n terms of understanding human

behavior and its constraints, nothing can

be more opposite than consensus and
conflict theory.
 onsensus theory stresses what
social groups have in common,
while conflict theory stresses the fact
that different groups in have widely
varying access to power and
wealth. In fact, their primary stress is
on completely opposite forms of human
action, making these forms the center
of all human society.
 ost social theory has historically
been based in notions of consensus.
Not until the 18th-century revolutionary
tradition did the essential idea of
conflict take center stage. Writers such
as Plato and Rousseau had stressed
means of avoiding conflict by
creating the ingredients for
consensus.
 nly when Marxist, anarchist and
racialist theories began to develop in
the middle of the 19th century did
notions of conflict replace those of
consensus in social theory. According
to such radical ideas, consensus was
impossible unless differences in power
and wealth were eliminated.
 onsensus revolves around culture.
Culture, in its most reductionist
definition, is the norms by which the
majority in a society have decided it
is useful to operate. Defenders of
culture hold that cultural norms exist
because they have withstood the test of
time and have proven themselves in
the arena of history.
 onflict theory attacks this approach
by holding that culture itself is the
creation of the privileged few.
 seeks to determine
what all people in
a society have in
common. This commonality
becomes the center of the public
persona of the society. The
consensus approach stresses the fact
that the reality of the consensus, that
single public persona, must predate the
actual articulation of that consensus.
In other words, it is both a social
reality and a means of
understanding that reality.
seeks to determine who,
why and how those with power have
imposed specific aspects of culture on
a society. According to conflict
theory, culture is the means by which
the powerful, who are those with wealth
or social status,
impose their will on society.
Ultimately, the powerful hope to make
“culture” seem like consensus, while in
reality, it is the creation of the
elite.
 oth conflict
and consensus
theory have
Substantial
difficulties.
Conflict theory
might be thought to lack an explanation
for how consensus has been
imposed on societies, and why it has
been generally accepted
sometimes for long periods.
 n the other hand, consensus
writers can be accused of forgetting
about how people in any given culture
are divided from one another and have
unequal access to the levers of power.
The powerful have access to
education, social prestige and
wealth that gives them tremendous
advantages in making sure their voice
is heard above the rest.
 oth consensus and conflict
theories ultimately exist to promote a
consensus. The real problem is what
kind, and under what conditions. The
conflict theorist, typically identified with
some sort of socialism, believes in
consensus as long as most people are
equal. But it is also clear that only
revolution and a revolutionary
party can make this happen.
 onsensus theorists hold that
history cannot be destroyed that easily,
and that people's very identities derive
from the traditional consensus that has
existed for a long time. Revolution
cannot change that.
 is an agreement made by a
group. An example of consensus is
when Republicans and Democrats
agree on language for a bill.
means generally accepted
opinion. An example of consensus is
most people believing that it is
wrong to kill another person.
 conflict theorists view the
relationship between a housing
complex owner and a tenant as
being based mainly on conflict
instead of balance or harmony, even
though there may be more harmony
than conflict.
 onsensus is a concept of society in
which the absence of conflict is seen as
the equilibrium state of society
based on a general
or widespread
agreement among
all members of a
particular society.
 onsensus theory contrasts sharply
with conflict theory, which holds that
social change is only achieved
through conflict.
Consensus theory is
concerned with the
maintenance or
continuation of
social order in
society.