ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the conditions under which local systems should be seen as bounded; that is, the conditions under which smaller systems are more relevant than larger systems. It deals with Immanuel Wallerstein, follow with an alternative vision that is widely held, and proposes a framework that encompasses both of them. The chapter presents some tentative generalizations about small, bounded stratification systems. Wallerstein called attention to the world-wide division of labor created with the spread of capitalism. He points out that there are few if any modern social systems that encompass all the productive activities crucial to their survival. The chapter argues that Max Weber's three dimensions of stratification -- class, power and status -- are characteristically operative in systems of different sizes. The bald assertion is that class is an international phenomenon, power a national one, and status a feature of local systems; and that these three types of stratification are distinguishable for the purposes of analysis.
