What Social Classes Owe to Each Other

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"What Social Classes Owe to Each Other" is an 1883 collection of essays by sociologist William Graham Sumner that argues for limited government, individual responsibility, and laissez-faire economics in the relations between social classes.


Statements (40)
Predicate Object
instanceOf book
essay collection
argumentType normative social and political argument
associatedWith Yale University (through author)
author William Graham Sumner
countryOfOrigin United States
genre political philosophy
social theory
sociology
hasAuthorOccupation economist
social theorist
sociologist
hasPart series of essays
historicalContext Gilded Age United States
influencedBy classical liberalism
laissez-faire economic thought
intendedAudience general educated public
language English
mainSubject class relations
individual responsibility
laissez-faire economics
liberalism (classical)
limited government
social classes
social obligations
welfare state criticism
mediaType print
notableIdea the forgotten man
philosophicalTradition classical liberalism
social Darwinism (often associated)
positionOnClassDuties argues classes owe each other justice not charity
positionOnEconomy supports laissez-faire economics
positionOnGovernment advocates limited government
positionOnIndividual emphasizes individual responsibility
positionOnIntervention warns against paternalistic government intervention
positionOnRedistribution opposes extensive wealth redistribution
positionOnRights stresses equal rights before the law
positionOnStateAid critical of state-sponsored welfare
publicationYear 1883
timePeriodDescribed 19th-century industrial society

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
William Graham Sumner
William Graham Sumner
notableWork

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