ABSTRACT
Social stratification, whatever its causes, hinges upon certain objective bases or marks—e.g., sex, age, birth, race, residence, achievement, and appearance—tangible pegs whereon are hung the more intangible realities of invidious discrimination. This chapter deals with marital selection only in this second sense, being primarily concerned with the interrelation between marriage and caste. It discusses the strange circumstance that despite the intimate dependence of caste stratification upon caste endogamy, intermarriage often occurs in caste societies, sometimes in the highly regularized form of hypergamy. A cardinal principle of every stratified social order is that the majority of those marrying shall marry equals. This rule can be called (according to the type of stratification involved) class, caste, or ständische endogamy. There are forces that oppose rank endogamy. But the principle that stratification in itself necessitates such endogamy remains firm. The chapter also explores actual caste societies and attempts to deal with glaring exceptions (such as hypergamy) which occur in them.
