Social
class
When studying social classes, the question naturally arises:
Is it possible for people to move within a society's stratification system? In
other words, is there some possibility of social mobility, or progression from one social level to another? Yes, but the
degree to which this is possible varies considerably from society to society.
On the one hand, in a closed society with a caste
system, mobility can be
difficult or impossible. Social position in a caste system is decided by
assignment rather than attainment. This means people are either born into or
marry within their family's caste; changing caste systems is very rare. An
example of the rigid segregation of caste systems occurs today in India, where
people born into the lowest caste (the “untouchables”) and can never become
members of a higher caste. South Africa also has a caste system.
On the other hand, in an open society with a class
system, mobility is
possible. The positions in this stratification system depend more on achieved
status, like education, than on ascribed status, like gender.
A social class is a group of people of similar status,
commonly sharing comparable levels of power and wealth. In sociology, social
classes describe one form of social stratification. When a society is organized
by social classes, as opposed to by castes, it is theoretically possible for
people to attain a higher status than the status with which they started. This
movement is possible because social classes are not based on birth but on
factors such as education and professional success. For example, someone born
into a low-income family can achieve a higher status through education, talent,
and work, or perhaps through social connections. A society organized according
to social classes, then, allows for some social mobility.
When
sociologists talk of social class, they refer to a group of individuals who occupy a similar
position in the economic system of production. Within that system occupation is very important because it
provides financial rewards, stability and benefits like healthcare. Are people
in similar positions, aware of each other? In broad terms, yes. Get information (cues) by type of job,
neighborhood, clothing, cars, etc. Also get information by conversation –
topics, style, grammar etc. Can people mislead or be misled? Of course. Is there a point of view specific to
social class? Middle class values? Working class values? and The upper class values?
The lower class is typified by poverty, homelessness, and
unemployment. People of this class, few of whom have finished high school,
suffer from lack of medical care, adequate housing and food, decent clothing,
safety, and vocational training. The media often stigmatize the lower class as
“the underclass,” inaccurately characterizing poor people as welfare mothers
who abuse the system by having more and more babies, welfare fathers who are
able to work but do not, drug abusers, criminals, and societal “trash.”
The working class are
those minimally educated people who engage in “manual labor” with little or no
prestige. Unskilled workers in the class—dishwashers, cashiers, maids, and
waitresses—usually are underpaid and have no opportunity for career advancement.
They are often called the working
poor. Skilled
workers in this class—carpenters, plumbers, and electricians—are often called blue collar workers.
They may make more money than workers in the middle class—secretaries,
teachers, and computer technicians; however, their jobs are usually more
physically taxing, and in some cases quite dangerous.
The middle class are the “sandwich” class. These white
collar workers have more money than those below them
on the “social ladder,” but less than those above them. They divide into two
levels according to wealth, education, and prestige. The lower middle class is
often made up of less educated people with lower incomes, such as managers,
small business owners, teachers, and secretaries. The upper
middle class is often made up of highly educated
business and professional people with high incomes, such as doctors, lawyers,
stockbrokers, and CEOs.
Lastly about upper class. This class divides into two
groups: lower‐upper and upper‐upper. The lower‐upper class includes
those with “new money,” or money made from investments, business ventures, and
so forth. The upper‐upper class includes those
aristocratic and “high‐society”
families with “old money” who have been rich for generations. These extremely
wealthy people live off the income from their inherited riches. The upper‐upper class is more
prestigious than the lower‐upper
class.
Wherever their money
comes from, both segments of the upper class are exceptionally rich. Both
groups have more money than they could possibly spend, which leaves them with
much leisure time for cultivating a variety of interests. They live in
exclusive neighborhoods, gather at expensive social clubs, and send their
children to the finest schools. As might be expected, they also exercise a
great deal of influence and power both nationally and globally.
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