Acquisition Quote by William Graham Sumner
“The class distinctions simply result from the different degrees of success with which men have availed themselves of the chances which were presented to them. Instead of endeavoring to redistribute the acquisitions which have been made between the existing classes, our aim should be to increase, multiply, and extend the chances.”
About This Quote
Source Book: What Social Class Means, 1914
Social class arises from differing success in exploiting opportunities; the solution is to expand chances, not redistribute wealth.
In simple terms: Class stems from opportunity use.
Key Takeaway
Increase opportunities for all.
Themes
inequality
opportunity
meritocracy
Mood
analytical
critical
Type
sociological
policy
When to use this quote
- education reform
- job training
- entrepreneurship programs
- public policy debates
Key Concepts
social mobility
economic policy
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we create more equal opportunities?
- What limits meritocratic mobility?
A Different Perspective
Expanding chances may not address systemic barriers.
![“Of all the hokum with which this country [America] is riddled, the most odd is the common notion that it is free of class distinctions.” quote by W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f53/w-somerset-maugham-237_america_of-all-the-hokum-with-which-this-country_2951060.jpg)
![“The yearning after equality [in economic outcome] is the offspring of envy and covetousness, and there is no possible plan for satisfying that yearning which can do aught else than rob A to give to B; consequently all such plans nourish some of the meanest vices of human nature, waste capital, and…” quote by William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9b4/william-graham-sumner-5011_can-do_the-yearning-after-equality-in-economic_454035.jpg)
![“No one suffers so much as he [the genius] with the people, and, therefore, for the people, with whom he lives. For, in a certain sense, it is certainly only "by suffering" that a man knows. If compassion is not itself clear, abstractly conceivable or visibly symbolic knowledge, it is, at any rate…” quote by Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/bec/otto-weininger-11319_acquisition_no-one-suffers-so-much-as-he-the-genius_20597.jpg)
