Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 10.djvu/185

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CONCEPTS AND METHODS OF SOCIOLOGY 173

gious or political liberty, and its consequence is that exceeding heterogeneity of the demotic composition which is seen, for example, in the population of the United States.

There are, thirdly, the processes of internal equilibration. First among these is the differentiation of the mind of the popu- lation, consequent upon some degree of unlikeness and inequality in the responses of differing individuals to the common stimuli to which all are subjected. This is followed by the segregation of resembling products into types and classes. Secondly, there is an evolution of the consciousness of kind, with increasing attention to means of communication and association. Thirdly, there is a struggle between strong individuals and weak, between leaders and followers, between strong and weak classes. This equilibration may take one of three possible forms : ( i ) the sub- jugation and perhaps the enslavement of the weak by the strong; (2) economic exploitation; (3) the uplifting of the weak by the strong through education, justice, and economic aid. The moral advance of society is a progress from equilibration through subjugation and exploitation to equilibration through uplifting, and it depends upon the broadening and deepening of the con- sciousness of kind.

A fourth phase of internal equilibration appears in the strug- gle among differing groups of the like-minded in the community. Some elements of the population are sympathetically emotional, or are alike in beliefs or dogmas. Others are alike intellectually, rationally : they attain agreement through deliberation. In every community the reasoning and the unreasoning elements are in perpetual conflict.

To the extent that the community is controlled by its deliber- ative element, it exhibits a policy a more or less consistent attempt consciously made to control its destiny. In the history of human society there have been three great groups of policies, namely: (i) policies of unification attempts to make all mem- bers of the community alike in type, in belief, and in conduct; (2) policies of liberty attempts to give wide scope to indi- vidual initiative; (3) policies of equality attempts to prevent the disintegration of society through an excess of individual