status. Social
roles are important component of culture and expected behaviour of people. Social roles
performed by individuals mesh (interwoven) together to form society.

2. Explain role distance in the perspective of Sociological perspective.

Role distance proposed by Ervin Goffman is a situation where our roles are played in
society without really meaning it and with an ulterior motive in mind.

3. What are the criteria used to divide people?

 Wealth – value of everything a person owns
 Power – the ability to get people to do things the way people in power want it to
be done
 Prestige – how an individual is perceived by others. Has much to do with
occupations. Inconsistent. Could be rich and powerful but not respected.

4. State the four major systems of stratification of society in history.

The major systems of stratification are slavery, estate systems, caste systems, and
class systems.

Slavery refers to people own other people. Slavery is usually based on debt, punishment
for violation of law, war prisoners. It may be temporary or permanent and might not be
passed down to children. Slaves does not have a property or power owned. As for New
world slavery indentured slavery, for example, services are sold for a specified period of
time and then free.

Estate is the feudal society developed in Europe in the Middle Ages. Estate is divided
into nobility, clergy and commoners. Estate is also categorized as first, second and third
estate. First estate nobility ruled the land. Second clergy, owned land, collected taxes and
had great influence on the rulers. Third estate commoners few opportunities to come up.

Caste is status determined by birth, lifelong or ascribed status

Caste can be boundaries between caste impenetrable with practice of endogamy
(marriage within group) developed the rules of ritual pollution (inferior caste
contaminating superior caste). It is based on religion : 4 varnas and subdivided into
thousands of sub castes or jati. The 4 main caste are Brahmins (priest, scholars),
Kshatriyas (rulers, warriors, l landlords), Vaishyas (merchants, farmers, artisans) and
Sudras (labourers).

Class is based on material possessions including money. Class is prevalent in

industrialized societies. Class is ascribed status (based on one’s parents) and flexible
boundary. Class allows for social mobility up and down the social ladder and is based on
achieved status. Positions are changeable. Class is a primary form of stratification in all
societies but varies from society to society.