As soon as primitive people began to unite to make it easier to survive and safer to hunt, they began to create a social space. There was no society at that time, all people belonged to some tribe or clan, at the head of which there could be a leader (the best hunter) or a shaman.
With the development of mankind and its spread on the planet, new social forms of relationships between people were formed.
Types of space
There are two types of space in the world:
- physical, which is an objective form of real matter and can exist even in the absence of civilization;
- the social space is a product of the relationship of people and the values that they create, both material and spiritual.
The second type can be analyzed only from the perspective of the formation of the world history of mankind within the framework of the economic, material and temporary territory in which it took place. For example, the development of social space during the primitive system was extremely slow, although this type of community lasted tens of thousands of years.
The study of the surrounding material world for people has always been associated with the gradual development of the area, and the impact on it was carried out through labor, for example, hunting, fishing, the construction of primitive dwellings, the domestication of wild animals.
Everything that people have done throughout the history of mankind has had an impact on the physical space, improving and expanding the social.
Social space in slave society
Primitive people gathered in communities and tribes, which were based on kinship or other types of ties. Often they did not even suspect that besides them there was still some physical space inhabited by other people.
It is precisely because of their isolation and fear of leaving their territories that the social space of that system has been developing so slowly. With the advent of class differences, the people's living zone began to expand, cities and towns began to form, wars were waged for land and slaves.
At the same time, all communities developed their own cultural and religious values, primitive technical devices appeared, for example, sewage and water supply. People began to travel long distances, adopt the inventions seen in other cities and countries, and trade. Thus developed the slave system, which was based on class differences.
During this period, not only the social space developed rapidly, but also the political and economic. Peoples exchanged their cultural values, scientists shared scientific discoveries, merchants paved new ways for the sale of goods - this is how the historical space was formed.
At the same time, people did not subjugate the world around them, but on its basis formed a new environment controlled by them and subject to them.
Social space of the Middle Ages
When the feudal system replaced the slave system, all types of space expanded even more and began to interact more closely. If earlier some states were isolated due to geographical or climatic conditions and did not participate in general historical and social events, then in the Middle Ages interstate cooperation began. It was decided not only to conduct trade between countries, but also to compete in the field of scientific discoveries and new lands. One of the ways to strengthen the historical space was through marriages between the ruling royal houses.
As can be seen from the examples in the development of human civilization, in the most powerful countries, the social space has the largest borders and a high level of development of culture and economy. But even during the Middle Ages, a common historical zone was not yet formed, however, the geographical boundaries were determined as the discovery of America, India and other countries. People realized that they are part of a common physical space for all.
Social space nowadays
As technological progress grew, the formation of social space began to take place at the planet level through the unification of countries into a single world market. Production in various countries became dependent on the supply of raw materials and finished products to each other. The discovery of the New World, the settlement of Australia and other regions of the planet expanded the spread of civilization and its cultural values, which, in turn, brought the social space beyond Europe and Asia.
All these processes often went painfully for other peoples, which is clearly seen from the history of the Spanish conquest of Peru, when the ancient Inca civilization was destroyed. But, on the other hand, these countries have received numerous scientific and technological advances that have accelerated their progress.
Today, the market has become even more integrated. In one country they can grow raw materials, in another they can process them, and in the third they can produce the final product. Countries have become interdependent, especially with regard to energy natural resources. Under such conditions, social space for the first time in the entire period of development of mankind has found a unified historical, geographical, economic, legal and cultural territory on a global scale.
Classification of social space
Since social space is a product of the vital activity of people and their being on the physical plane, it can be classified according to several indicators:
- Firstly, by the perception of reality, which can be both subjective and objective. The main mechanism for studying the world around it becomes either an individual attitude towards it, or the interaction of collectives consisting of individuals united by a single look at it.
- Secondly, by its duality. Social space exists both at the physical and social levels, which is manifested in the consumption of natural goods of the surrounding reality and at the same time, their redistribution among the people living in it.
Thus, reflection at the subjective and objective level is two sides of the same space. It also means that without the use of the physical plane, the social cannot exist.
The concept of socio-economic space
As the historical experience of the existence of human civilization shows, the world developed unevenly. Some countries quickly grew rich or became huge empires, capturing other people's territories, others disappeared from the face of the Earth or assimilated with an alien culture of conquerors.
At the same time, accordingly, the socio-economic space also developed unevenly, which means a territory saturated with numerous economic, industrial and energy facilities.
Previously, the difference in the level of development was noticeable more, while in the modern world, many countries have combined their natural, technical and human resources. The constant exchange of technology and communications, the introduction of unified banking systems, the adoption of legal laws protecting the rights of people, and much more - all this contributed to the fact that the number of rich and highly developed countries prevails over the poor, which was not 200-300 years ago.
An excellent example is the European Union, which not only united economically and geographically the countries of Europe, but also successfully cooperates with such developed countries as China, Japan, the USA, Canada and others.
The concept of social time
Calendar time exists regardless of the presence of people in it. Before their appearance, days were replaced at night, the ebb tides, nature "died" and reborn when the seasons changed, and this will happen if humanity disappears.
Social space and time, on the contrary, are associated exclusively with the activities of people in different historical periods. If primitive people did not have the concept of time, and the date of birth could be remembered only in connection with any event, such as a fire or flood, then it is already about 500 years BC. e. they become aware of its transience and relevance to their lives.
It was during this period over the course of several centuries that as many philosophers, scientists, poets, artists and politicians were born as there were not several tens of thousands of years before. Time began to acquire a social and historical character.
His speed also changed. What was previously considered lengthy, such as travel, delivery of goods or mail, is happening rapidly in the modern world. Today, people know the price of time and correlate it not only with the duration or transience of their lives, but also with their success, usefulness and significance.
“Inclusion” of a person in social space
Those structures that a person creates in the social space are considered to be its content. These can be groups of a different nature:
Unstable, combined randomly or intentionally for a short period, for example, spectators in a cinema.
- Medium stable, interacting for quite a long time, for example, students of the same class.
- Sustainable communities - peoples and classes.
“Inclusion” of people in any category forms a social space in which they exist in a given period of time. A person cannot avoid interacting with all social institutions (state, family, army, school and others), since he is a social being.
Culture and social space
Socio-cultural space is an environment in which people create, preserve and enhance spiritual and material values. It is filled with objects of human activity created over the entire period of its existence.
The spiritual values include folk customs, folklore, religion and the relationship of people from different countries at the level of politics, culture and education.
