Social stratification and political sphere: the role of power and state in structuring the society

What role does the state play in structuring the society, and does it affect the type of the established social stratification? To answer these questions, the author analyzes the modern theories of social stratification: P. Sorokin’s theory, Marxism and Neomarxism, Weberianism and Neoweberian, structural functionalism, and the theory of fields and capitals by P. Bourdieu. Thus, the purpose of this study is to analyze the ways of conceptualizing the political sphere, power and the state in the theories of social stratification. It is shown that the role of the state and the political sphere differs in the transition from one theory to another. The Weberian and Neo-Weberian models of social stratification pay less attention to these phenomena. The political and powerful institutions and relations have the most important role to play in the modern theories of social stratification: statism, estates society and certain interpretations of the concept of P. Bourdieu. Based on the analysis, the main approaches to the role of the state in the stratification of society are systematized.