Category of prestige in the context of status of individuals and families in the free world and in totalitarian regimes

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of the criteria for achieving and recognizing the prestige and respectability of a person and the family with their striking differences in democratic societies and totalitarian regimes. In the presence of all the social grounds guaranteed by the legal state and equal opportunities for everyone to realize their own personal potential, individuals are enthusiastically involved in building their own special way of achieving well-being. As for the dictatorial formations, which are often still ideologically based on Marxist intolerant and, ultimately, false archaisms regarding the "expropriation of the expropriators", the hypocritically respectful attitude towards those loyal to the ruling circles and loyal to the "line of leadership" is still relevant in the consciousness and subconsciousness of the society. Such representatives of the nation are perceived by the majority of the population as an object of special respect and honor.  The author emphasizes that the bearer of social prestige is the person himself, who is endowed in the public consciousness (of the entire society or individual groups) with greater or lesser social prestige. And the more numerous such groups are, the greater the number of such persons, towards whom the majority of citizens sincerely and without any fear and pressure from the outside, treats them with all respect, recognizes their authority and honors them; the less reason there is to consider such a society undemocratic, authoritarian or totalitarian. At the same time, the majority of the society mostly appreciate intentions, purity and nobility of aspirations of such authoritative and respectable people. But there are also those for whom the ability of a person to achieve a positive result in some specific significant action comes to the fore.