of the social system by exerting pressure for innovation and creativity. Though Sorel's call to action was addressed to the working class and its interests, he conceived it to be of general importance for the total social system; to his mind the gradual disappearance of class conflict might well lead to the decadence of European culture. A social system, he felt, was in need of conflict if only to renew its energies and revitalize its creative forces.
It can be a more permanent condition, say just part of your personality and you are born with it, or it can be temporary. An example is many depressed people suffer from flat affect, as it is a sign that they really don't care what happens to them anymore and have lost hope. Don't feel too bad about it. It's more common than you think.
Note that affect does not have a noun sense meaning âan influence that brings about a change.â As a verb, affect is most commonly used in the sense of âto cause a change in:â the ways in which smoking affects health.ransitive verb. 1  To have an influence on or effect a change in: Inflation affects the buying power of the dollar. 2  To act on the emotions of; touch or move. 3  To attack or infect, as a disease: Rheumatic fever can affect the heart.