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The son also rises : surnames and the history of social mobility / Gregory Clark [and 11 others].

by Clark, Gregory, 1957-

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Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, c2014.

Social mobility -- History.

9780691162546 (hardcover : acid-free paper) :

0691162549 (hardcover : acid-free paper)

Princeton economic history of the western world.

xii, 364 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Preface -- Introduction: of ruling classes and underclasses : the laws of social mobility -- Social mobility by time and place -- Sweden : mobility achieved? -- The United States : land of opportunity -- Medieval England : mobility in the feudal age -- Modern England : the deep roots of the present -- A law of social mobility -- Nature versus nurture -- Testing the laws of mobility -- India : caste, endogamy, and mobility -- China and Taiwan : mobility after Mao -- Japan and Korea : social homogeneity and mobility -- Chile : mobility among the oligarchs -- The law of social mobility and family dynamics -- Protestants, Jews, gypsies, Muslims, and copts : exceptions to the law of mobility? -- Mobility anomalies -- The good society -- Is mobility too low? : mobility versus inequality -- Escaping downward social mobility -- Appendix 1: Measuring social mobility -- Appendix 2: Deriving social mobility rates from surname frequencies -- Appendix 3: Discovering the status of your surname lineage -- Data sources for figures and tables -- References -- Index.

How much of our fate is tied to the status of our parents and grandparents? How much does this influence our children? More than we wish to believe! While it has been argued that rigid class structures have eroded in favor of greater social equality, The Son Also Rises proves that movement on the social ladder has changed little over eight centuries. Using a novel technique -- tracking family names over generations to measure social mobility across countries and periods -- renowned economic historian Gregory Clark reveals that mobility rates are lower than conventionally estimated, do not vary across societies, and are resistant to social policies. The good news is that these patterns are driven by strong inheritance of abilities and lineage does not beget unwarranted advantage. The bad news is that much of our fate is predictable from lineage. Clark argues that since a greater part of our place in the world is predetermined, we must avoid creating winner-take-all societies. -- Taken from the book jacket.

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