ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the nature of stratification in South Africa, the extent to which it underlies conflict, and the major dimensions of that conflict. Interpretation of stratification and inequality as sources of conflict will be related to one’s views on the nature and causes of conflict. The economic, cultural, and political dimensions of conflict may coincide in some plural societies, and run counter to one another in others. The debate about causes of conflict in South Africa and about the nature of apartheid has been consistently oversimplified in relation to race, ethnicity, class, nationalism, language, and religion. The objective conditions of inequality make it clear that South Africa is a highly stratified society, characterized by intense structural and institutional injustice and violence. We need to look at both the objective, structural conditions of inequality and the subjective aspects such as relative deprivation, to understand conflict and violence in South Africa.
