Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 5.djvu/742

 726 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

and the theater of social pleasures, becomes the " home " of the individual. He is no longer the inhabitant of a small piece of ground, but the resident of the city — in short, a "citizen."

Another important result of this development of economic and social relations is the influence upon social manners and cus- toms. Language has here recorded the accumulated experience of the race with great accuracy. The Latin homo rusticus and homo urbanus,w\i\z\\ indicate the contrast betweent he city- and country- bred, were also used to describe the difference between the boor- ish, the unrefined, the vulgar and the cultured, the polished, the courteous. The influence of city life upon the individual took some time to make itself felt in the cities of the earliest historic time. The principle of social imitation already referred to shows itself with peculiar force in the growth of the customs, forms, and ceremonials which constitute the outward signs of the refining of social relations. The great landowners, who were as a rule the heads of the oldest families of the town — those who were regarded as the founders of the city — were the first to develop the more refined forms of social intercourse. They were at the same time the political leaders, a fact which gave to all their actions additional prestige and authority. To appreciate the influence of such leaders we need but glance at the condi- tions of social life in modern society. Each class — in fact, every social set within each class — has its leaders, those who set the standards of social intercourse. The constant search for "the thiftg to do," the uncertainty as to whether a particular form is correct until sanctioned by a social leader, is one of the most interesting illustrations of the law of social imitation. The attempt of each class to imitate the forms of social intercourse of that just above it often appears to be one of the great weak- nesses of human nature. Viewed from the sociological stand- point, however, it is one of the great forces making for progress. Its influence as a unifying force extends far beyond the limits of the city. Social classes in different cities are constantly taking from one another new standards of conduct and intercourse. This is particularly true of the relation of the capital city to provincial towns. Thus in ancient times the customs of the