Zanikanie granic między klasami społecznymi. O potrzebie poszukiwania alternatywnych segmentacji społecznych

A description of borderland as a space can be inspiring for an analytical presentation of other social phenomena in which coexisting borderline categories occur. An example is social stratification within which different groups of individuals referred to as layers, castes or classes can be distinguished. Their character is arbitrary, resulting from a concern for the conventional, often not very distinctive interests of some social groups. Since the 19th century, the most widespread stratification system in Western societies has been the class system. However, its analytical value has been fading due to the blurring of boundaries between particular classes. The social classes, on the one hand, are subject to strong internal differentiation and are losing their previous cohesion, and on the other hand, they are becoming similar in many respects. Therefore there is a need to create an alternative and more analytically useful way of categorizing societies in contemporary social sciences. Segmentation based on the category of lifestyle seems valuable, because lifestyle is what, in a particularly important way, differentiates in the social dimension individuals forming contemporary Western societies. At the same time, this category is so capacious and distinctive that it can be analytically useful for representatives of various social sciences. The aim of the paper is, first of all, to present the structural foundation of class systems, secondly, to identify the reasons for the loss of their analytical value, and thirdly, to discuss the scientifically useful segmentation of society relating to different lifestyles.