“Discuss the concept of circulation of elite.” (2019)
Circulation of elites is Vilfredo Pareto’s term (The Mind and Society, 1916) for the constant movement of people into and out of ruling minorities, and for the replacement of one ruling minority by another. It is his theory of social change and his reply to Karl Marx’s linear history.
Elite and its circulation
- Elite: those with the highest “index” of ability in their branch of activity. They divide into a governing elite and a non-governing elite, with the non-elite mass below both.
- Individual circulation: able members of the masses rise and weak members of the elite fall, which keeps the elite vigorous.
- Collective circulation: a whole governing elite is displaced by a new one, peacefully or through revolution.
The mechanism
- Residues decide the type. Foxes (Class I, instinct for combinations) rule by cunning and bargaining. Lions (Class II, persistence of aggregates) rule by force and faith. In the economy the counterparts are speculators and rentiers.
- Degeneration. Elites that recruit by birth lose vigour, while superior elements accumulate below.
- Blocked or open circulation. An elite that co-opts talent survives. One that closes its ranks is overthrown, with the masses supplying the force for a change of masters.
- The cycle: a rigid lion elite is undermined by foxes; a decadent fox elite that shrinks from force falls to lions. In Pareto’s words, “history is a graveyard of aristocracies.”
Later extensions
- Gaetano Mosca (The Ruling Class) located change in new social forces entering the ruling class.
- T. B. Bottomore (Elites and Society, 1964) tied circulation to class structure, education and elections rather than residues.
Indian illustrations
- Village level: André Béteille (Caste, Class and Power, 1965) showed power in Sripuram moving from Brahmin landowners to non-Brahmin leaders through the party and the panchayat.
- National level: in the 2024 Lok Sabha, OBC and upper-caste representation were equal at 26% for the first time.
- Blocked circulation: 31% of Lok Sabha members come from political families (Association for Democratic Reforms, 2025), the closure Pareto warned about.
Limits
- Residues cannot be measured and are inferred from the behaviour they explain.
- The concept tracks changes of personnel and neglects economic structure and the agency of the masses.
Conclusion
Circulation of elites offers a dynamic account of stability and change: power stays with minorities, but which minority holds it keeps changing. In democracies elections have largely made that change routine rather than revolutionary, which fits Pareto’s pattern but weakens his psychological explanation.