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March 20, 2011

Social Class

Survival, growth and reproduction are entirely depend upon the available resources. Variety, quantity and quality of resources are directly linked with an ability to acquire and afford them. Competition, struggle and fight for attaining acquisition capabilities and possessing the resources is an underlying, a silent and a pivotal hierarchical competition held among different individuals, families, clans, groups, communities, ethnicity, countries and even the races of creatures.

Although cooperation exists in the world and it is the necessity of the society, competition fight over resources is considered as the driving force of biological evolution, bio-diversity and complexity. Climbing the tall ladder of resource allocation hierarchy has been the one of the greatest pursuits of the mankind since the time unknown.

Every position in the ladder is about amount of the power and capabilities one possesses to access, control, extract, acquire, accumulate, secure, process, preserve and consume resources which can be biological, non-biological, natural or artificial. Therefore, individuals, families, groups, clans and communities of higher class work less harder, consume more, spend more, (afford to) waste a plenty, find more time for amusement,(might) stay healthy longer and accumulate more over geographical area(s).

Public display or exhibition of the social status is very common across human societies since ages. There are many different ways, methods and tools available to achieve the same. However, males are naturally motivated to display the higher social status in public with the symbolic cues or hints of their inheritance, belongings, capabilities, achievements and victories. Especially, public display or exhibition of the higher social status by males finding mate(s) or partner(s) is quite obvious in the presence a group of females. Many females reciprocate their interest towards males with higher social status than their own.

Individuals with lower socio-economical status often try to imitate the individuals with higher socio-economical status by buying, owning, exhibiting and displaying low quality and cheap cloths, jewelry, artworks and artifacts which share external appearances with their high quality and costly counterparts. Fashion, food and lifestyle trends in higher class gradually permeates to lower classes. Once a trend no longer stays to limited to higher class, a new one is invented and adapted to convey the socio-economical status separation from lower classes.

Ancient Egyptian Social Pyramid/Hierarchy

Starting right from the clothing to the residential buildings, public display or exhibition of the social status is almost inseparable from living in almost all of the human societies. The dialect or the choice of words, the overall mannerism and the kind of treatment/hospitality given to others is also part of public display or exhibition of the social status. Occupation of space around one's body and placement of one's body in the given social situation also speak loudly about the individual's social status along with its family owned residential buildings.

In case of a family's house, factors like location, neighborhood, size, space, safety, security, amount, availability, affordability, rarity, creativity, variety, quality, quantity, hospitality, privacy and comfort nonverbally convey the socio-economical class of the family. Its size, amount of empty space around it, quality of material used for building and decorating it, amount of fortification, amount of safety and security measures, kind of availed facilities, amount and quality of furniture, amount and quality of upholstery and size of showcase are determinant factors.

Along with the same, types and number of transportation vehicles, kind of food (variety, quantity and quality), amount of food stored/preserved, number of aids and appliances, quality and quantity of clothes, number and quality of footwear, number and quality of body adornments, amount of private space reserved for every member, level of physical comfort, number of accumulated collectible items, number of pets etc. speak very clearly and loudly to others about social status of the individual family.

Competition, struggle and fight for staying on and climbing food allocation hierarchy or the pyramid can be easily observed in the animal kingdom and the world of creatures too. Various members of the same species and various species of creatures strive for fitting themselves at a certain position or rank in the long food chain. It's hardwired in male brain to fit in hierarchy and fight for a better position.

Members of higher class always try to control and dominate the members of class below it. Members of the lower classes are structurally, methodologically and institutionally convinced, trained, tailored, educated, prepared, armed, styled, equipped and used by those from higher social status to serve their own best interests. Any higher class hardly makes any sacrifices whereas lower class is convinced and motivated to do the same.

If we closely study the entire human history then we'd realize that Male-dominant (patriarchal) tribes, families, clans, communities, societies, dynasties, deities, gods and religions existing almost all over the world is an outcome of the same hierarchical structure or the pyramid. Female-dominant and egalitarian tribes, families, clans, communities, societies, dynasties, deities, gods are very less in numbers.

However, unlike other creatures, a civilized, educated, technological and industrial human males (and females too) saliently struggle and compete for achieving higher level in more subtle and smart ways to ensure minimal (physical) hard-work, confrontations, clashes, combats, fights and harms. Their struggle includes education, status, economical growth, materialist possession, comfort, aesthetic attributes of their mates and opportunities for their children.

Males (and a few percent of females too) employ their power, energy, intellect and social rapport for gaining higher social status and climbing on economical ladder to seize more opportunities, acquire more resources, attract mates, pair with them, reproduce with them and also retain them.

They provide a wide pool of resources, more physical space, favorable environment, better security, good nutrition, medication, better chances of survival and better prospects to their children. Naturally, children inherit resources, possessions and social class from their own parents.

Ranks, positions, levels, order and chain of command prevail within an individual human family as well. Certain physical spaces, privileges, authorities, rights and decisions are (strictly) reserved to elders or more experienced individuals whereas other (younger) family members have to respect, obey, follow and listen to them.

Challenging, fighting, quarreling and debating with older members of family is considered a unconventional, disrespectful, punishable and nonsensical act. It's highly prevalent in orthodox, conservative, large and joint families (especially those who run businesses, own huge area of land and possess a huge amount of wealth) than the modern, small, liberal, salaried ones.

Other non-confrontational way of getting at a higher position on the social ladder is to gain the kind of skills, aptitudes, knowledge, proficiency, efficiency and expertise which make a great difference in lives of many and solve their problems. Proper education, good guidance, creativity and higher (applied) knowledge generate practical inventions, innovations, ideas, tools, machines, products, formulae, methods and processes.

They help many of us in achieving higher social status, success, fame, popularity, fortune and prosperity with a far greater efficiency and speed in comparison to (physical) hard-work, confrontation, competition, clashes, combats and fights. Additionally, modern technology, transportation, tools and machinery have made it very easy for us than our ancestors.

Basically, Explorations, Expeditions, Invasions, Conquests, (Geo) Political Movements, Colonization, Racism, Chauvinism, Supremacy Claims, Slavery, (Territorial) Domination, Migration and also Technological Advancement have been directly or indirectly originated from the very necessity of claiming over, finding, acquiring and possessing (rare, new and more) resources.

Source: https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d774e77417a4d32457a6333566d54/index.html

With degrading and depleting resources along with changing climate, social unrest is on rise all over the globe. Scientists, thinkers and visionaries have been warning us about the same situation since decades. Hence, we have chosen to find earth-like, habitable and resource-rich planets. Recently, we've ventured out in the space for the same and the competition has already begun.

Related Articles:
1) Man's Courtship Body Language 2) Domination 3) Cabin of Chief

2 comments:

  1. There are classifications when it comes to choosing a partner.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rigorously researched and immensely enlightening insights about human socio-political behavior

    ReplyDelete

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