| A society or more specifically - a human society - is a group of people related to each other through relationships that have a certain degree of persistence. A society could also be a social grouping which shares the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural norms and values.
Human societies are characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals who share a distinctive culture and social institutions. A society may be described as the sum total of such relationships among the member of the society. There are certain expectation within the membership of a society and if these expectations are not met them a society may fracture. Social scientist make observation about these relationships and expectations and help us o understand them.
Societies are social groups that differ according to subsistence strategies. Although humans have established many types of societies throughout history, anthropologists tend to classify different societies according to the degree to which different groups within a society have unequal access to advantages such as resources, prestige, or power.
Virtually all societies have developed some degree of inequality among their people through the process of social stratification. Stratification is the division of members of a society into levels with unequal wealth, prestige, or power. Social Scientist place societies in three broad categories: pre-industrial, industrial, and postindustrial. Many other classifications are possible.
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