Answer:
A
social difference means the difference in a group of people due to their race,
religion, language or culture. It becomes a social division when some social
differences are joined by another set of social differences.
Social division takes place under the following circumstances
(i) Social division due to overlapping differences.
(ii) Social division due to cross-cutting differences.
(iii) Social division due to migration
Overlapping differences Some social difference overlap
other differences e.g., the difference between the Blacks and Whites in USA
because the Blacks tend to be poor, homeless and discriminated against.
In our country, Dalits tend to be poor and landless They
often face discrimination and injustice Situations of this kind produce social
divisions, when one kind of social difference becomes more important than the
other and people start feeling that they belong to different communities.
Cross-cutting social differences If social differences cross-cut
one another, it is difficult to pit one group of people to compete against the
other. It means that groups that share a common interest on one issue are likely
to be in different sides on a different issue leading to a social division, e.g..
Northern Ireland and the Netherlands are predominantly Christian countries
but divided between Catholics and Protestants. In Northern Ireland, class and
religion overlap with each other.
In the Netherlands, class and religion tend to cut across
each other. Catholics and Protestants are likely to be poor or rich.
Social division due to migration Sometimes there is division
or difference in society due to migration and migrants. Even, those countries
such as Germany and Sweden that were once highly homogenous are undergoing
rapid change with influx of people from other parts of the world. Migrants
bring with them their own culture and tend to form a different social community.
In this sense most countries of the world are multi-cultural and have
multi-dimensional social divisions.
You need to login to perform this action.
You will be redirected in
3 sec