What does Sumner's view on social classes imply about individual obligations?

Sumner's view on social classes emphasizes a perspective of individualism and minimal obligation between different social classes. He argued that society operates in a natural order where individuals achieve or fail based on their own merits. This implies that individuals are not inherently obligated to support one another across social lines, aligning with the idea that they owe each other nothing. According to Sumner, social classes arise naturally, and this naturalism suggests that any support or obligation would emerge only from individual choice rather than a societal mandate.

The other choices suggest a stronger sense of mutual obligation among social classes. While the ideas of owing everything or supporting each other financially imply a cooperative or interdependent society, Sumner would contest these views based on his belief in individual responsibility and competition as drivers of social progress. The notion of working together for social change also contradicts his perspective, as he favored the notion that social progress would occur through individual effort rather than collective obligation.