Max Weber Marginalization

Marginalization refers to the actions or tendencies prevailing in societies whereby groups or persons without desirability or function are excluded from the prevalent systems of protection and integration, limiting their social mobility and means for survival. Iris Young defines marginalization as a process in which “a whole category of people is expelled from useful participation in social life and thus potentially subjected to severe material deprivation and even extermination” (53). Marginalization is thus the act of relegating or confining a group of people to a lower social standing or outer limit or periphery of society. Marginalization has far reaching connotations in sociological, economic and political debates. Marginalization

According to Max Weber, power is the chance of a man or of a number of men to realize their own will in a communal action even against the resistance of others who are participating in the action. Max Weber has used the term “Institutional Power” which has social approval and prestige and which is considered legitimate on the basis of the norms and values of the society ( Krieger 199). It is this “Institutional Power” which helps the dominant groups to discriminate and oppress the marginalized sections in society. Max Weber has divided power in to three interrelated spheres – economic, political and social. Power in economic, social and cultural spheres determines the social status of a group. The dominant group is that group which possesses power in all the three spheres. An individual or a group who has power in economic sphere will gain authority in other two spheres. The possession of power in other spheres leads to power in economic sphere also. Marginalized groups will be powerless in all these three spheres. Minority groups can transform into dominant group once they get hold of power in these spheres. Similarly, a dominant group can lose its social status and become a minority group, if it loses power. The minority position or status can thus be considered flexible. Minority or marginal groups possess certain distinct

Policies and political representations are meant to cater those in power, or those with power, and marginalized are therefore neglected. In every marginalized group there exists a hierarchy of inequality within that group, reflecting the degree of marginalization. This hierarchy depends on two factors - education and legal systems. The hierarchy is often based on the education of the group, their support structure and their financial power within their group at family, social level, and at the global levels. It also depends on the laws and safeguards in society that either aid or thwart the upliftment of marginalized groups. We have various forms of marginalization which may be either explicitly notable or implicitly subtle. Examples of subtle forms of marginalization include selective hiring in various industries, discrimination against candidates for employment on the basis of race, religion, nativity, sexuality, or on medical grounds in society. Blatant forms of marginalization include activities like targeting groups for violence, harsh criticism, the spreading of hatred and