Analysis Of People Like Us : Social Class In America

The social class in America is everywhere but it is often quite hard to recognize only because it is against the American principle for the social class system to exist. Whether we know it or not, we tend to participate in the class system.. By doing so, this leads us to separate ourselves based on our social class system, including class discrimination and social mobility

There is much debate about the issue of social class in the United States. There are arguments about whether social classes are distinctly separate or fluid, dependent upon one’s community or society as a whole, and if they are subjective or objective (Hughes and Jenkins). However, despite the debate surrounding social classes, it is still important to try to define them and analyze their effects, as they are such an important part of our identity and our opportunities in society. Although our society has tried to appear as though we have no classes, and it is becoming harder to tell what class someone is in by material goods, classes do still exist today (Scott and Leonhardt). The trend has been to divide the U.S. into four major

Social class is a topic of discussion that is generally avoided, especially in America. In a country where all of one's dreams can allegedly come true; the notion of class highlights the jarring inequalities and social divisions between one American and another. In recent years, recognizing one's privilege is beginning to become a cultural value. However, it has always been something that people were aware of, as seen in the eye-opening documentary, People Like Us: Social Class is America (2001). The documentary strives to accurately portray how the contrasted people of America live, interact, and see themselves and others. Of the ideas the doc showcases the most important are, the higher classes influence over the poor, and the poor's poor self-image, as these ideas strike the core of why one should be conscientious of their class.

America is a complex and diverse web of individuals marked by social stratification, a system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy (Macionis, 2011, p.204). The film People Like Us: Social Class in America discusses the class system, social stratification based on both birth and individual achievement, which the American people use to define others (Macionis, 2011, p.206). It explores the many variables that contribute to the determination of a person’s class; such as, ancestry, education, and money. Ancestry will be a main focus because it has such a strong influence on the class system of today. The film provided an informative and entertaining

Many of us have seen the small suffix “ism” on the end of many nouns. Some of them denoting action or practice like – “baptism”; state or quality like – “criticism”. Other nouns representing a system or ideological movement like - “communism” or “capitalism.” Also, this suffix is indicating a pathological condition like – “alcoholism”. However, the important definition that will help us to better understand our topic is that suffix “ism” denoting a basis for prejudice or discrimination. For example, there are many nouns such as: sexism, ageism, chauvinism, ethnocentrism, and racism that demonstrate some level of prejudice or discrimination. Thus, the word “classism”

The book says and it makes sense to an extent that people of lower social status have in general poorer health and higher mortality rate. Beyond that it makes a whole lot more sense that there are numerous and annoyingly complex factors that can lead up to the poorer health that relates to lower status. The book also talks about race, which really goes and links itself with the social status parts, since in America (which is what/where they mentioned) there is a moderate alignment of race to social status. Now when bringing up higher socioeconomic status that doesn't necessarily mean a person will live longer, regardless of race, but it certainly helps. Now to start the rant of the annoying and complex events that relate to social status. When

Classism: a tender discussion because we all are guilty, simultaneously oppressed and the oppressor and no one enjoys the feeling it brings. The documentary “People Like Us: Social Class in America”, helped me explain my own subconscious thought process to open my eyes to the true inner workings of social class. Throughout the documentary, the topics that truly touched me were the ability to acknowledge class, understand my own class, and how the classes intermingle.

America is seen as the land of opportunity across the world, but many people wonder if it is true. The truth is America does have opportunities and with dedication anything is possible though the opportunities are limited. Usually limited for those who belong to a lower social class. The main reason opportunities are limited are because of America’s social inequality. The social class of America is separated into multiple groups that struggle with each other due to the inequality of power and wealth on the daily basis.

The five social or economic classes in America are based on the large disparity of income gaps in the American class system. The naming of the different class systems may have different names depending on the author, but the American social class system has a wide income gap between the richest to the poorest in the nation. According to the article, “Who We Are” written by Emily Barone, the income gap is wider than ever before in America. “The income gap is wider than ever. Climbing out of poverty is increasingly difficult.”

Social class is defined as 'people having the same social or economic status' (Wordnet). In contemporary American society, social class is based on the amount of money and property you have and also prestige. Prestige is given to a person through the line of work or the family that they come from. For example, upper-upper class member Jennifer Lopez reeks of prestige not only because she has millions of dollars in her bank account, but she has very expensive luxuries, cars, and houses.

Every person in society is dramatically different from one another, yet some people manage to find their place. But what is to be done with the people who don’t fit the status quo, or who don’t fit into society’s ideals? The American society is dominantly constructed by three main aspects: race, class and economics. In Louis Alvarez’s and Andrew Kolker’s documentary, “People like us: Social Class in America”, they thoroughly discussed and examined these three ideas and how they operate in the American culture. Race, class and economics all shape the experiences people have and in the film, all three structures are interconnected in how they impact the lives of people. One way they all can impact lives is how the media socially frames what we

Everyday in America, every citizen faces the burdens and restrictions of the class structure. But America is known as the “Land of the Free,” so how can these restrictions and burdens exist? Unfortunately, Americans are not as free as we think, because we are as equal as we think. Due to the class structure, most Americans can no longer reach the “American Dream.” The issue is a lot easier to notice than you may think, and it is easier than you may think to do something about it. Because change is already occurring within America, and it’s not too hard to add to it. So, the question is, what can you do?

The point that James Loewen is trying to make about the social class in the united states is, a lot of history books do not talk about social class, so a lot of high school graduates do not understand why they are in the social class that thy are in. Social Darwinism is the success and failure of people to advance in society where the strong survive and the weak do not. An example of blaming the victim would be blaming the poor people for being poor, and not making their way up the social ladder.

There are so many problems that Americans face. A lot of American citizens pay the consequences for the mistakes of the wealthy, and not every citizen is fortunate to battle through them.There is no doubt that America has a very wide range of social classes, but what makes America strong is how social classes cooperate and help each other. For the past 20 years the social classes of America have been at a political war. The wealthy privilege that are in power of America fail to recognize the disadvantages that low income citizens have, because they have never been in the certain types of situations that a low income citizen experiences every day. Our social system, benefits the privilege. It's designed for the privileged, and keeps them in

I believe that all three of the friends that I interviewed belong to either the middle-class or upper-middle-class social groups. My friends Ben and James are very similar to me in terms of their development and the type of individuals that they grew out to be today, meanwhile, my friend Jack differs slightly. Ben and James, although they failed to move around as much as I did during their childhoods, participated in organized activities similar to mine. Team sports were an integral part of our lives and the lessons we learned from them have been deeply involved with our everyday decision making. As Lareau mentions, middle-class families often heavily involved their children in adult-organized activities (Lareau, 761). I believe this explains why both James and Ben always feel a tide of confidence and have developed the ability to successfully interact with authoritative figures and individuals. Meanwhile, my friend Jack has not been able to do so. Jack grew up in an extremely wealthy family with a dad who holds a high position in a Fortune 500 company. Essentially, everything he has asked for has been given to him without question. His parents never pushed him to partake in any after school activities and as as result I believe this has detrimentally affected his ability to converse with authoritative figures. He never learned the skills of being respondent to a coach/instructor nor did he have the ability to play alongside teammates and peers. From our interview, he seemed