Concept in Definition ABC

The word estate is related to the notion of social division as well as that of social classes. The estate could be described as a set of individuals who share certain characteristics (more than anything, their relationship with the systems of production and with the economic activities that they carry out) and that differ, therefore, from the rest of the groups that make up a society.

When talking about estates, it is important to point out that they exist from the moment they that the human being organized in society and established different activities or tasks for each individual. In this sense, the division by classes or social groups has always been present in the history of the human being, despite the fact that in some historical moments its brand was stronger than in others.

The estates that make up a society are organized in a natural way as a result of the establishment of certain relationships of hierarchy and power to each other. In this sense, the estates assume the existence of more 'important' people than others who are dedicated to tasks equally more important or traditionally considered more relevant, usually those that have to do with the

government, the administration, the religion, etc.

The social classes are structured in a pyramidal form, occupying the top those that are composed of fewer members and that possess greater power. As the social classes approach the pyramidal base, the greater their number of members and the less their importance or power when it comes to decide relevant issues for the functioning Social. In general, those who have been at the base of any society have always been those who performed productive tasks, such as slaves, peasants or workers.

Although today the notion of clearly divided estates no longer exists so strongly, it is inevitable to recognize social differences between those social groups that have better living conditions (as a result of their material goods, their training professional, etc.) and those who do not have all the basic rights assured and who can hardly climb the social pyramid to the higher echelons.

Issues in Estate