THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL ELITES

In: International social science bulletin, Band 8, Heft 3, S. 413-424

Abstract

Technically a soc elite is a stratum of a pop occupying a position of superiority & influence. The superiority may rest on tradition, on special acquired skills & talents, & on a general body of skills & talents of all kinds. An elite is characterized by corporateness, exclusiveness, & always refers to a plurality of people. Its superiority must be of a very generalized kind extending beyond the mere possession of wealth or of educ, for example. In addition, the superior quality of elites must be imitable & worth imitating. It functions as a model & standard of what is proper & preferable in its society. Even specialized elites, as an elite of wealth, tends to set generalized standards, say, as regards moral, & pol'al beliefs. The imitableness may refer to these spill-over qualities rather than to the special quality giving origin tothe elite. A society may contain a number of elites. These may fall into a hierarchy. When they do not, their mutual rivalries & conflicting ideals may become a crucial problem. A gov class is not by itself the. pre-eiminent elite. Most interesting in the study of elites is their process of emergence. Elites tend to become rigid 4 thus, carry the seeds of their own decay. The cycle of transformation from growth to rigidity or from vitality to decay in a society may be studied indirectly through the study of elites. B. J. Keeley.