Social Inequality Essay

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Social Inequality What is social inequality? What are the sources of social inequality? For me, social inequality cannot be described in one sentence. Factors such as race, wealth, class, gender, age, among others all play roles into why people can sometimes be treated unfairly. However before I introspectively reflect on social inequality, there is one theory that suggests where today’s society is heading for me. Karl Marx is known as a prominent economic and political influence that lived during the 19th century. Marx’s theory of stratification is very applicable to where society, especially in the United States, is heading today. According to Marx, society would become divided into two classes, the dominant capitalist or the…show more content…
(Smeeding, Timothy) Some economists even refer to Russia and Mexico as “developing” countries. Essentially the United States has the biggest economic gap among all developed countries. Why has that occurred? CEO’s, professional athletes, actors ect. make most of the money earned in this country, leaving everyone else to work for them while they make a ridiculous income and the workers settle for just enough to have a modest lifestyle. The other day I was watching a film that promoted a similar theme to what I am trying to convey. The production was called In Time starring Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. Basically instead of money people were paid in time that they had left to live. In the movie we see a huge disparity in how different people live based on how much time they had. The important figures in their society used the time they had to manipulate everyone else because they could afford to give some away. This represents how money is influential in today’s culture. Through outlets like social media, advertisements, and important public figures having money is portrayed as being paramount. However the opposite, if someone is living in poverty, something must be wrong with them or they aren’t as valuable to the community. To create a successful, tolerant, and synergistic society money cannot determine someone’s worth to society. Obviously

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