Premium Essay

Social Class Essay

Submitted By
Words 476
Pages 2
According to the traditional definition, a class is usually defined as a group of people who occupy a similar position in the economic system. Based on this definition, sociologists suggest that there are currently three classes, which are upper class, middle and lower class. Besides the traditional definition of class, there are also different views on the actual definition of class. Karl Marx, a famous philosopher suggested a theory of class based on the premises that the ‘’history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.’’ According to him, there are two great classes, which are the owners and the workers. Owners or capitalists should have power over workers due to the fact that they paid waves to workers and could …show more content…
There are many variations and things happen in life that we can’t just label someone as this or that. If a person who is a CEO of a big company today end up losing his home and live on the street the next day, then what would we consider him as? I think both of these definitions are trying to make the concept as standard and simple as possible. Additionally, I think both of these definitions do play a role in the continuing discrepancy between the rich and poor. For a person who is labeled as lower class, he would have a hard time finding a job and gaining the respect he deserves compared to those who belong in the middle and higher class. Even though we say that we welcome people from different backgrounds and circumstances, the truth is that we will always look at those who are poor with different eyes, as if they are inferior or not worthy. Despite their similarities, there are also some differences between the two definitions. The definition of poverty was based solely on the concept of Mollie Orshanky in the mid-1960s with some adjustments for inflation here and there. Other the other than, rather than focusing on simply just one concept, the definition of class is a combination of different ideas and concepts of many different sociologists, such as Karl Marx, Max Weber and Joseph

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Social Class And Middle Class Essay

...Dear Professor Matthews and Classmates, Money is the one object or possession that drives our country and many others. But how does it affect us socially? Economic status’ lines are drawn quite deep, these groups are the upper class, the middle class, the working class, and the poor. The middle class and working class make up the majority of the United States. Income and wealth are the influences within these groups that fluctuates each section. When people hear the word income they take in mind one’s financial status. The word income is the money a person receives by working or transfer such as birthday gifts, inheritance from a grandparent or parent, and even government checks. Wealth on the other hand by definition is a person or family’s net worth. Wealth...

Words: 340 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

African American Social Class Essay

...People can immensely benefit from what social class an individual is positioned in, what race they are assigned, and what gender they identify as. According to Conley, social class, also called socioeconomic status, is “an individual’s position in a stratified social order” (2017 p.521). While social class is composed of any combination of parental education attainment, parental occupation, family income, and family wealth, someone’s social class can have a whopping impact on whether a child attains a decent amount of education in order to provide for oneself. Furthermore, students that come from an upper-class background are encouraged by parents to acquire a higher level of education. Likewise, this urges the students to challenge themselves...

Words: 586 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Assess the View That Social Class Differences in Educational Achievement Are the Results of School Processes Such as Labelling Essays and Term Papers

...In school factors can have a big impact on the social class differences in education achievement. However, it isn’t the only factor. In school factors include labelling; this is done by both students and teachers. Pupils will be labelled based on social class; a working class child is more likely to be labelled as ‘stupid’, and other degrading names. This labelling can lead to the self-fulfilling prophecy; this disadvantages them because the teacher is favouring other students. However, teachers are more likely to label a middle class child as smart, intelligent etc. Which makes them feel good and they achieve. This puts them at a starting advantage over their working class peers. Marxists would say this is creating inequality, and reproducing the ruling class ideology as they are above working class from an early age. Class size is also an in school factor; a small class means more one to one time with a teacher. Only middle class can afford public schools, and therefore have smaller class sizes and therefore are more likely to achieve more due to more time with the teacher. A middle class child is more likely to be placed in a higher set, as Bowles and Gintis says. This means they are more likely to be taught to a higher grade, which means they will perform better in the exam as they will be prepared for the exam. Some people may also argue that public schools have better teacher standards, only middle class can afford the public schools, which means they get this higher teaching...

Words: 345 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Persepolis Social Class Essay

...Jin Miung Kim Ms. Park English 10 10/28/30 Different Classes, Different Conditions “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status,” is what the Article 2 of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights stating. This statement tries to encourage people to dismiss any discrepancy between human beings and try to make a world where this statement comes as truth to everyone. However, this is not a solemn statement which has been violated in the past until now. As a contrast to the statement, there are many kinds of prejudice and discrimination ongoing around the world. One of the countries where this declaration is not considered as truth is Iran. Up until now, especially throughout the times of the Iranian Revolution, there were various intolerances in society based on gender, education, political opinion, and economical status and this has been practiced in several ways; however, there is Marjane Satrapi, a girl from a wealthy family who had become the living witness of these inequalities during the Iranian Revolution, who later wrote a book entitled Persepolis. In her book, she comments that these types of inequities should be improved. Marjane Satrapi let us know that In Iran, women and men were treated differently throughout the Iranian Revolution. During the times around the Iranian...

Words: 1422 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Social Class In America Essay

...American politics relates to the social class when looked at with three elements in mind of the socioeconomic status. Those three are income, education, and occupation. With income the ties are connected to economic issues. The lower making income voters tend to be more liberal on social welfare issues. The high income democrats are more likely to be liberal on economic issues similar to the low income democrats. With regard to education the better educated voters tend to more liberal on issues containing to race, abortion, gays, and gender. This also depends on a person’s background. Also might be more understanding in the modern day for what is acceptable in society. The class divides influences government in how it operates since the new deal era of the 1930’s. Thus leaving social class the main divider between parties. The higher income voters vote republican, the lower income poor and working class vote democratic. Labor has played a very big role in the democratic coalition. Unions tend to be effective in getting a group of their members to come out and vote which without the labor union otherwise would not have voted. Social and economic status is a well-known...

Words: 981 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Levi Strauss & Co

...2 Social-class microcultures in consumer behavior 2 Implications to marketing practitioners 3 Suggestion for Improvement 4 Conclusion 4 Reference list 5 Introduction Market nowadays is so rapid-constantly changing and so broad. Company needs to adapt to these characteristics of the market and also understanding the consumer’s behavior in the market for them to survive and outrun their competitors. This discussion would further examine the company, Levi Strauss (Levi’s), marketing strategy in the garment industry in the context of Malaysia and also suggestions would be given for improvements. Levi’s first entered into the garment industry in 1873 with the birth of the first pair of jeans. Levi’s has been improving since and now, it is one of the world largest brand-name and also a global leader in jeanswear, according to San Francisco(2014). After gaining reputation as well as high profit, they have been selling other garment products besides jeans, such as clothings, caps, belts, and so on. Social-class micro cultures in consumer behavior A social class is a huge group of people, who have a similar position in an economic system, said by Moffitt(2015). Differentiating, positioning, and targeting different social class plays an important role in marketing. Consumers from different social class have different behaviors as well as wants. According to Moffitt(2015), there are four main social class recognized by societies, which is upper class, middle class, working...

Words: 1481 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Class In America Summary

...Both essays, "Framing Class, Vicarious Living and Conspicuous Consumption" and "Class in America-2012" talk about misconceptions and poor portrayals of how gender, race and class affect everyday Americans. Kendall's article more heavily talks about how the media "typically takes the heaviest of topics, such as class and social inequality, and trivialize it" (pp.424). The media shapes our everyday culture, and we have come to believe that the only way to get ahead in America is to identify with the rich and shun the poor. The media has also socialized us to believe that upper classes are better than us, while the poor and homeless are blamed for their own problems and are typically portrayed s bums, alcoholics and drug addicts (pp.425-427)....

Words: 382 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

The Established & the Outsiders Essay

...& the Outsiders Essay Social structure can be represented in many ways and through many ideas, such as in a community or city. When two of them are compared to one another, there’s bound to be many similarities and differences between them. For instance, the area in and around Norwich University can be easily compared to the setting of the novel, The Established & the Outsiders. The novel is set at a place called Winston-Parva, a suburban area in the outskirts of a large and wealthy industrial town in central England. It had a population of less than 5000, but had its own industries, schools, churches, shops and clubs. The two authors, Elias & Scotson, conducted their study though the book and formed a social structure by categorizing the town into 3 different zones, 1, 2, and 3. Zone 1 was usually called a middle-class residential area, and most of its inhabitants regarded it as such. Zones 2 and 3 were working-class areas one of which, Zone 2, is where most of the industries were established. From this info alone one could assume that since Zone 2 and Zone 3 seem the same, the inhabitants of those zones think that as well. However, the novel states a survey that proves the previous assumption to be false: “A preliminary survey suggested that not only the middle-class inhabitants of Zone 1, but the working-class inhabitants of Zone 2 regarded themselves and their neighbourhood as superior in social status to those of Zone 3 and that the social barriers dividing...

Words: 344 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

30 Mark Paper- Sociology

...Social Inequality essay plans for Part b) 30 mark question Evaluate the usefulness of sociological explanations of ethnic inequalities.(30) Evaluate the view that society is institutionally racist (30) Adapt according to question given Introduction Ethnic inequalities are still significant in the UK – give a few examples. Suggest some explanations e.g Racism, Institutional racism, social class of ethnic minorities (Marxism), welfare dependency (New Right). This essay will identify and assess these explanations. AO1 Define types of Racism e.g Barker and new racism, institutional racism – McPhearson report on murder of stephen lawrence – racism in met police. Jenkins suggests recruitment to jobs is more word of mouth and disadvantages ethnic minorities. Modood 1994 28% of african caribbean people surveyed said they felt they had been refused a job on grounds of race. AO2 There are many government acts such as Race relations acts which should prevent discrimination AO2 However because racism is implicit (hidden) now it can be difficult to prove in court. AO1 Marxists such as Westergaard and Resler argue that race is a distraction from the real issue which is social class. It is capitalism which disadvantages certain groups and ethnic minorities are more likely to be in lower classes. AO2 However this ignores the existence of racism in society e.g in education where black boys have the highest exclusion rates in school. AO1 Another marxist explanation by Castles...

Words: 5292 - Pages: 22

Free Essay

A Cursed Love

...response. So, while we’ll try to clarify what we had in mind when framing a few of the knottier questions, we won’t be offering you a list of “right” answers. Instead, regard this manual as your personal support group. Since the publication of the first edition, we’ve had the chance to learn from the experiences of hundreds of instructors nationwide, and we’d like to use this manual as a forum where we can share some of their concerns, suggestions, experiments, and hints. We’ll begin with a roundtable on issues you’ll probably want to address before you meet your class. In the first section of this manual, we’ll discuss approaches to Rereading America and help you to think through your class goals. We’ll examine some options for tailoring the book to fit your interests and the time constraints of your term. We’ll also take up some pedagogical issues. We’ll offer advice on how to broach particularly hot topics in your class. We’ll explore in some detail how to get the most out of journal assignments and learning logs. And...

Words: 57178 - Pages: 229

Free Essay

Marxist Readind

...Introduction 2. Labov’s motivation for studying Sociolinguistics 3. Labov’s observations in Martha’s Vineyard 3.1 Geographical and historical basics of Labov’s studies 3.2 Repetition of the studies in 1961 by Labov 3.3 Labov’s explanation of the observations 4. Labov’s studies in New York 4.1 The Social Stratification of (r) in New York Department Stores 4.1.1 Preliminary Überlegungen 4.1.2 The experiment 4.1.3 The results of the department store study 4.2 Study of Lower East Side 4.2.1 The MFY Survey 4.2.2 The ALS (American Language Survey) 5. The meaning of Labov’s studies for modern sociolinguistics 6. Conclusion 1. Topic and Introduction The topic of this term paper are “Labov’s studies in New York and Martha’s Vineyard”. Labov’s observations in Martha’s Vineyard served Labov as a model for his Master’s essay and his observations in New York as a model for his dissertation. The second chapter will give a survey of William Labov’s motivation for studying sociolinguistics. Chapter 3 is about his observations in Martha’s Vineyard. After that I’ll give a detailed description of his studies in New York (chapter 4) divided up into the two parts: First, the social stratification of (r) in New York City Department Stores (4.1) and second The Lower East Side (4.2). These studies are Labov’s most famous works and two of his early publications. With his studies he created the base for a modern way of analysing language without using tape-recorded interviews (see also...

Words: 3380 - Pages: 14

Premium Essay

Crimes of the Powerful

...according to Marxists, the ruling ideas in a society are the ideas of the ruling class. The class that owns the means of production, also owns the means of mental production, thus the ruling classes inform and influence legislation and policy in order to reflect their ideologies. The term ideology is embedded from German philosophers, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles; such ideologies include the system of institutions such as family, churches, the education system, and mass media. The ideologies of the ruling class thus render the working class (proletariat) into conformity by persuading them that the interests of the capitalists (bourgeoisie) are also in the interest of the working class. These ideologies defend and uphold the social position of the ruling classes. Jeffery Reimen stated that, the rich get richer and the poor get prison, thus, as the laws reflect the ideologies of the ruling class, there cannot be equality before the law, as the law protects those who define it. This essay will demonstrate the issue of the justice system within capitalist societies and the effects of the law and policy formations that reflect the wishes and ideologies of the ruling class, while exploiting the poor. The broad theory of critical criminology also known as radical criminology, explores various theoretical perspectives, specifically Marxist criminology and labeling theory. In light of these perspectives, this essay will provide insight on the disproportionate and bias treatment of the criminal...

Words: 2781 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

Iah 241c

...Social Class Assignment Paper Structure: • Page 1: Cover sheet • Pages 2, 3, 4, and 5: The text of your paper - four full pages of text • Page 6: Bibliography Formatting Instructions: • Your cover sheet should provide your name and the title of your paper only; • Your title should be a creative one that you come up with yourself - allowing you to establish the tone for the paper that follows; • Provide citations for all quotes you take from the Kate Fox book (inc. page numbers), films, or TV shows, and for all references you make to events or incidents in the Fox book, films, TV episodes, and course lectures; • If using an e-version of Fox's book, you should provide the chapter number and section title from which a quote comes instead of page numbers; • Citations can be footnotes, endnotes, or in-text references, whichever format you're most familiar and comfortable with; • Your text should be double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font, with one inch page margins; insert page numbers in 'footers' bottom right; • Your thesis statement should be in bold or italicized. Assignment: Your task in this assignment - worth 20% of your course grade - is to analyze, outline, and explain the differences between the three social classes as they exist in Britain today, providing multiple examples from course materials to illustrate your argument. Social class in Britain is no longer based in the old, pre-World War II...

Words: 1416 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Using Material from Item a and Elsewhere, Assess Different Marxist Views of the Relationship Between Crime and Social Class.

...different Marxist views of the relationship between crime and social class. Marxism is a conflict structural theory which states that there is a division of labour between two social classes, the bourgeoisie and the proletariats, because of the existence, exploitation and reproduction of capitalism. Marxists explain how superstructures in society, such as religion, politics, media, education, law etc, act as agencies of control and serve the interests of the ruling class. Unlike functionalists, Marxists do not agree that there is a value consensus in society but instead state that the superstructures benefit the bourgeoisie and damage the lives of the proletariat. As Item A states, crime in society can be seen as a reaction against the unequal distribution of wealth through the social position they have been given. The essay will focus on the relationship between crime and social class in a Marxist perspective. The traditional Marxist approach to crime suggests that crime is inevitable because capitalism is criminogenic – crime is built in its very nature. The concept of capitalism is to create as much profit by paying low wages to the labourers which leads to many consequences. The exploitation rises poverty and material deprivation which means that crime may be the only option for working class members to survive. Utilitarian crimes are more likely to be committed by working class members than the ruling class because the materials they require many not be achievable in...

Words: 1384 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Paper1

...official or unofficial, to reach that end (Domhoff, 1990). In this essay, I aim at establishing and describing these processes as well as evaluating their impact on society. Concurrently, I shall evaluate and analyse this argument. Before establishing these strategies, I believe it is important that one be aware of what makes the corporate power elite and how it has managed to create a network or upper class and even corporate community network to determine domestic/national policy. Modern capitalist societies are not simply made of the upper class and corporate communities who as Domhoff argues, include all large income-producing property owners who also happen to control all the source of capital, thus constituting both a social and economic class (Domhoff, 2010: 7) at the top of the social hierarchy. There are also a variety of non-profit associations that are significant because they structure and determine the different discussions over public policy as well as the public opinion which, indeed, matters most to governments (Wetherley, 2008). Although they have been qualified of non-partisan or bipartisan due to the fact that they are neither associated with politics nor political parties and factions, they constitute in fact the real source of political power of the upper class because they ensure that the society is stable and that the effective compliance of the government (Wetherley, 2008). The upper class and corporations’ power over these major non-profit organizations...

Words: 2957 - Pages: 12