Sociology: Annotated Bibliography Example

Rothman, Robert (2003) Inequality, and Stratification: Class, Color, and Gender. Prentice Hall, EngleWoc-d Cliffs, New Jersey.

In the work of Robert Rothman, he arranges the social classes in the United States. Robert expounds on the existing different social discrimination levels in the United States. He claims to have arrived at this after a serious research in comparing the different levels of incomes, educational levels, as well as the living standards.

He examined the pyramid that showed the poor being at the lower level of the social class. This class contained those who were unemployment and hardly were they able to sustain themselves with three meals in a day. According to Robert nobody is to be blamed since the job market needs competent and skillful workers, the black Americans never attended any school and therefore were incompetent to be granted the jobs. He asserts that this was not because of racial discrimination but the black Americans had themselves to blame.

Robert continues to argue that the level of racial discrimination in the United States is institutional, that is, it is enshrined in the constitution. He claims that the United States Constitution provides for and upholds inequality. And therefore racial discrimination may not be a new topic but some aspect anchored in the constitution. This seems to hold more water because, in the past centuries, all the laws and policies that were operating in the United States were discriminatory. These laws placed the whites as much more powerful than the black Americans. This may be so since the whites were entitled to better health services, surety of quality education, better white collar jobs and resided in exclusively better conurbations. The African Americans were on the other hand subjected to harsh treatment, poor quality health services and limited or no access to education.

Robert proceeds to examine the concept of religion and the social discrimination experienced by the African Americans. He asserts that the Americans perception and attitudes are greatly influenced the structure and the ideas brought in by the Protestants Reformations that emerged in the sixteenth century. The rejection of the set religious aspects and doctrines set up by the roman catholic resulted in the freedom of worship. It then agitated classification of people in line with social and religious affiliations. There arose discrimination when the Protestants stood to defend that the faith of each was dependent upon one's behavior or belief towards their religion or faith.

This book seems useful in the formulation of strategic moves towards identifying the sources of social discrimination in our society and how any given society can be brought to light and amicable resolutions met. Robert later asserts that ancient racial classes were based on religious differences that later led to the growth of individualism and therefore resulting in the current levels regarding religion. This is, therefore, a suitable literature source for this current study.

Kendall, Diana. Sociology in Our Times. Cengage Learning, 2016.

In general, this book provides insight on social classes and how they are classified. He undertakes a comparison between gender issues and matters related to race in the society. With his long-term stay in the field, he has done remarkable researchers in the sociological aspects of the classes. He outlines the roles undertaken by each of these classes in the society.

Kendall is objective in his argument, for he outlines the basic components that should incorporate social classes. The book outlines the importance of gender concerns in the community, and how gender issues can help solve the current stalemate encompassing the society.

This book is key in this research for it helps one to understand the different structures of the community as well as basic understanding of theories related to sociology. The book will provide a wider scale that will aid in analyzing the research findings.

Gilbert, D., (2010). The American Class Structure in an Age of Growing Inequality. Newbury Park, CA: Pine Forge Press.

All through this book, Gilbert addresses the widening classism in the United States. In this book, he took another different and interesting tern in linking the social discrimination in the United States and the current society. He argued that the whites are arranged in better social classes in line with some specific variables while the common backs are not catered for in the society.

Gilbert identified the first variable that depicted the Americans appearing in structural family lines, power, political mileage and the economic strengths. However he spotted out, that as much as the society considers this classification as the vice, there exists a trend in the economy that ensures constructed and undistracted growth and development of the social classes regardless of the degree of discrimination. He continues to argue that the society is socially divided in line with the socioeconomic classes and that this gap continues to widen. Socially discriminated classes feel insecure since their voices are not considered and that nobody is concerned about their social welfare. As the classism accords power and economic strengths to the whites, the low-class African Americans are strength less and riding in poverty.

This book is enriched in classifying the economy regarding classes and providing generalizations on why there exist such classes as well as what led to their formation. The book is helpful in this research for it will enable the researcher to divide the field of study into strata that are easy to analyze. It is also key in this research for it helps in the location of issues from their contemporary historical origin and locating solutions.

Parkin F. Class Inequality and Political Order: Social Stratification in Capitalist and Communist Societies. Praeger, New York. 1971

Parkin is in a greater sense concerned about whether there exists social discrimination in the society and if there maybe divisions arising due to discrimination. He then emphasizes on any arising effects and how they can be controlled or avoided amicably. He is seeking a solution to end the already ripen discrimination in the society.

Parkin takes into account the theoretical aspect in reaching his conclusions. He applies the Karl Marks assertion on the resemblance that is presumed to exist between the mode of production and the social class levels that exists in the society. He further asserts the industrial capitalist reasoning of relocation, by arguing that people are likely to change their lifestyles about how they receive material possessions. From here it is prudent that the African Americans being that low in the society will not find it easy to change their life. The whites are in fool possession of the materials and may be able to change their lifestyle. Parkin continues to argue, and this time, he draws his illustration close from the theory of conflict. He asserts that due to the limited resource availability, there is a likelihood of conflict arising from the struggle towards obtaining these resources from their natural settings. Every class in the society are striving to have full control of the resources even though the upper class tends to dominate the available resources. The low class and the African Americans, in this case, may also strive to have control of the resources and this results in a conflict between them and the middle class in the society.

This book provides intellectual and theoretical aspects that result from inequality arising from social discrimination and the emerging economic classes. There is urgency for any society to succumb to radical changes to ensure that social classes do not exist and that the citizens are peacefully coexisting. This literature will provide the researcher with instinctive models on which the society may be sidelined to and thereby gauge how to conduct the study.

Grusky David (nd) Social Stratification. Department of Sociology and Centre for the Study of Inequality, Uris Hall, Cornell University.

In this literature, David notes the level of racial classes and inequality in close relation to social stratification in the society. He defines that racism is a societal problem that defines classes and therefore preferred to specific goods and products. The society asserts that some goods can only be reached by some special classes. This sidelines the low class in the society that is not able to reach such powerful standards.

This book expounds more on the social stratification aspect. It stipulates and gives recommendations on the social systems. It discloses the aspect of different classes in the economy, and how they are aligned to the social strata. David then defines the different social classes and how they affect the economic systems in the society.

This literature is recommendable for this study, for it gives a clear view of the economic, social classes. It will enable the investigator to define the economic systems considering the diverse differences that have weakened the economy. It provides a conducive and non-biased environment for full implementation of a study.

Brantley, Carol et al., (2003). Class: Power. Privilege, and Influence in the United States.

In this book, Carol examines racism about classism. They stipulate that the society is classified into different economic aspects like income, educational background, and origin. According to them, classism is such an unfair system that confers individuals to some special classes. It assumes that the upper class is smarter and dominates the whole population. The upper class have control of the basic factors of production and therefore utilize the low class to make themselves richer.

This book is relevant in this current research in that it enables an investigator to define various views of classes that encamp the environment of the study. With this literature, the investigator will be able to appreciate the existence of different races in the society and therefore be able to conduct the study amicably.

Shils E. Deference. In: Jackson J A (ed.) Social Stratification. Cambridge University Press, New York. 1968.

Shils and Jackson outline the various theories and ideologies of inequalities, classism, and discrimination in the society. From the book, it is evident that social stratification like discrimination and classism in the society, majorly based on the socio-economic status of each household despite other factors playing an important role in the society. The book further clarifies power as a function of a class determined by economic factors. Wealth and affluence of economic resources as social stratification pushes one to the top having more power and authority than those in the middle and lower class. Such classes bring about divisions hence discrimination among the people in the society.

It's also noted in this book that those who are of a low class or in case of racial discrimination, those coming from the unpopular communities are disadvantaged over the people from upper class and also from popular and favored communities. Those who are poor will become the subjects of the rich since they will be working for them to get the income they can use to earn a living. The upper-class people are the ones controlling most of the resources.

This book is very important in carrying out such researches and should be adopted in the world libraries since it contains a wide range of important topics that talk exhaustively on the matters of social stratification and majorly the racial and class discrimination.

Taeuber, Karl E, Larry L. Bumpass, and James A. Sweet. Social Demography. Burlington: Elsevier Science, 2013.

This book explains the effects of social stratification and majo...