What is a society? Is India a society?
In the previous post we examined what a community is, and we determined that India is indeed a community.
In this post let’s look into whether India is a society. To do that, we must define what a society is.
And the definition is:
A society is a group of people that are involved in persistent social interaction, and who have a number of things in common, such as:
- a shared social identity
- common motives and goals
- a common set of social values, norms, rules, and taboos
- an established system of governance
- an established system for the division of labor
A society is therefore a complex and organized community. The degree of complexity and organization varies from society to society.
So let’s examine whether India satisfies these criteria.
Do the people of India have a shared social identity?
Yes, they do. They are all Indians. They may live in different parts of India, they may speak different languages, some of them may practice foreign religions, but they all call themselves Indians. So, yes, the people of India do have a shared social identity.
Do the people of India have shared motives and goals?
Yes, they do. Their common motive and goal (for most of them, at least) is to live together in peace and harmony, to contribute some sort of value to society, and to work together for a better India, and a better world.
Do the people of India have a common set of social values, norms, rules, and taboos?
Yes, absolutely. It’s called Indian culture. Social values, norms, rules and taboos are not the entirety of Indian culture, but they are an important part of it.
Do the people of India have an established system of governance?
Yes, they do. India is a federal republic with a parliamentary democracy.
Do the people of India have an established system for the division of labor?
Division of labor is is the system of cooperative separation of tasks in a society. You see, everyone’s different. Some people are tall, some are short, some are physically strong, some are physically not so strong, everyone has different aptitudes, and different interests. Division of labor allows people to specialize in whatever they’re good at. So you have farmers, carpenters, tailors, masons, shopkeepers, doctors, teachers, soldiers, entertainers, poets, etc. Their interaction and cooperation gives rise to the economy.
So do the people of India have an established system for the division of labor? Yes, they do.
So, we find that India does indeed satisfy all these criteria. India is therefore indeed a society.
Originally published at http://indianinterest.com on June 20, 2019.
