Britain is often described as an unequal society in terms of wealth and income. Social inequality from a sociological point of view means a lack of fairness between different groups of people living in society. The essay aims to explore the reasons behind the unequal distribution of wealth and income from a functionalist, Marxist and Weber point of view.
From a functionalist point of view, the unequal distribution of wealth and income in contemporary Britain is necessary for the survival of society. They would argue that all aspects of society, even poverty, contribute to Britain’s overall stability. Functionalists such as Davis and Moore argue that those who perform the difficult and important jobs are therefore entitled to more power, prestige and money. This motivates the most qualified people to exercise their talents in the most important social positions. However, this can be criticised because it is too difficult to determine the functional importance of any jobs. Nurses are an example of people who are not highly compensated and do not have notably high prestige, but who work long hours and are essential to maintaining society’s health. The high stress of their job and low incentives to do it contradict the theory of functionalism.
Another explanation of the unequal distribution of wealth and income is that the means of production is controlled by a small and powerful ruling class. Marxist sociologists argue that in a capitalist society, the bourgeoisies exploit the proletariat who work for them for less than what their labour is worth in order for them to achieve high incomes. The workers do not realise they are being exploited as they are paid enough to afford food and shelter thus the workers have a false consciousness that they are well off. In addition, the threat of poverty and unemployment motivates workers; this would make workers proud of