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Social stratification is a major area of thought in theoretical social analysis. Although much has since been said in this area, the theories of social stratification put forward by Karl Marx remain fundamental. The necessity for a social class to possess class consciousness is basic to Marx’ theories. A middle social stratum has been rapidly growing in Brazil since the Second World War. This expansion is due to the growth of industry, urban centers, government bureaucracy, and other factors. Yet, this middle group seems to lack both an awareness of themselves as a group and a unique set of values. To some extent, the middle stratum identifies with the upper class. Clearly, the middle stratum lacks class consciousness. For this reason I refer to this group as the middle sector. The problem is: why does Brazil's middle sector lack class consciousness? The hypothesis I propose in solution to this problem is as follows: Brazil's middle sector is, in a sense, a misfit in the stream of Brazilian history. In more than four centuries of European settlement of Brazil, the society has been characterized by factors contributing to a bi-polar tendency in social stratification. In testing this hypothesis, I will examine three of the areas of factors in terms of the roles they have played in social stratification. Although the list of areas contributing to a bi-polar tendency is long, I have limited myself to the economic factor, the kinship factor, and the racial factor. These three factors will be examined throughout the course of Brazilian history. The economic structure has been largely characterized by large-scale agriculture, feudalism, and slavery. These institutions involve the control of the many by the few. Two contemporary phenomena which polarize Brazilian society have come out of this heritage: paternalistic treatment of employees, and the concentration of wealth in the hands of a relatively few. The kinship system has strengthened the bi-polar tendency in several ways. The aristocratic patriarchal family, which dominated Brazil for centuries, served to maintain the position of the upper class, and establish a dependency of the poor on the rich. The upper-class family continues today as a maintainer of the status quo. The institutions of patronship and godparenthood continue today to foster a dependency of poor on rich. Perhaps the most obvious contribution to the bi-polar tendency is seen in the historical role of the racial factor. Slavery existed from the founding of the colony until abolition in 1888. Masters were white and slaves were non-white. The non-white population continues to largely occupy the lower class, and this situation is maintained by often-subtle racial prejudice. To gain an understanding of the growth of the middle sector, a fourth factor must be noted: demographic changes. Recent phenomena are extensive European immigration, and the development of urban centers. The recent nature of these phenomena is linked to the recent growth of the middle sector. Although Brazilian society continues, in many ways, to be bi-polar, the existence of a relatively large middle sector prohibits a perfect bi-polarity in social stratification. The existence of the middle sector may be a misfit in Brazilian history in one sense, but this sector's values do not run counter to the historical flow. However, the middle sector is yet in an early stage of development. A later stage of development may include the formation of a class consciousness. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

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Based on an ethnographic study of a middle class community in Beijing, this research attempts to investigate the formation of a specific segment of China's middle class, namely, the white-collar employees and the new generation of private entrepreneurs in urban China. It will demonstrate how this segment of China's middle class deliberately differentiate themselves from other social groups through symbolized everyday domestic practices, and capture the latest development of domestic lifestyles of China's middle class. / The economic reform in contemporary China has brought about transformations in its socio-economic and political environment. The implementation of a series of policies that changed the occupational structure, reinvented resources allocation mode, and increased the purchasing power of China's urban citizens has facilitated the emergence of a new social stratum. As this new middle stratum is still emerging and expanding, its composition is pluralistic. To describe the emerging affluent social classes, simply looking at economic indicators may not be adequate. Lifestyle factors have become important components in the shaping of China's new middle class. / Using Bourdieu's theoretical schema, three inter-related analytical questions regarding to domestic life patterns of China's middle class will be addressed in this research: their aspirations of home, how this expected domestic life is protected through collective actions, and how a local system or a moral order of behavior is gradually formed through mundane and ordinary everyday interactions. A legally recognized and protected homeownership has become the bottom line, upon which the middle class continue to develop higher requirements to live comfortably and safely at home. From these everyday practices in the field of domestic life, we shall see how the emerging middle class in China is establishing a lifestyle, forming a shared social identity, and constructing social space in the social structure. / Liu, Shuo. / Adviser: Lui Tai Lok. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 72-10, Section: A, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-196). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2007. / Adviser: Rance P.L. Lee. Includes bibliographical references.

Habilitationsschrift--Freie Universität Berlin. / Map on folded leaf in pocket. Includes bibliographical references (p. 625-667) and index.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Southern California, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 185-203).

Habilitationsschrift--Freie Universität Berlin. / Map on folded leaf in pocket. Includes bibliographical references (p. 625-667) and index.

Thesis (doctoral)--Philipps-Universität, Mardurg (i.e. Marburg), 1939. / Cover title. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. [89]).

published_or_final_version / History / Master / Master of Philosophy