Exam 22: Cumulative Essay Questions

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Some relevant points that could be included in student responses are as follows. The corporate elite require a high level of internal cohesion as a tight "business community" and extensive reach into political and civil society to maintain the support for their hegemonic world view. Classically, elite cohesion was maintained through forms of closure, creating strong ties among the elect few and barriers to entry for the rest of society. This included exclusive clubs and private schools, dominantly male. Aristocratic forms of closure have become culturally archaic and recent decades have seen this trend accelerate within the elite itself. Furthermore, neoliberal globalization has brought moral reform within, emphasizing greater diversity and openness in service of improved competitiveness. The corporate elite have become less monocultural, less patriarchal and less petrified. However, its ethnic and general composition still contrasts sharply with that of the general population. Moreover, educational credentials are now more important than memberships to exclusive clubs. All of these shifts have modernized the face of Canadian corporate capital and provided for a business leadership that is more in tune with contemporary society.

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Ideology plays a key role in perpetuating inequality, as the power of the elites is not repressive in a direct sense. That is, consent of the ruled by the rulers needs to be created and it needs to be maintained. To a large extent, based on our analysis of individualism and its broad support, we can assert that in fact the ideas of the ruling class have been adopted by all. In Gramsci's terms, they have become hegemonic. However, the role of ideology is not only restricted to social class. It is important that students highlight the important of ideology as it applies to gender (dominant notions of gender such as hegemonic masculinity and femininity) as well as notions of tolerance (or intolerance). Finally, ideology comes to play in the educational system. Following Bourdieu's notion of cultural capital, students should discuss the way that the education system serves to reproduce the values of the dominant class by rewarding those values in the classroom.

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Mobility is the ability to move between stations in life. Different forms of mobility include inter- and intragenerational mobility. Intergenerational mobility refers to changes in your occupation, wealth, or education, etc. relative to your parents. Intragenerational mobility refers to movements between these same positions within one's lifetime. Mobility is an important concept because it is generally held to be an indication of the fairness or openness of a society. Canada is generally an open society; however, there are several instances of immobility. Students should indicate that parental education, income, and occupation are all good indicators of your social class and your occupational status. In this respect, class advantages do not determine life chances, but they certainly impact them.