Difference between revisions of "Social class" - New World Encyclopedia

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[[Image:Pyramid of Capitalist System.png|thumb|right|250px|An ''Industrial Worker'' capitalist class critique]]
  
'''Social class''' refers to the [[hierarchy|hierarchical]] distinctions between individuals or groups in [[societies]] or [[cultures]]. Anthropologists, historians and sociologists identify class as universal, although what determines class will vary widely from one society to another. Even within a society, different people or groups may have very different ideas about what makes one "high" or "low" in the hierarchy.
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'''Social class''' refers to the hierarchical distinctions between individuals or groups in [[society|societies]] or [[culture]]s. [[Anthropology|Anthropologists]], [[history|historians]], and [[sociology|sociologists]] identify class as universal, although what determines class will vary widely from one society to another. Even within a society, different people or groups may have very different ideas about what makes one "higher" or "lower" in the hierarchy. Different defining characteristics have developed in societies around the world and have changed through history. Depending on the definition used, class can also be associated with [[social status]], or one's social position in a culture. Because of the vagaries of the word, the idea of social class has been the object of much study in fields such as sociology and [[economics]]. Some of the more famous theorists of class include [[Karl Marx]] and [[Max Weber]].
 
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Depending on the definition used, class can also be associated with social status, or one's social position in society.
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Despite the work of these intellectual heavyweights, the value of the notion of social class is still questioned as it becomes even more difficult to define in an increasingly fluid and [[globalization|globalized]] society. Beyond the problems in theoretical conceptualizations, the practical impact of social class on society is important. Any system that divides people and then assigns different values to the groups is inherently problematic in the establishment and maintenance of a harmonious society. If vertical divisions among people can connote no difference in value, only in role, experience, or responsibility in society, then social class may be considered a useful concept.
  
 
==Dimensions of social class==
 
==Dimensions of social class==
Class can be made manifest through many aspects of one's self. Some contributing factors include physical strength, [[age]], [[gender]], spiritual [[charisma]] and religious [[Vision (religion)|vision]]. Because different livelihoods are so closely intertwined in simple societies, [[morality]] often ensures that the old, the young, the weak, and the sick maintain a good standard of living despite low class status.
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Class can be manifested through many aspects of one's [[self]], one's [[family]], and one's [[lineage]]. However, in many societies [[morality]] often ensures that the old, the young, the weak, and the sick maintain a good standard of living despite low class status.
  
fluid notions such as [[race]] and [[sexual orientation]] can have widely varying degrees of influence on class standing.  Having characteristics of the majority ethnic group and engaging in [[marriage]] to produce [[offspring]] improve one's class status in most societies. But what is considered "racially superior" in one society may be exactly the opposite in another, and there have been societies, such as [[ancient Greece]], in which intimacy with someone of the same [[gender]] would improve one's social status so long as it occurred alongside opposite-gender marriage. Also a minority sexual orientation and, to a far lesser degree, minority ethnicity have often been faked, hidden, or discreetly ignored if the person in question otherwise attained the requirements to be high class. Ethnicity is still often the single most overarching issue of class status in some societies
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Having characteristics of the majority [[ethnic group]] and engaging in [[marriage]] to produce offspring improve one's class status in many societies. But what is considered "racially superior" in one society may be exactly the opposite in another, and there have been societies, such as [[ancient Greece]], in which intimacy with someone of the [[homosexuality|same gender]] would improve one's social status so long as it occurred alongside opposite-gender marriage. Also, a sexual orientation and, to a far lesser degree, minority ethnicity have often been faked, hidden, or discreetly ignored if the person in question otherwise attained the requirements of high class. Ethnicity is still often the single most overarching issue of class status in some societies.
  
As societies expand and become more complex, economic power will often replace physical power as the defender of the class status quo, so that [[profession|occupation]][[education]], [[Professional certification|qualifications], [[income]][[wealth]] or [[net worth]], [[ownership]] of land, property, and [[means of production]] will establish one's class much more so than physical power.  
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As societies expand and become more complex, economic power will often replace physical power as the defender of the class status quo, so that occupation, [[education]], qualifications, income, wealth, or net worth, ownership of land, [[property]], and means of production will establish one's class much more so than physical power.  
  
Those who can attain a power position in a society will often adopt distinctive lifestyles to emphasize their [[prestige]], and as a way to further rank themselves within the powerful class. In certain times and places, the adoption of these stylistic traits can be as important as one's wealth in determining class status, at least at the higher levels:
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Those who can attain a power position in a society will often adopt distinctive lifestyles both to emphasize their prestige and as a way to further rank themselves within the powerful class. In certain times and places, the adoption of these stylistic traits can be as important as one's wealth in determining class status, at least at the higher levels:
* [[costume]] and [[grooming]]
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* costume and grooming
* [[manners]] and cultural [[refinement]]. For example, [[Pierre Bourdieu|Bourdieu]] suggests a notion of high and low classes with a distinction between [[Bourgeoisie|bourgeois]] tastes and sensitivities and the [[working class]] tastes and sensitivities.
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* [[manners]] and cultural refinement: For example, [[Pierre Bourdieu]] suggested a notion of high and low classes with a distinction between [[Bourgeoisie|bourgeois]] tastes and sensitivities and the working class tastes and sensitivities.
* political standing vis-à-vis the church, government, and/or social clubs, as well as the use of honorary [[title]]s
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* political standing vis-à-vis the [[church]], [[government]], and/or social clubs, as well as the use of honorary titles
* [[reputation]] of honor or disgrace
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* reputation of honor or disgrace
* [[Language]], the distinction between elaborate code, which is seen as a criterion for "upper-class", and the restricted code, which is associated with "lower classes"
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* the distinction between elaborate [[language]], which is seen as a criterion for "upper-class," and restricted code, which is associated with "lower classes"
  
[[Image:NYTimes Class.jpg|thumb|250px|This graphic shows a definition of social class proposed by the New York Times, using quintiles as measurement for class. The information was based on US Census data from the 2000 Census as well as the 2003 Economic census survey. The graphic shows four different attributes which affect social class: professional prestige, educational attainment, income, and wealth.]]
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==International Social Class Models==
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Although class can be discerned in any [[society]], some [[culture]]s have published specific guidelines to rank. In some cases, the ideologies presented in these rankings may not concur with the power dialectic of social class as it is understood in modern English use.
  
==The Middle Class==
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For most of recorded human history, societies have been [[agriculture|agricultural]] and have existed with essentially two classes—those who owned productive agricultural land, and those who worked for landowners, with the landowning class arranging itself into a sometimes elaborate hierarchy, but without ever changing the essential power relationship of owner to worker. In the 1770s, when the term "social class" first entered the English lexicon, the concept of a "middle class" within that structure was also becoming very important. The [[Industrial Revolution]] allowed a much greater portion of the population time for the kind of [[education]] and cultural refinement once restricted to the [[Europe]]an "leisure class" of large landholders. Also, the far greater distribution of news and [[liberal arts]] knowledge was making workers question and rebel against the privileges and religious assumptions of the leisure class.  
For most of human history, societies have been agricultural and have existed with essentially two classes- those who owned productive agricultural land, and those who worked for them, with the landowning class arranging itself into a sometimes elaborate hierarchy based on the criteria listed in the previous section, but without ever changing the essential power relationship of owner and worker. About the 1770s, when the term "social class" first entered the English lexicon, the concept of a "middle class" within that structure was also becoming very important. The [[Industrial Revolution]] allowed a much greater portion of the population time for education and cultural refinement once restricted to the European [[leisure class]] of large landholders. Also, the far greater distribution of news and [[liberal arts]] knowledge made workers question and rebel against the privileges and religious assumptions of the leisure class.  
 
  
Today, most talk of social class assumes three general categories: upper, middle, and working class.  
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Today, most talk of social class assumes three general categories: an '''upper class''' of powerful owners, a '''middle class''' of people who may not exert power over others but do control their own destiny through commerce or land ownership, and a '''lower class''' of people who own neither [[property]] nor [[stock]] in the corporate system, and who rely on [[wages]] from above for their livelihood. Especially in the [[United States]], the ideal of a middle class reached via the "American Dream" is of central importance when discussing social class.
  
There has been much discussion, however, that the middle class is shrinking as disparities in wealth grow in America. <ref>[http://www.factcheck.org/article249.html Update on Kerry's "Shrinking Middle Class" — Still Shrinking in 2003] Retrieved December 2, 2006</ref> <ref>[http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/1985/03/art1exc.htm The shrinking middle class: myth or reality?] Retrieved December 2, 2006</ref>
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===India===
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The [[India]]n [[Hinduism|Hindu]] [[caste system]] is one of the oldest and most important systems of social class with peculiar rigidity (in the sense it is watertight class, with absence of upward or downward mobility in caste hierarchy). It divided (and still divides) society based on [[lineage]]. In its simplest form, the Brahmin class, at the top, was idealized as a leisurely [[priest]] class devoted to [[religion|religious]] ceremonies, while the Kshatriya defended them as military princes. These groups, roughly equating to the modern idea of an upper class, could be attained by the lower classes through [[reincarnation]] or rebirth in a later life so long as the lower class person upheld the dictates given them by the current rulers, the Brahmins. The modern concept of the middle class was represented by the Vaishya caste of artisans, [[farming|farmers]], and merchants, and the lower classes were the Shudra and Ati-shudra laborers. There were also those below these castes known as "outcastes," the Untouchables, who were restricted to occupations deemed low and unclean by the religious establishment. Within this basic framework were arranged a huge number of ''jatis,'' or subcastes. Despite being notorious for its rigidity towards individuals, upward and downward mobility is possible, but only for the entire caste itself. That is, it takes a concerted, intentional effort on the part of an entire caste to change the other castes' perceptions towards it and allow upward mobility. In addition, with India becoming more and more industrialized, even the rigid lack of mobility for individuals is being challenged.
  
==Historical models==
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===China===
Although class can be discerned in any society, some cultures have published specific guidelines to [[rank]].  In some cases, the ideologies presented in these rankings may not concur with the power dialectic of social class as it is understood in modern English use.
 
  
===Indian===
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Traditional [[China|Chinese]] society divided workers based on the perceived usefulness of their work and was somewhat more fluid than the Indian caste system. Scholars ranked the highest because the opportunity to conceive clear ideas in a state of leisure would lead them to wise [[law]]s (an idea that has much in common with [[Plato]]'s ideal of a philosopher king). Under them were the [[farming|farmers]], who produced necessary food, and the artisans who produced useful objects.  Merchants ranked at the bottom because they did not actually produce anything, while soldiers were sometimes ranked even lower due to their destructiveness. The [[Confucianism|Confucian]] model is notably different from the modern [[Europe]]an view of social class, since merchants could attain great wealth without reaching the [[social status]] accorded to a poor farmer. In truth, a rich merchant might purchase land to reach farmer status, or even buy a good education for his heirs in the hopes that they would attain scholar status and go into the imperial [[civil service]]. The Chinese model was widely disseminated throughout east [[Asia]]. However, this traditional model is changing as China integrates into the global free market.
The [[Indian caste system]] is one of the oldest and most important systems of social class with peculiar rigidity (in the sense it is watertight class, with absence of upward or downward mobility,in caste hierarcy).  It divided (and still divides) society based on heredity. In its simplest form, the [[Brahmin]] class, at the top, was idealized as a leisurely priest class devoted to religious [[ceremony|ceremonies]], while the [[Kshatriya]] defended them as military princes.  These groups, roughly equating to the modern idea of an [[upper class]], could be attained by the lower classes through [[reincarnation]] or [[rebirth]] in a later life so long as the lower class person upheld the dictates given them by the current rulers, i.e., Brahmins.  The modern concept of the middle class was represented by the [[Vaishya]] caste of artisans, farmers, and merchants, and the lower classes were the [[Shudra]] and [[Ati-shudra]] laborers and members of the present OBC's and SC's, i.e., constitutional terms for Other Backward Classes and Scheduled Castes groups, who were restricted to occupations deemed low and unclean by the religious establishment.  Within this basic framework were arranged a huge number of [[jati]]s, or subcastes.  Despite being notorious for its rigidity, the caste system has in modern times been frequently inverted, and at least one president of India has come from the SC castes.
 
  
===Chinese===
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According to Li Yi, <ref> Li Yi,  ''Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification'' (University Press of America, 2005, ISBN 0761833315).</ref> after 1949 in China the social stratification consisted of the peasant class, the working class (urban state worker and urban collective worker, urban non-state worker, and peasant worker), the capitalist class (about 15 million), and a class of cadre (about 40 million) and quasi-cadre (about 25 million).
Traditional Chinese society divided workers based on the perceived usefulness of their work and was somewhat more fluid than the Indian caste system.  [[Scholars]] ranked the highest because the opportunity to conceive clear ideas in a state of leisure would lead them to wise laws (an idea that has much in common with [[Plato]]'s ideal of a [[philosopher king]]). Under them were the farmers, who produced necessary food, and the [[artisans]] who produced useful objects.  Merchants ranked at the bottom because they did not actually produce anything, while soldiers were sometimes ranked even lower due to their destructiveness.  The [[Confucian]] model is notably different from the modern European view of social class, since merchants could attain great wealth without reaching the social status accorded to a poor farmer.  In truth, a rich merchant might purchase land to reach farmer status, or even buy a good education for his heirs in the hopes that they would attain scholar status and go into the imperial [[civil service]].  The Chinese model was widely disseminated throughout east Asia.
 
  
===Japanese===
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===Japan===
The Japanese class structure, while influenced by the Chinese, was based on a much more [[feudal]] environment. The [[Emperor of Japan|Emperor]], as a [[deity]], was unquestionably at the pinnacle of the Japanese class structure (and still is, despite no longer being considered a god).  However, for most of Japanese history the emperor was not allowed outside the palace grounds and his will was "interpreted" by a [[shogun]], or military dictator. Beneath the shogun, [[daimyos]], or regional lords, administered the provinces through their [[samurai]] lieutenants. Possibly through Chinese influence, and possibly springing from a lack of arable land, the Japanese class structure also ranked farmers above merchants and other bourgeois workers.
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The [[Japan]]ese class structure, while influenced by the Chinese, was based on a much more [[feudalism|feudal]] environment. The Emperor, as a [[deity]], was unquestionably at the pinnacle of the Japanese class structure (and still is, despite no longer being considered a god).  However, for much of Japanese history the emperor was not allowed outside the palace grounds and his will was "interpreted" by a [[shogun]], or military dictator. Beneath the shogun, ''daimyos,'' or regional lords, administered the provinces through their [[samurai]] lieutenants. Possibly through Chinese influence, and possibly springing from a lack of arable land, the Japanese class structure also ranked [[farming|farmers]] above merchants and other bourgeois workers. Like the Chinese model, the Japanese class system has changed to reflect membership in the global markets.
  
===Iranian===
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===Iran===
The respect for individual achievement in [[Abrahamic religion]] often gave independent actors such as legislators and merchants greater status relative to the farmers of [[Dharmic religion]], who had to work in concert with the land. But the protection of landowners' leisure through military force or religious guilt remained constant. Under the [[Qajar]] dynasty of Iran, the class structure was set up as follows:
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In [[Iran]], the respect for individual achievement in [[Abrahamic religions]] often gave independent actors such as legislators and merchants greater status relative to the [[farming|farmers]] of [[Dharmic religion]], who had to work in concert with the land. However, the protection of landowners' leisure through military force or religious guilt remained constant. Under the Qajar dynasty of Iran, the class structure was set up as follows:
 
* the permanent hereditary class of Qajar princes
 
* the permanent hereditary class of Qajar princes
 
* an upper class of "nobles and notables"
 
* an upper class of "nobles and notables"
Line 51: Line 51:
 
* agricultural landowners
 
* agricultural landowners
 
* master artisans and shopkeepers
 
* master artisans and shopkeepers
As in many official class structures, the laborers who made up the majority of the population, but owned no land and relied on wages, were not even considered part of the structure at all.<ref>[http://www.iranian.com/Dec96/Iranica/Qajar/Qajar.html The Qajar Class Structure] Retrieved December 2, 2006</ref>
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As in many official class structures, the laborers who made up the majority of the population, but owned no land and relied on [[wages]], were not even considered part of the structure.<ref>Encylopaedia Iranica, [http://www.iranian.com/Dec96/Iranica/Qajar/Qajar.html The Qajar Class Structure.] Retrieved December 2, 2006.</ref> Iran continues to function as a [[theocracy]], with religious leaders holding much of the power over day to day affairs.
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===France===
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For most of [[France]]'s history, there was an absolute [[monarchy]], with the [[king]] at the pinnacle of the class structure. However, the French States-General, established in 1302, provided some sort of legislative assembly with its members ranked according to hereditary class. The "First Estate" consisted of the highborn sons of great families who had devoted themselves to [[religion]] (similar to the [[Social class#Indian|Indian]] Brahmins, [[Social class#Chinese|Confucian scholars]], and [[Social class#Iranian|Qajar]] theology students). The "Second Estate" were the highborn sons who were devoted to war (compare to the Indian ''Ksatriyas'' and [[Social class#Japanese|Japanese]] ''daimyos,'' but contrast with the low status given to soldiers in China). The "Third Estate" consisted technically of everyone else, but was represented only by the richest members of the [[bourgeoisie]]. In truth, the [[peasantry]] had no voice at all in the system, as contrasted with the ideologically high status of [[farming|farmers]] in Confucian China. The rigidity of the French hereditary system was a major cause of the [[French Revolution]]. Since then, the French have attempted to adhere to a [[socialism|socialist]] system in which class disparities should never grow too large.
  
===French===
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===United Kingdom===
For most of France's history, it was an [[absolute monarchy]], with the [[King of France|king]] at the pinnacle of the class structure.  However, the [[French States-General]], established in [[1302]], provided some sort of legislative assembly with its members ranked according to hereditary class.  The First Estate consisted of the highborn sons of great families who had devoted themselves to religion (compare to the Indian Brahmins, Confucian scholars, and Qajar theology students).  The Second Estate was highborn sons who were devoted to war (compare to the Indian Ksatriyas and Japanese daimyos, but contrast with the low status given to soldiers in China).  The Third Estate consisted, technically, of everyone else, but was represented only by the richest members of the [[bourgeoisie]].  In truth, the [[peasantry]] had no voice at all in the system, as contrasted with the ideologically high status of farmers in Confucian China.  The rigidity of the French hereditary system was a major cause of the [[French Revolution]].
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The Parliament of the [[United Kingdom]] still contains a vestige of the [[Europe]]an class structure undone in [[France]] by the [[French Revolution]]. The Queen maintains her status at the top of the social class structure, with the House of Lords, up until very recently, representing the hereditary upper class and the House of Commons technically representing everyone else. As with the French States-General, the House of Commons historically spoke just for the gentry and very rich [[bourgeoisie]]. In the [[Victorian era]] of the United Kingdom, social class became a national obsession, with nouveau riche industrialists in the House of Commons trying to attain the status of House of Lords landowners through attempts to dress, eat, and talk in an upper class manner, [[marriage]]s arranged to achieve titles, and the purchase of grand country houses built to emulate the old [[aristocracy]]'s [[feudalism|feudal]] castles. It was the Victorian middle class who tried to distance themselves from the lower class with terms such as "working class," which seemed to imply that their new "white collar" positions should not be considered "work" since they were so clean, modern, and safe.
===British===
 
The [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]] still contains a vestige of the European class structure undone in France by the Revolution.  The [[Monarchy in the United Kingdom|Queen]] maintains her status at the top of the social class structure, with the [[House of Lords]] up until very recently still representing the hereditary upper class and the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]] technically representing everyone else. As with the French States-General, the House of Commons historically spoke just for the [[gentry]] and very rich bourgeoisie. In the [[Victorian era]] of the [[United Kingdom]], social class became a national obsession, with [[nouveau riche]] industrialists in the House of Commons trying to attain the status of House of Lords landowners through attempts to dress, eat, and talk in an upper class manner, marriages arranged to achieve titles, and the purchase of grand [[country houses]] built to emulate the old [[aristocracy]]'s feudal castles. It was the Victorian middle class who tried to distance themselves from the lower class with terms such as "[[working class]]", which seemed to imply that their new [[white collar]] positions couldn't really be considered "work" since they were so clean, modern, and safe.
 
  
It was also in [[19th century]] Britain that the term [[Fourth Estate]] was used to describe the press. [[Thomas Carlyle]] equated the Queen to France's First Estate of clergy, the House of Lords to France's Second Estate of hereditary aristocracy, and the House of Commons to France's Third Estate of rich bourgeoisie. But he then pointed out that the editors of newspapers in Britain's booming [[Industrial Revolution]] (similar to the pamphleteers before and during the French Revolution) held powerful sway over public opinion, making them equally important players in the political arena. The political role of the media has become ever more important as technology has blossomed in the 20th and 21st centuries, but few academic models today set aside the media as a specific class.
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It was also in nineteenth century Britain that the term "Fourth Estate" was used to describe the press. [[Thomas Carlyle]] equated the Queen to France's First Estate of clergy, the House of Lords to France's Second Estate of hereditary aristocracy, and the House of Commons to France's Third Estate of rich bourgeoisie. But he then pointed out that the editors of [[newspapers]] in Britain's booming [[Industrial Revolution]] (similar to the pamphleteers before and during the French Revolution) held powerful sway over [[public opinion]], making them equally important players in the political arena. The political role of the media has become ever more important as [[technology]] has blossomed in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, but few academic models today set aside the [[mass media|media]] as a specific class.
  
 
===United States===
 
===United States===
[[Image:America Class.jpg|thumb|450px|]]
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To this day [[economics|economists]] and [[sociology|sociologists]] have not devised exact guidelines for classes in the [[United States]]. With no set class boundaries, the interpretation of class and [[social status]] is largely left up to the individual. While many Americans believe in a three-class model that includes the "rich," the "middle class," and the "poor," in reality American society is much more economically and culturally fragmented. The differences in wealth, income, [[education]], and occupation are indeed so great that one could justify the application of a social class model including dozens of classes. A common approach to the economic and cultural diversity of those in between the extremes of wealth—those in the middle class—has been to divide the middle class into three sections: the "upper-middle," "middle-middle," and "lower-middle." This "five-class" model which can partially be traced to sociologist [[W. Lloyd Warner]] is, however, still an overly simplified portrayal of the American social class system. According to the [[nominalism|nominal]] approach, American society is sociologically and economically fragmented in such a manner that no clear class distinctions can be formed. This means that there are no pronounced breaks in socio-economic strata, which makes class division highly subjective and disputable. There has been much discussion, however, that the middle class is shrinking as disparities in wealth grow in America. <ref>Fact Check.org, Update on Kerry's "Shrinking Middle Class"—Still Shrinking in 2003.</ref>
To this day economists and sociologists have not devised exact guidelines for classes in the [[United States]]. With no set class boundaries, the interpretation of class and social status is largely left up to the individual.<ref name="Occupation and Class Consciousness in America">{{cite book | last = Eichar | first = Douglas | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 1989 | title = Occupation and Class Consciousness in America | publisher = Greenwood Press | location = Westport, Connecticut | id = 0-313-26111-3}}</ref> While many Americans believe in a three-class model that includes the "[[Wealth in the United States|rich]]," the [[American middle class|middle-class]], and the "[[Poverty in the United States|poor]]," in reality American society is much more economically and culturally fragmented. The differences in [[Wealth in the United States|wealth]], [[Household income in the United States|income]], [[Educational attainment in the United States|education]] and occupation are indeed so great that one could justify the application of a social class model including dozens of classes.<ref name="Class, A Guide through the American status system">{{cite book | last = Fussel | first = Paul | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 1983 | title = Class, A Guide through the American status system | publisher = Touchstone | location = New York, NY | id = 0-671-79225-3}}</ref><ref name="Middle class according to The Drum Major Institute for public policy">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/middleclassoverview.html|title=Middle class according to The Drum Major Institute for public policy|accessdate=2006-07-25}}</ref> A common approach to the economic and cultural diversity of those in between the extremes of wealth - those in the [[American middle class#statistical middle class|statistical middle class]] - has been to divide the [[American middle class|middle class]] into three sections: the [[American middle class#The Professional/Managerial middle class|upper-middle]], [[American middle class#Statistical middle class|middle-middle]] and [[Lower middle class|lower middle]]. This "five-class" model which can partially be traced to sociologist [[W. Lloyd Warner]] is, however, still an overly simplified portrayal of the American social class system.<ref name="Class, A Guide through the American status system">{{cite book | last = Fussel | first = Paul | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 1983 | title = Class, A Guide through the American status system | publisher = Touchstone | location = New York, NY | id = 0-671-79225-3}}</ref><ref name="Middle class according to The Drum Major Institute for public policy">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/middleclassoverview.html|title=Middle class according to The Drum Major Institute for public policy|accessdate=2006-07-25}}</ref> According to the nominal approach, American society is sociologically and economically fragmented in such a manner that no clear class distinctions can be formed. This means that there are no pronounced breaks in socio-economic strata, which makes class division highly subjective and disputable.<ref name="Occupation and Class Consciousness in America">{{cite book | last = Eichar | first = Douglas | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = 1989 | title = Occupation and Class Consciousness in America | publisher = Greenwood Press | location = Westport, Connecticut | id = 0-313-26111-3}}</ref>
 
  
==Academic models==
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==Academic Theories of Class==
Schools of [[sociology]] differ in how they conceptualize class. A distinction can be drawn between ''analytical'' concepts of social class, such as the [[Social class#Marxian class|Marxian]] and [[Social class#Weberian class|Weberian]] traditions, and the more ''empirical'' traditions such as socio-economic status approach, which notes the correlation of income, education and wealth with social outcomes without necessarily implying a particular theory of social structure. The [[Social class#Warnerian social class model|Warnerian]] approach can be considered ''empirical'' in the sense that it is more descriptive than analytical.  
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Schools of [[sociology]] differ in how they conceptualize class. A distinction can be drawn between "analytical" concepts of social class, such as the [[Social class#Marxian class|Marxian]] and [[Social class#Weberian class|Weberian]] traditions, and the more "empirical" traditions such as a socio-economic status approach, which notes the correlation of income, education, and wealth with social outcomes without necessarily implying a particular theory of [[social structure]]. The [[Social class#Warnerian social class model|Warnerian]] approach can be considered "empirical" in the sense that it is more descriptive than analytical.  
  
 
===Marxist===
 
===Marxist===
[[Image:Pyramid of Capitalist System.png|thumb|right|250px|An ''Industrial Worker'' capitalist class critique]]
 
It was in Victorian Britain that [[Karl Marx]] became the first person to critically attack the privileges not just of an hereditary upper class, but of anyone whose labor output could not begin to cover their [[Consumption (economics)|consumption]] of luxury.  The majority [[proletariat]] which had previously been relegated to an unimportant compartment at the bottom of most hierarchies, or ignored completely, became Marx's focal point.  He recognized the traditional European [[ruling class]] ("We rule you"), supported by the religious ("We fool you") and military ("We shoot at you") élites, but the French Revolution had already shown that these classes could be removed.  Marx looked forward to a time when the new [[capitalist]] upper class could also be removed and everyone could work as they were able, and receive as they needed.
 
  
Karl Marx defined class in terms of the extent to which an [[individual]] or social group has [[economic power|control]] over the [[means of production]]. In Marxist terms a class is a group of people defined by their relationship to the [[means of production]]. Classes are seen to have their origin in the division of the [[social product]] into a [[necessary product]] and a [[surplus product]]. [[Marxism|Marxists]] explain the history of "civilized" societies in terms of a [[class warfare|war of classes]] between those who control production and those who actually produce the goods or services in society (and also developments in [[technology]] and the like). In the Marxist view of [[capitalism]], this is a conflict between capitalists ([[bourgeoisie]]) and [[working class|wage-workers]] (the [[proletariat]]). For Marxists, class antagonism is rooted in the situation that control over social production necessarily entails control over the class which produces goods — in capitalism this is the [[exploitation]] of workers by the [[bourgeosie]].  
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It was in [[Queen Victoria|Victorian]] [[Britain]] that [[Karl Marx]] became the first person to critically attack the privileges not just of an hereditary upper class, but of anyone whose labor output could not begin to cover their consumption of luxury.  The majority [[proletariat]] which had previously been relegated to an unimportant compartment at the bottom of most hierarchies, or ignored completely, became Marx's focal point. He recognized the traditional European ruling class ("We rule you"), supported by the religious ("We fool you") and military ("We shoot at you") élites, but the [[French Revolution]] had already shown that these classes could be removed. Marx looked forward to a time when the new [[capitalism|capitalist]] upper class could also be removed and everyone could work as they were able, and receive as they needed.
 +
 
 +
Karl Marx defined class in terms of the extent to which an individual or social group has control over the means of production. In Marxist terms, a class is a group of people defined by their relationship to their means of production. Classes are seen to have their origin in the division of the social product into a "necessary product" and a "surplus product." [[Marxism|Marxists]] explain the history of "civilized" societies in terms of a war of classes between those who control production and those who actually produce the goods or services in society (and also developments in [[technology]] and the like). In the Marxist view of capitalism, this is a conflict between capitalists ([[bourgeoisie]]) and wage-workers (the proletariat). For Marxists, class antagonism is rooted in the situation that control over social production necessarily entails control over the class which produces goods—in capitalism this amounts to the exploitation of workers by the bourgeosie.  
  
Marx himself argued that it was the goal of the proletariat itself to displace the capitalist system with [[socialism]], changing the social relationships underpinning the class system and then developing into a future [[communist]] society in which: "..the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all." ([[Communist Manifesto]]).
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Marx himself argued that it was the goal of the proletariat itself to displace the capitalist system with [[socialism]], changing the social relationships underpinning the class system and then developing into a future [[communism|communist]] society in which: "the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all" ([[Communist Manifesto]]).
  
[[Vladimir Lenin]] has defined classes as "large groups of people differing from each other by the place they occupy in a historically determined system of social production, by their relation (in most cases fixed and formulated in law) to the means of production, by their role in the social organisation of labour, and, consequently, by the dimensions of the share of social wealth of which they dispose and the mode of acquiring it.<ref>[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1919/jun/19.htm|''A Great Beginning''] Retrieved December 2, 2006</ref>
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[[Vladimir Lenin]] defined classes as "large groups of people differing from each other by the place they occupy in a historically determined system of social production, by their relation (in most cases fixed and formulated in law) to the means of production, by their role in the social organization of labor, and, consequently, by the dimensions of the share of social wealth of which they dispose and the mode of acquiring it."<ref>Marxists Internet Archive, [http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1919/jun/19.htm ''A Great Beginning.''] Retrieved December 2, 2006.</ref>
  
 
===Max Weber===
 
===Max Weber===
The seminal sociological interpretation of class was advanced by [[Max Weber]]. Weber formulated a [[three-component theory of stratification]], with class, status and party (or politics) as subordinate to the ownership of the means of production, but for Weber how they interact is a contingent question and one that will vary from society to society. One can have strength in all one, two, all three, or none of these categories. For example, a drug dealer may be wealthy and therefore of the upper class, but is not respected in society and therefore of low status. A priest may not have any money but is held in high esteem in society. A CEO is likely wealthy and respected, but may not have any political power.
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The seminal [[sociology|sociological]] interpretation of class was advanced by [[Max Weber]]. Weber formulated a three-component theory of stratification, with class, status, and party (or [[politics]]) as subordinate to the ownership of the means of production; but for Weber, how they interact is a contingent question and one that varies from [[society]] to society. One can have strength in one, two, all three, or none of these categories. For example, a [[drug]] dealer may be wealthy and therefore of the upper class, but is not respected in society and therefore of low status. A [[priest]] may not have any money but is held in high esteem in society. A Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a [[corporation]] is likely wealthy and respected, but may not have any political power.
  
 
===William Lloyd Warner===
 
===William Lloyd Warner===
An early example of a stratum class model was developed by the sociologist [[William Lloyd Warner]] in his [[1949]] book, ''Social Class in America.'' For many decades, the Warnerian theory was dominant in U.S. sociological theory.
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An early example of a stratum class model was developed by the sociologist [[William Lloyd Warner]] in his 1949 book, ''Social Class in America.'' For many decades, the Warnerian theory was dominant in U.S. [[sociology]].
  
 
Based on [[social anthropology]], Warner divided Americans into three classes (upper, middle, and lower), then further subdivided each of these into an "upper" and "lower" segment, with the following postulates:
 
Based on [[social anthropology]], Warner divided Americans into three classes (upper, middle, and lower), then further subdivided each of these into an "upper" and "lower" segment, with the following postulates:
* '''Upper-upper class'''. "Old money." People who have been born into and raised with wealth; mostly consits of old noble or prestigious families (e.g., Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Hilton).
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* '''Upper-upper class.''' "Old money." People who have been born into and raised with wealth; mostly consists of old, noble, or prestigious families (e.g., Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Hilton).
* '''Lower-upper class'''. "New money." Individuals who have become rich within their own lifetimes (e.g., entrepreneurs, movie stars, as well as some prominent professionals).
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* '''Lower-upper class.''' "New money." Individuals who have become rich within their own lifetimes ([[entrepreneur]]s, [[movie]] stars, as well as some prominent professionals).
* '''Upper-middle class'''. High-salaried professionals (e.g., doctors, lawyers, higher rung (were in the corporate market, yet left for a reason such as family time) professors, corporate executives).
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* '''Upper-middle class.''' High-salaried professionals ([[doctor]]s, [[lawyer]]s, higher rung (were in the corporate market, yet left for a reason such as family time) professors, corporate executives).
* '''Lower-middle class'''. Lower-paid professionals, but not manual laborers (e.g., police officers, non-management office workers, small business owners).
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* '''Lower-middle class.''' Lower-paid professionals, but not manual laborers ([[police]] officers, non-management office workers, small [[business]] owners).
* '''Upper-lower class'''. Blue-collar workers and manual labourers. Also known as the "working class."
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* '''Upper-lower class.''' Blue-collar workers and manual laborers. Also known as the "working class."
* '''Lower-lower class'''. The homeless and permanently unemployed, as well as the "working poor."
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* '''Lower-lower class.''' The homeless and permanently [[unemployment|unemployed]], as well as the "working poor."
 
 
To Warner, American social class was based more on attitudes than on the actual amount of money an individual made. For example, the richest people in America would belong to the "lower-upper class" since many of them created their own fortunes; one can only be born into the highest class. Nonetheless, members of the wealthy upper-upper class tend to be more powerful, as a simple survey of U.S. presidents may demonstrate (i.e., the [[Roosevelt]]s; [[Kennedy]]s; [[Bush family|Bushes]]).
 
 
 
Another observation: members of the upper-lower class might make more money than members of the lower-middle class (i.e., a well-salaried factory worker vs. a secretarial worker), but the class difference is based on the type of work they perform.
 
  
In his research, findings, Warner observed that American social class was largely based on these shared attitudes. For example, he noted that the lower-middle class tended to be the most conservative group of all, since very little separated them from the working class. The upper-middle class, while a relatively small section of the population, usually "set the standard" for proper American behavior, as reflected in the [[mass media]].
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To Warner, American social class was based more on [[attitude]]s than on the actual amount of money an individual made. For example, the richest people in America would belong to the "lower-upper class" since many of them created their own fortunes; one can only be born into the highest class. Nonetheless, members of the wealthy upper-upper class tend to be more powerful, as a simple survey of U.S. presidents demonstrates (the Roosevelts, Kennedys, Bushes).
  
Professionals with salaries and educational attainment higher than those found in the middle of the income strata (e.g. bottom rung professors, managerial office workers, architects) may also be considered as being true middle class.
+
Another observation: Members of the upper-lower class might make more money than members of the lower-middle class (a well-salaried factory worker vs. a secretarial worker), but the class difference is based on the type of work they perform.
  
===Paul Fussell===
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In his research findings, Warner observed that American social class was largely based on these shared attitudes. For example, he noted that the lower-middle class tended to be the most conservative group of all, since very little separated them from the working class. The upper-middle class, while a relatively small section of the population, usually "set the standard" for proper American behavior, as reflected in the [[mass media]].
Sociologists who seek fine-grained connections between class and life-outcomes often develop precisely defined social strata, like historian [[Paul Fussell]]'s semi-satirical nine-tier stratification of American society, published in [[1983]].
 
  
Fussell's model classifies Americans according to the following classes:
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Professionals with salaries and educational attainment higher than those found in the middle of the income strata (bottom rung professors, managerial office workers, architects) may also be considered as being true middle class.
# Top out-of-sight: the super-rich, [[heirs]] to huge fortunes
 
# Upper Class: rich [[CEO]]s, diplomats, people who can afford full-time domestic staff, and some high salaried, prominent professionals (examples include surgeons and some highly-paid types of lawyers)
 
# [[Upper-Middle Class]]: self-made well-educated professionals
 
# [[Middle Class]]: office workers
 
# High [[Prole]]: skilled [[blue-collar worker]]s
 
# Mid Prole: workers in [[factories]] and the [[service industry]]
 
# Low Prole: [[Manual labour|manual laborers]]
 
# [[Destitute]]: the [[homeless]] and the [[lumpenproletariat|disreputable]] (but still free)
 
# Bottom out-of-sight: those [[incarcerated]] in prisons and institutions
 
  
Fussell no longer recognized a true lower middle class, its members either having advanced into the middle class due to rising requirements of formal education or becoming indistinguishable from the "high proles" or even the "mid proles".
+
===Others===
 +
Sociologists who seek fine-grained connections between class and life-outcomes often develop precisely defined social strata, like historian Paul Fussell's semi-[[satire|satirical]] nine-tier stratification of American society, published in 1983. Fussell's model classifies Americans according to the following classes:
 +
# Top out-of-sight: the super-rich, heirs to huge fortunes
 +
# Upper Class: rich CEOs, diplomats, people who can afford full-time domestic staff, and some high salaried, prominent professionals (examples include surgeons and some highly-paid types of lawyers)
 +
# Upper-Middle Class: self-made, well-educated professionals
 +
# Middle Class: office workers
 +
# High Prole: skilled blue-collar workers
 +
# Mid Prole: workers in factories and the service industry
 +
# Low Prole: manual laborers
 +
# Destitute: the homeless and the disreputable (but still free)
 +
# Bottom out-of-sight: those incarcerated in prisons and institutions
  
===Dennis Gilbert===
+
Fussell no longer recognized a true lower middle class, its members either having advanced into the middle class due to rising requirements of formal education or becoming indistinguishable from the "high proles" or even the "mid proles."
In ''The American Class Structure, 6th edition'' (Wadsworth 2002), Dennis Gilbert lays out an even more precise breakdown of American social class by providing typical incomes for his conceptions of the classes:
 
*the capitalist class (a term borrowed from Marx) is made up of the executives of large corporations, large-scale investors in the stock market, and the heirs of extremely successful entrepreneurs with an annual income of about US$2 million on average.  They make up about 1% of the population.
 
*the upper middle class, actually sitting well above the middle of the model, is made up of doctors, high ranking managers at large corporations, lawyers, the owners of medium-sized commercial interests, and very successful accountants.  Their average income is $120,000 a year, and they comprise 14% of the population.
 
*the middle class, actually sitting just above the middle of the model, made up of foremen, lower level managers at large companies, the sellers of bulk industrial and technological goods, and very successful craftsmen.  The average income is $55,000 and the clas makes up 30% of the population.
 
*the working class, a phrase borrowed from Victorian distinctions between managerial and active work.  This group comprises clerical workers, retail salespeople, and well-paid manual laborers.  The average income is $35,000 a year, and the class makes up 30% of the population.
 
*the working poor, a group of poorly paid manual and service workers making up 13% of the population and averaging $22,000 a year.
 
*an underclass of people working only part time in service jobs, or not working at all and relying on government support for sustenance.  The average income is $12,000 a year, and the class makes up 12% of the population.
 
  
===Li Yi===
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In his ''The American Class Structure,'' published in 2002, Dennis Gilbert laid out an even more precise breakdown of American social class by providing typical incomes for his conceptions of the classes:
In the ''Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification'' (University Press of America, 2005, ISBN 0761833315), Li Yi lays out a detailed model of Chinese social stratification after 1949. In China today, there are a peasant class, a working class (urban state worker and urban collective worker, urban non-state worker, and peasant worker), a capitalist class (about 15 million), and a class of cadre (about 40 million) and quasi-cadre (about 25 million).
+
*the capitalist class (a term borrowed from Marx) made up of the executives of large corporations, large-scale investors in the stock market, and the heirs of extremely successful entrepreneurs with an annual income of about US$2 million on average. They make up about one percent of the population.
[[Image:liyi1.jpg|thumb|300px|left]][[Image:liyi2.jpg|thumb|250px|right]]
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*the upper middle class, actually sitting well above the middle of the model, is made up of doctors, high ranking managers at large corporations, lawyers, the owners of medium-sized commercial interests, and very successful accountants. Their average income is $120,000 a year, and they comprise 14 percent of the population.
 +
*the middle class, actually sitting just above the middle of the model, made up of foremen, lower level managers at large companies, the sellers of bulk industrial and technological goods, and very successful craftsmen. The average income is $55,000 and the class makes up 30 percent of the population.
 +
*the working class, a phrase borrowed from Victorian distinctions between managerial and active work. This group comprises clerical workers, retail salespeople, and well-paid manual laborers.  The average income is $35,000 a year, and the class makes up 30 percent of the population.
 +
*the working poor, a group of poorly paid manual and service workers making up 13 percent of the population and averaging $22,000 a year.
 +
*an underclass of people working only part time in service jobs, or not working at all and relying on government support for sustenance. The average income is $12,000 a year, and the class makes up 12 percent of the population.
  
==Problems with the models==
+
==Issues with the Nature of Class==
Some would argue that any conception of class based on power models is too narrow, since so much of [[quality of life]] cannot be expressed in terms of dollars or acres owned. A retired teacher on a small, but adequate, stipend may actually enjoy a great deal more freedom, health, and social respect than an overworked executive making a [[six figure income]] at a discredited corporation.
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Some would argue that any conception of class based on power models is too narrow, since so much of quality of life cannot be expressed in terms of dollars or acres owned. A retired [[teacher]] on a small, but adequate stipend may actually enjoy a great deal more freedom, [[health]], and social respect than an overworked executive making a six figure income at a discredited [[corporation]].
  
In addition, many people can be difficult to fit into the above models. There is the question, for instance, of whether the wife of an upper class man is automatically upper class herself, even if her education, manners, and her own net worth would place her in a lower class status. Additionally, children, who usually enjoy the comfort and prestige related to their parent's social class, may actually live very poorly with abusive high class parents or at a very high level of consumption and income if their low class parents spoil them. Some [[youth rights]] activists would argue that all minors are lower class due to their lack of choice in where they live, how they spend their time, and who makes the laws affecting them. Similar arguments could be made concerning women in many parts of the World.
+
In addition, many people can be difficult to fit into the above models. There is the question, for instance, of whether the wife of an upper class man is automatically upper class herself, even if her [[education]], [[manners]], and her own net worth would place her in a lower class status. Additionally, children, who usually enjoy the comfort and prestige related to their parent's social class, may actually live very poorly with abusive high class parents or at a very high level of consumption and income if their low class parents spoil them. Some youth rights activists would argue that all minors are lower class due to their lack of choice in where they live, how they spend their time, and who makes the laws affecting them. Similar arguments could be made concerning women in many parts of the world.
  
 +
These issues point out that the nature of class itself might be flawed and inappropriately applied to [[society]]. Some could argue that class breeds needless feelings of [[competition]] and feelings of inequity; such arguments typically come from [[Marxism|Marxist]] schools of thought. Those in favor of systems of class, such as [[capitalism|capitalists]], would argue that eliminating the possibility of class eliminates the incentive for progress in society. It is necessary to strike some balance of equality while maintaining incentives to progress.
  
 
==Notes==
 
==Notes==
 
<references/>
 
<references/>
  
==Bibliography==
+
==References==
* Louise Archer et al. ''Higher Education and Social Class: Issues of Exclusion and Inclusion'' RoutledgeFalmer. 2003
+
*Barbrook, Richard. ''The Class of the New''. London: OpenMute, 2006. ISBN 0955066476
*{{cite book | first = Richard | last = Barbrook |  | year = 2006 | title = The Class of the New | edition = paperback | publisher = OpenMute | location = London | id = 0-9550664-7-6 | url = http://www.theclassofthenew.net}}
+
*Bertaux, Daniel and Paul Thompson. ''Pathways to Social Class: A Qualitative Approach to Social Mobility''. Clarendon Press, 1997. ISBN 978-1412806138
* Daniel Bertaux and Paul Thompson; ''Pathways to Social Class: A Qualitative Approach to Social Mobility'' Clarendon Press, 1997  
+
*Bisson, Thomas N. ''Cultures of Power: Lordship, Status, and Process in Twelfth-Century Europe''. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995. ISBN 978-0812215557
* Thomas N. Bisson; ''Cultures of Power: Lordship, Status, and Process in Twelfth-Century Europe'' University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995
+
*Blau, Peter and Otis D. Duncan. ''The American Occupational Structure''. 1967.
* Peter Blau and Otis D. Duncan, ''The American Occupational Structure'' (1967) classic study of structure and mobility
+
*Cohen, Lizabeth. ''Consumer's Republic''. Knopf, 2003. ISBN 0375407502 
* Brady, David "Rethinking the Sociological Measurement of Poverty" ''Social Forces'' 81#3 2003, pp. 715-751 Online in Project Muse. Anstract: Reviews shortcomings of the official U.S. measure; examines several theoretical and methodological advances in poverty measurement. Argues that ideal measures of poverty should: (1) measure comparative historical variation effectively; (2) be relative rather than absolute; (3) conceptualize poverty as social exclusion; (4) assess the impact of taxes, transfers, and state benefits; and (5) integrate the depth of poverty and the inequality among the poor. Next, this article evaluates sociological studies published since 1990 for their consideration of these criteria. This article advocates for three alternative poverty indices: the interval measure, the ordinal measure, and the sum of ordinals measure. Finally, using the Luxembourg Income Study, it examines the empirical patterns with these three measures, across advanced capitalist democracies from 1967 to 1997. Estimates of these poverty indices are made available.
+
*Day, Gary. ''Class''. Routledge, 2001. ISBN 0415182220
* Leonard Broom and F. Lancaster Jones, ''Opportunity and Attainment in Australia'' (1977)
+
*Eichar, Douglas M. 1989. ''Occupation and Class Consciousness in America''. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313261113 ISBN 978-0313261114
Lizabeth Cohen''Consumer's Republic'', Knopf, 2003, ISBN 0-375-40750-2 . Historical analysis of the working out of class in the United States.
+
*Fantasia, Rick; Levine, Rhonda F. and Scott G. McNall (eds.). ''Bringing Class Back in Contemporary and Historical Perspectives''. Westview Press, 1991. ISBN 978-0813310503
* Gary Day, Class, (Routledge 2001) ISBN 0-415-18222-0
+
*Fussell, Paul. ''Class (a painfully accurate guide through the American status system)''.  Ballantine Books, 1983. ISBN 0345318161
* Douglas M. Eichar; ''Occupation and Class Consciousness in America'' Greenwood Press, 1989
+
*Grusky, David B. (ed.). ''Social Stratification: Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective''. Westview Press, 2001. ISBN 0813366542
* Rick Fantasia, Rhonda F. Levine, Scott G. McNall, eds. ''Bringing Class Back in Contemporary and Historical Perspectives'' Westview Press. 1991
+
*Hazelrigg, Lawrence E. and Joseph Lopreato. ''Class, Conflict, and Mobility: Theories and Studies of Class Structure''. Rawat Publication, 2005. ISBN 978-8170339748
* David L. Featherman and Robert M. Hauser, ''Opportunity and Change'' (1978).
+
*Li, Yi. ''The Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification''. University Press of America, 2005. ISBN 0761833315
*  Paul Fussell ''Class (a painfully accurate guide through the American status system)'', 1983. ISBN 0-345-31816-1
+
*Merriman, John M. ''Consciousness and Class Experience in Nineteenth-Century Europe''. Holmes & Meier Publishers, 1979. ISBN 978-0841906105
* John Goldthorpe and Robert Erikson, ''The Constant Flux: A Study of Class Mobility in Industrial Society'' (1992)
+
*Ostrander, Susan A. ''Women of the Upper Class''. Temple University Press, 1984. ISBN 978-0877224754
* David B Grusky. ed. ''Social Stratification: Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective'' (2001) scholarly articles
+
*Marmot, Michael. ''The Status Syndrome: How Social Standing Affects Our Health and Longevity''. Owl Books, 2005. ISBN 978-0805078541
* Lawrence E. Hazelrigg and Joseph Lopreato; ''Class, Conflict, and Mobility: Theories and Studies of Class Structure'' 1972.  
+
*Marx, Karl and Frederick Engels. ''The Communist Manifesto''1848. ISBN 978-0140447576
* Li Yi. 2005. The Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification. Univesity Press of America. ISBN 0761833315
+
*Owensby, Brian P. ''Intimate Ironies: Modernity and the Making of Middle-Class Lives in Brazil''. Stanford University, 1999.  ISBN 978-0804743402
* Helmut Kaeble, ''Social Mobility in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries: Europe and America in Comparative Perspective'' (1985)
+
*Pakulski, Jan and Malcolm Waters. ''The Death of Class''. Sage, 1996. ISBN 978-0803978386
* Pat Mahony and Christine Zmroczek; ''Class Matters: 'Working-Class' Women's Perspectives on Social Class'' Taylor & Francis, 1997
+
*Payne, Geoff. ''The Social Mobility of Women: Beyond Male Mobility Models''. Routledge, 1990. ISBN 1850008450
* John M. Merriman; ''Consciousness and Class Experience in Nineteenth-Century Europe'' Holmes & Meier Publishers, 1979  
+
*Raico, Ralph. [http://www.mises.org/journals/jls/1_3/1_3_2.pdf "Classical Liberal Exploitation Theory"] ''Journal of Libertarian Studies''. 1(3) (1977): 179-183. Retrieved March 24, 2007.
* Susan A. Ostrander; ''Women of the Upper Class'' Temple University Press, 1984
+
*Savage, Mike. ''Class Analysis and Social Transformation''. London: Open University Press, 2000. ISBN 978-0335193288
*  Ramaswami Mahalingam; "Essentialism, Culture, and Power: Representations of Social Class" ''Journal of Social Issues,'' Vol. 59, 2003 pp 733+  on India
+
*Sennett, Richard and Jonathan Cobb. ''The Hidden Injuries of Class''. Vintage, 1972. ISBN 978-0393310856
* Jeff Manza and Clem Brooks; ''Social Cleavages and Political Change: Voter Alignments and U.S. Party Coalitions'' Oxford University Press, 1999
+
*Sorokin, Pitrim. ''Social Mobility''. New York, NY: Harper, 1927.
* Jeff Manza; "Political Sociological Models of the U.S. New Deal" ''Annual Review of Sociology'', 2000  pp 297+
+
*Warner, W. Lloyd. ''Social Class in America: A Manual of Procedure for the Measurement of Social Status''1949. ISBN 978-0061310133
*  Jeff Manza, Michael Hout, and Clem Brooks; "Class Voting in Capitalist Democracies since World War II: Dealignment, Realignment, or Trendless Fluctuation?" ''Annual Review of Sociology'', Vol. 21, 1995
+
*Weber, Max. "Class, Status and Party" in ''From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology''. Oxford University Press, 1958.  
* Michael Marmot. ''The Status Syndrome: How Social Standing Affects Our Health and Longevity'' 2004
+
*Weinburg, Mark. [http://www.mises.org/journals/jls/2_1/2_1_4.pdf "The Social Analysis of Three Early 19th century French liberals: Say, Comte, and Dunoyer"] in ''Journal of Libertarian Studies''. 2(1) (1978): 45-63. Retrieved March 24, 2007.
* Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, ''The Communist Manifesto'', 1848. (The key statement of class conflict as the driver of historical change.)
+
*Wright, Erik Olin. ''Class Counts: Comparative Studies in Class Analysis''. Cambridge University Press, 1997. ISBN 0521553873
* Brian P. Owensby; ''Intimate Ironies: Modernity and the Making of Middle-Class Lives in Brazil'' Stanford University, 1999  
+
*Zmroczek, Christine. ''Women and Social Class: International Feminist Perspectives''. Routledge, 1999. ISBN 1857289307
* Jan Pakulski and Malcolm Waters, ''The Death of Class'', Sage. 1996. rejection of the relevance of class for modern societies
 
* Geoff Payne. ''The Social Mobility of Women: Beyond Male Mobility Models'' (1990)
 
*[http://www.mises.org/journals/jls/1_3/1_3_2.pdf [[Ralph Raico]]. ''Classical Liberal Exploitation Theory''] ([[PDF]] file)
 
* Mike Savage. ''Class Analysis and Social Transformation'', London: Open University Press, 2000  
 
* G. de Ste Croix, "Class in Marx's Conception of History, Ancient and Modern", in: New Left Review, no. 146, 1984, pp. 94-111 (good study of Marx's concept)
 
*Richard Sennett and Jonathan Cobb''The Hidden Injuries of Class'', Vintage, 1972 (classic study of the subjective experience of class)
 
* Lewis H. Siegelbaum and Ronald Grigor Suny, eds. ''Making Workers Soviet: Power, Class, and Identity.''Cornell University Press. 1994. Russia 1870 - 1940
 
* Pitrim Sorokin, ''Social Mobility'' (New York, 1927)
 
* In the Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification.University Press of America, 2005. ISBN 0761833315
 
* Daniel J. Walkowitz; ''Working with Class: Social Workers and the Politics of Middle-Class Identity'' University of North Carolina Press, 1999 
 
W. Lloyd Warner et al. ''Social Class in America: A Manual of Procedure for the Measurement of Social Status'' 1949.  
 
* "Class, Status and Party", Max Weber, in e.g. Gerth, Hans and C. Wright Mills, ''From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology'', Oxford University Press, 1958. (Weber's key statement of the multiple nature of stratification.)
 
*[http://www.mises.org/journals/jls/2_1/2_1_4.pdf [[Mark Weinburg]],  ''The Social Analysis of Three Early 19th century French liberals: Say, Comte, and Dunoyer''] by [[Journal of Libertarian Studies]], 2 no. 1 (1978): 45-63.
 
* Wouters; Cas.  "The Integration of Social Classes." ''Journal of Social History''. Volume: 29. Issue: 1.  1995. pp 107+. on social manners
 
* Erik Olin Wright ''The Debate on Classes'' (Verso, 1990), neo-Marxist
 
* Erik Olin Wright  ''Class Counts: Comparative Studies in Class Analysis'' (Cambridge University Press, 1997)
 
* Erik Olin Wright ed. ''Approaches to Class Analysis'' (2005)scholarly articles
 
* Christine Zmroczek and Pat Mahony, eds. ''Women and Social Class: International Feminist Perspectives.'' London: UCL Press 1999
 
 
 
==External links==
 
*[http://www.classism.org ''Class Action'':]
 
*[http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/cgi-local/DHI/dhi.cgi?id=dv1-54 ''Dictionary of the history of ideas'':] Class
 
*[http://homepage.mac.com/dmhart/ComteDunoyer/Ch4.html ''Charles Dunoyer And The Theory Of Industrialism''] and [http://homepage.mac.com/dmhart/ComteDunoyer/Ch7.html ''Comte And Dunoyer After The 1830 Revolution: The Impact Of Their Ideas''] in [http://homepage.mac.com/dmhart/ComteDunoyer/index.html ''The Radical Liberalism Of Charles Comte And Charles Dunoyer''] by [[David M. Hart]].
 
*[http://mises.org/journals/jls/9_2/9_2_5.pdf ''Marxist and Austrian Class Analysis''] (PDF) by [[Hans-Hermann Hoppe]]
 
*[http://mm.mises.org/mp3/marxism/Raico.mp3 ''Classical Liberal Roots of Marxist Class Analysis''] (MP3 audio file), lecture by Ralph Raico.
 
*[http://poverty.worldbank.org/library/view/6242/ Rethinking Cultural and Economic Capital] - Jan Rupp
 
  
  
 
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Latest revision as of 15:01, 27 April 2023


An Industrial Worker capitalist class critique

Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions between individuals or groups in societies or cultures. Anthropologists, historians, and sociologists identify class as universal, although what determines class will vary widely from one society to another. Even within a society, different people or groups may have very different ideas about what makes one "higher" or "lower" in the hierarchy. Different defining characteristics have developed in societies around the world and have changed through history. Depending on the definition used, class can also be associated with social status, or one's social position in a culture. Because of the vagaries of the word, the idea of social class has been the object of much study in fields such as sociology and economics. Some of the more famous theorists of class include Karl Marx and Max Weber.

Despite the work of these intellectual heavyweights, the value of the notion of social class is still questioned as it becomes even more difficult to define in an increasingly fluid and globalized society. Beyond the problems in theoretical conceptualizations, the practical impact of social class on society is important. Any system that divides people and then assigns different values to the groups is inherently problematic in the establishment and maintenance of a harmonious society. If vertical divisions among people can connote no difference in value, only in role, experience, or responsibility in society, then social class may be considered a useful concept.

Dimensions of social class

Class can be manifested through many aspects of one's self, one's family, and one's lineage. However, in many societies morality often ensures that the old, the young, the weak, and the sick maintain a good standard of living despite low class status.

Having characteristics of the majority ethnic group and engaging in marriage to produce offspring improve one's class status in many societies. But what is considered "racially superior" in one society may be exactly the opposite in another, and there have been societies, such as ancient Greece, in which intimacy with someone of the same gender would improve one's social status so long as it occurred alongside opposite-gender marriage. Also, a sexual orientation and, to a far lesser degree, minority ethnicity have often been faked, hidden, or discreetly ignored if the person in question otherwise attained the requirements of high class. Ethnicity is still often the single most overarching issue of class status in some societies.

As societies expand and become more complex, economic power will often replace physical power as the defender of the class status quo, so that occupation, education, qualifications, income, wealth, or net worth, ownership of land, property, and means of production will establish one's class much more so than physical power.

Those who can attain a power position in a society will often adopt distinctive lifestyles both to emphasize their prestige and as a way to further rank themselves within the powerful class. In certain times and places, the adoption of these stylistic traits can be as important as one's wealth in determining class status, at least at the higher levels:

  • costume and grooming
  • manners and cultural refinement: For example, Pierre Bourdieu suggested a notion of high and low classes with a distinction between bourgeois tastes and sensitivities and the working class tastes and sensitivities.
  • political standing vis-à-vis the church, government, and/or social clubs, as well as the use of honorary titles
  • reputation of honor or disgrace
  • the distinction between elaborate language, which is seen as a criterion for "upper-class," and restricted code, which is associated with "lower classes"

International Social Class Models

Although class can be discerned in any society, some cultures have published specific guidelines to rank. In some cases, the ideologies presented in these rankings may not concur with the power dialectic of social class as it is understood in modern English use.

For most of recorded human history, societies have been agricultural and have existed with essentially two classes—those who owned productive agricultural land, and those who worked for landowners, with the landowning class arranging itself into a sometimes elaborate hierarchy, but without ever changing the essential power relationship of owner to worker. In the 1770s, when the term "social class" first entered the English lexicon, the concept of a "middle class" within that structure was also becoming very important. The Industrial Revolution allowed a much greater portion of the population time for the kind of education and cultural refinement once restricted to the European "leisure class" of large landholders. Also, the far greater distribution of news and liberal arts knowledge was making workers question and rebel against the privileges and religious assumptions of the leisure class.

Today, most talk of social class assumes three general categories: an upper class of powerful owners, a middle class of people who may not exert power over others but do control their own destiny through commerce or land ownership, and a lower class of people who own neither property nor stock in the corporate system, and who rely on wages from above for their livelihood. Especially in the United States, the ideal of a middle class reached via the "American Dream" is of central importance when discussing social class.

India

The Indian Hindu caste system is one of the oldest and most important systems of social class with peculiar rigidity (in the sense it is watertight class, with absence of upward or downward mobility in caste hierarchy). It divided (and still divides) society based on lineage. In its simplest form, the Brahmin class, at the top, was idealized as a leisurely priest class devoted to religious ceremonies, while the Kshatriya defended them as military princes. These groups, roughly equating to the modern idea of an upper class, could be attained by the lower classes through reincarnation or rebirth in a later life so long as the lower class person upheld the dictates given them by the current rulers, the Brahmins. The modern concept of the middle class was represented by the Vaishya caste of artisans, farmers, and merchants, and the lower classes were the Shudra and Ati-shudra laborers. There were also those below these castes known as "outcastes," the Untouchables, who were restricted to occupations deemed low and unclean by the religious establishment. Within this basic framework were arranged a huge number of jatis, or subcastes. Despite being notorious for its rigidity towards individuals, upward and downward mobility is possible, but only for the entire caste itself. That is, it takes a concerted, intentional effort on the part of an entire caste to change the other castes' perceptions towards it and allow upward mobility. In addition, with India becoming more and more industrialized, even the rigid lack of mobility for individuals is being challenged.

China

Traditional Chinese society divided workers based on the perceived usefulness of their work and was somewhat more fluid than the Indian caste system. Scholars ranked the highest because the opportunity to conceive clear ideas in a state of leisure would lead them to wise laws (an idea that has much in common with Plato's ideal of a philosopher king). Under them were the farmers, who produced necessary food, and the artisans who produced useful objects. Merchants ranked at the bottom because they did not actually produce anything, while soldiers were sometimes ranked even lower due to their destructiveness. The Confucian model is notably different from the modern European view of social class, since merchants could attain great wealth without reaching the social status accorded to a poor farmer. In truth, a rich merchant might purchase land to reach farmer status, or even buy a good education for his heirs in the hopes that they would attain scholar status and go into the imperial civil service. The Chinese model was widely disseminated throughout east Asia. However, this traditional model is changing as China integrates into the global free market.

According to Li Yi, [1] after 1949 in China the social stratification consisted of the peasant class, the working class (urban state worker and urban collective worker, urban non-state worker, and peasant worker), the capitalist class (about 15 million), and a class of cadre (about 40 million) and quasi-cadre (about 25 million).

Japan

The Japanese class structure, while influenced by the Chinese, was based on a much more feudal environment. The Emperor, as a deity, was unquestionably at the pinnacle of the Japanese class structure (and still is, despite no longer being considered a god). However, for much of Japanese history the emperor was not allowed outside the palace grounds and his will was "interpreted" by a shogun, or military dictator. Beneath the shogun, daimyos, or regional lords, administered the provinces through their samurai lieutenants. Possibly through Chinese influence, and possibly springing from a lack of arable land, the Japanese class structure also ranked farmers above merchants and other bourgeois workers. Like the Chinese model, the Japanese class system has changed to reflect membership in the global markets.

Iran

In Iran, the respect for individual achievement in Abrahamic religions often gave independent actors such as legislators and merchants greater status relative to the farmers of Dharmic religion, who had to work in concert with the land. However, the protection of landowners' leisure through military force or religious guilt remained constant. Under the Qajar dynasty of Iran, the class structure was set up as follows:

  • the permanent hereditary class of Qajar princes
  • an upper class of "nobles and notables"
  • religious leaders and students of theology
  • merchants (note the difference from east Asian models)
  • agricultural landowners
  • master artisans and shopkeepers

As in many official class structures, the laborers who made up the majority of the population, but owned no land and relied on wages, were not even considered part of the structure.[2] Iran continues to function as a theocracy, with religious leaders holding much of the power over day to day affairs.

France

For most of France's history, there was an absolute monarchy, with the king at the pinnacle of the class structure. However, the French States-General, established in 1302, provided some sort of legislative assembly with its members ranked according to hereditary class. The "First Estate" consisted of the highborn sons of great families who had devoted themselves to religion (similar to the Indian Brahmins, Confucian scholars, and Qajar theology students). The "Second Estate" were the highborn sons who were devoted to war (compare to the Indian Ksatriyas and Japanese daimyos, but contrast with the low status given to soldiers in China). The "Third Estate" consisted technically of everyone else, but was represented only by the richest members of the bourgeoisie. In truth, the peasantry had no voice at all in the system, as contrasted with the ideologically high status of farmers in Confucian China. The rigidity of the French hereditary system was a major cause of the French Revolution. Since then, the French have attempted to adhere to a socialist system in which class disparities should never grow too large.

United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom still contains a vestige of the European class structure undone in France by the French Revolution. The Queen maintains her status at the top of the social class structure, with the House of Lords, up until very recently, representing the hereditary upper class and the House of Commons technically representing everyone else. As with the French States-General, the House of Commons historically spoke just for the gentry and very rich bourgeoisie. In the Victorian era of the United Kingdom, social class became a national obsession, with nouveau riche industrialists in the House of Commons trying to attain the status of House of Lords landowners through attempts to dress, eat, and talk in an upper class manner, marriages arranged to achieve titles, and the purchase of grand country houses built to emulate the old aristocracy's feudal castles. It was the Victorian middle class who tried to distance themselves from the lower class with terms such as "working class," which seemed to imply that their new "white collar" positions should not be considered "work" since they were so clean, modern, and safe.

It was also in nineteenth century Britain that the term "Fourth Estate" was used to describe the press. Thomas Carlyle equated the Queen to France's First Estate of clergy, the House of Lords to France's Second Estate of hereditary aristocracy, and the House of Commons to France's Third Estate of rich bourgeoisie. But he then pointed out that the editors of newspapers in Britain's booming Industrial Revolution (similar to the pamphleteers before and during the French Revolution) held powerful sway over public opinion, making them equally important players in the political arena. The political role of the media has become ever more important as technology has blossomed in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, but few academic models today set aside the media as a specific class.

United States

To this day economists and sociologists have not devised exact guidelines for classes in the United States. With no set class boundaries, the interpretation of class and social status is largely left up to the individual. While many Americans believe in a three-class model that includes the "rich," the "middle class," and the "poor," in reality American society is much more economically and culturally fragmented. The differences in wealth, income, education, and occupation are indeed so great that one could justify the application of a social class model including dozens of classes. A common approach to the economic and cultural diversity of those in between the extremes of wealth—those in the middle class—has been to divide the middle class into three sections: the "upper-middle," "middle-middle," and "lower-middle." This "five-class" model which can partially be traced to sociologist W. Lloyd Warner is, however, still an overly simplified portrayal of the American social class system. According to the nominal approach, American society is sociologically and economically fragmented in such a manner that no clear class distinctions can be formed. This means that there are no pronounced breaks in socio-economic strata, which makes class division highly subjective and disputable. There has been much discussion, however, that the middle class is shrinking as disparities in wealth grow in America. [3]

Academic Theories of Class

Schools of sociology differ in how they conceptualize class. A distinction can be drawn between "analytical" concepts of social class, such as the Marxian and Weberian traditions, and the more "empirical" traditions such as a socio-economic status approach, which notes the correlation of income, education, and wealth with social outcomes without necessarily implying a particular theory of social structure. The Warnerian approach can be considered "empirical" in the sense that it is more descriptive than analytical.

Marxist

It was in Victorian Britain that Karl Marx became the first person to critically attack the privileges not just of an hereditary upper class, but of anyone whose labor output could not begin to cover their consumption of luxury. The majority proletariat which had previously been relegated to an unimportant compartment at the bottom of most hierarchies, or ignored completely, became Marx's focal point. He recognized the traditional European ruling class ("We rule you"), supported by the religious ("We fool you") and military ("We shoot at you") élites, but the French Revolution had already shown that these classes could be removed. Marx looked forward to a time when the new capitalist upper class could also be removed and everyone could work as they were able, and receive as they needed.

Karl Marx defined class in terms of the extent to which an individual or social group has control over the means of production. In Marxist terms, a class is a group of people defined by their relationship to their means of production. Classes are seen to have their origin in the division of the social product into a "necessary product" and a "surplus product." Marxists explain the history of "civilized" societies in terms of a war of classes between those who control production and those who actually produce the goods or services in society (and also developments in technology and the like). In the Marxist view of capitalism, this is a conflict between capitalists (bourgeoisie) and wage-workers (the proletariat). For Marxists, class antagonism is rooted in the situation that control over social production necessarily entails control over the class which produces goods—in capitalism this amounts to the exploitation of workers by the bourgeosie.

Marx himself argued that it was the goal of the proletariat itself to displace the capitalist system with socialism, changing the social relationships underpinning the class system and then developing into a future communist society in which: "the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all" (Communist Manifesto).

Vladimir Lenin defined classes as "large groups of people differing from each other by the place they occupy in a historically determined system of social production, by their relation (in most cases fixed and formulated in law) to the means of production, by their role in the social organization of labor, and, consequently, by the dimensions of the share of social wealth of which they dispose and the mode of acquiring it."[4]

Max Weber

The seminal sociological interpretation of class was advanced by Max Weber. Weber formulated a three-component theory of stratification, with class, status, and party (or politics) as subordinate to the ownership of the means of production; but for Weber, how they interact is a contingent question and one that varies from society to society. One can have strength in one, two, all three, or none of these categories. For example, a drug dealer may be wealthy and therefore of the upper class, but is not respected in society and therefore of low status. A priest may not have any money but is held in high esteem in society. A Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a corporation is likely wealthy and respected, but may not have any political power.

William Lloyd Warner

An early example of a stratum class model was developed by the sociologist William Lloyd Warner in his 1949 book, Social Class in America. For many decades, the Warnerian theory was dominant in U.S. sociology.

Based on social anthropology, Warner divided Americans into three classes (upper, middle, and lower), then further subdivided each of these into an "upper" and "lower" segment, with the following postulates:

  • Upper-upper class. "Old money." People who have been born into and raised with wealth; mostly consists of old, noble, or prestigious families (e.g., Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Hilton).
  • Lower-upper class. "New money." Individuals who have become rich within their own lifetimes (entrepreneurs, movie stars, as well as some prominent professionals).
  • Upper-middle class. High-salaried professionals (doctors, lawyers, higher rung (were in the corporate market, yet left for a reason such as family time) professors, corporate executives).
  • Lower-middle class. Lower-paid professionals, but not manual laborers (police officers, non-management office workers, small business owners).
  • Upper-lower class. Blue-collar workers and manual laborers. Also known as the "working class."
  • Lower-lower class. The homeless and permanently unemployed, as well as the "working poor."

To Warner, American social class was based more on attitudes than on the actual amount of money an individual made. For example, the richest people in America would belong to the "lower-upper class" since many of them created their own fortunes; one can only be born into the highest class. Nonetheless, members of the wealthy upper-upper class tend to be more powerful, as a simple survey of U.S. presidents demonstrates (the Roosevelts, Kennedys, Bushes).

Another observation: Members of the upper-lower class might make more money than members of the lower-middle class (a well-salaried factory worker vs. a secretarial worker), but the class difference is based on the type of work they perform.

In his research findings, Warner observed that American social class was largely based on these shared attitudes. For example, he noted that the lower-middle class tended to be the most conservative group of all, since very little separated them from the working class. The upper-middle class, while a relatively small section of the population, usually "set the standard" for proper American behavior, as reflected in the mass media.

Professionals with salaries and educational attainment higher than those found in the middle of the income strata (bottom rung professors, managerial office workers, architects) may also be considered as being true middle class.

Others

Sociologists who seek fine-grained connections between class and life-outcomes often develop precisely defined social strata, like historian Paul Fussell's semi-satirical nine-tier stratification of American society, published in 1983. Fussell's model classifies Americans according to the following classes:

  1. Top out-of-sight: the super-rich, heirs to huge fortunes
  2. Upper Class: rich CEOs, diplomats, people who can afford full-time domestic staff, and some high salaried, prominent professionals (examples include surgeons and some highly-paid types of lawyers)
  3. Upper-Middle Class: self-made, well-educated professionals
  4. Middle Class: office workers
  5. High Prole: skilled blue-collar workers
  6. Mid Prole: workers in factories and the service industry
  7. Low Prole: manual laborers
  8. Destitute: the homeless and the disreputable (but still free)
  9. Bottom out-of-sight: those incarcerated in prisons and institutions

Fussell no longer recognized a true lower middle class, its members either having advanced into the middle class due to rising requirements of formal education or becoming indistinguishable from the "high proles" or even the "mid proles."

In his The American Class Structure, published in 2002, Dennis Gilbert laid out an even more precise breakdown of American social class by providing typical incomes for his conceptions of the classes:

  • the capitalist class (a term borrowed from Marx) made up of the executives of large corporations, large-scale investors in the stock market, and the heirs of extremely successful entrepreneurs with an annual income of about US$2 million on average. They make up about one percent of the population.
  • the upper middle class, actually sitting well above the middle of the model, is made up of doctors, high ranking managers at large corporations, lawyers, the owners of medium-sized commercial interests, and very successful accountants. Their average income is $120,000 a year, and they comprise 14 percent of the population.
  • the middle class, actually sitting just above the middle of the model, made up of foremen, lower level managers at large companies, the sellers of bulk industrial and technological goods, and very successful craftsmen. The average income is $55,000 and the class makes up 30 percent of the population.
  • the working class, a phrase borrowed from Victorian distinctions between managerial and active work. This group comprises clerical workers, retail salespeople, and well-paid manual laborers. The average income is $35,000 a year, and the class makes up 30 percent of the population.
  • the working poor, a group of poorly paid manual and service workers making up 13 percent of the population and averaging $22,000 a year.
  • an underclass of people working only part time in service jobs, or not working at all and relying on government support for sustenance. The average income is $12,000 a year, and the class makes up 12 percent of the population.

Issues with the Nature of Class

Some would argue that any conception of class based on power models is too narrow, since so much of quality of life cannot be expressed in terms of dollars or acres owned. A retired teacher on a small, but adequate stipend may actually enjoy a great deal more freedom, health, and social respect than an overworked executive making a six figure income at a discredited corporation.

In addition, many people can be difficult to fit into the above models. There is the question, for instance, of whether the wife of an upper class man is automatically upper class herself, even if her education, manners, and her own net worth would place her in a lower class status. Additionally, children, who usually enjoy the comfort and prestige related to their parent's social class, may actually live very poorly with abusive high class parents or at a very high level of consumption and income if their low class parents spoil them. Some youth rights activists would argue that all minors are lower class due to their lack of choice in where they live, how they spend their time, and who makes the laws affecting them. Similar arguments could be made concerning women in many parts of the world.

These issues point out that the nature of class itself might be flawed and inappropriately applied to society. Some could argue that class breeds needless feelings of competition and feelings of inequity; such arguments typically come from Marxist schools of thought. Those in favor of systems of class, such as capitalists, would argue that eliminating the possibility of class eliminates the incentive for progress in society. It is necessary to strike some balance of equality while maintaining incentives to progress.

Notes

  1. Li Yi, Structure and Evolution of Chinese Social Stratification (University Press of America, 2005, ISBN 0761833315).
  2. Encylopaedia Iranica, The Qajar Class Structure. Retrieved December 2, 2006.
  3. Fact Check.org, Update on Kerry's "Shrinking Middle Class"—Still Shrinking in 2003.
  4. Marxists Internet Archive, A Great Beginning. Retrieved December 2, 2006.

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