It is often argued that American society is a meritocracy in which every individual has an equal opportunity to succeed. From this perspective, those individuals who have talent and work hard end up in higher social classes; those individuals without much talent and who don't work hard end up in the lower social classes. Each generation has a new chance to succeed, regardless of how well its parents did. The merit of individuals, then, would explain why society is unequal.

Basing yourself on the sociological arguments, data, and evidence we have studied so far this semester (not your personal opinions or experience), make an argument as to whether--or to what extent--our society is, indeed, such a meritocracy. What would be the position of Marxists and functionalists on this issue?

You must address all of these issues in order to get full credit for the essay. You must provide evidence in the form of data and citations from the course material to substantiate your points. Do not wander off into a discussion of your own personal opinions and experiences. You must not substitute an exploration of your own views for an engagement with the material we are studying. Students who do so will receive zero credit for this part of their essay.

Required sources

In answering this question, you must make use of the articles by Lareau, Anyon, Engels, and Davis and Moore. You may also make use of other material covered in the class. You may not use anything other than the readings, activities, lectures, etc. covered in this course to write your essay.

Required concepts
Below is a list of concepts that you must use in writing your essay. The concepts must be used in an accurate and meaningful manner. When you use a concept in the essay, highlight it in bold.
Social structure
Marxism
Social institutions
Functionalism
Socialization
Social mobility
Class
Cultural capital
Organic solidarity
Social capital
Length and other expectations

Your essay should be 1500 words (or more). It must be clear, well-written, thorough, and thoughtful. You must use proper grammar and spelling. You may make use of any of the assigned readings, activities, and lecture material.

Citations
You are not required to use formal citations, such as APA, MLA, Chicago Manual, etc., for this essay, although you can if you so wish. However, you must indicate the sources from which you are getting the evidence, data, arguments, and quotes you use. To do so, simply put the author(s) last name and page number in parentheses at the end of the sentence—e.g. (Perucci and Wysong 15). If you are drawing on a PowerPoint, just put the title of the PowerPoint in parentheses--e.g. (Functionalism and Inequality PowerPoint)

It is often argued that American society is a meritocracy in which...