Dalton Conley Social Inequality

Social inequality is a problematic phenomenon that occurs all around the world and affects both the developed and developing nations. It is defined as “the unequal distribution of social, political and economic resources within a social collective” (van Krieken et al. 2013, p. 205). Inequality is closely connected with social stratification, a system of social hierarchy that positions individuals and groups into categories according to social variables such as class or ethnicity (van Krieken et al. 2013, p. 485). This stratification has a significant impact on the opportunity that an individual may have to move up the hierarchy of inequality (Gill 2017a).

Have you ever referred to someone as “high class,” “middle class,” or “low class?” The article “Class In America” is a very educated read and describes the way people are characterized by their “class.” I think that this article informs all types of readers and allows people to see how people are grouped based on themselves. “Class in America” is written to show and prove to society that people do not talk about “class” anymore, because of the way the world looks at it today. Gregory Mantosis is the author of the article, and he uses many facts and data to prove his points.

The axis of inequality that will be focused throughout this paper is the social class. Social class is defined as a group of individuals who are categorized according to class (i.e. poor, middle, and upper) due to their income, wealth, power, and occupation. Social class is socially constructed by the way we view how much income and wealth a person possess (Ore, 20011a, 10). In reality it is much more than that. According to the text, poverty is not only the shortage of income, but it is the rejection of opportunities and choices that leads a person to a standard way of living (Ore, 2011a, 10). Stereotyping also contributes to it being socially constructed. These stereotypes influence us by defining who is who based on their principles in each class category. This can cause some to feel worthless.

The article “Class in America” by Gregory Mantsios exploited the sad truth that is the American class system. Throughout the piece we are introduced to different myths about the economic spectrum that are later debunked by hard facts and evidence. On a day to day basis here at Monmouth University I am surrounded by fellow students who I would believe to be in the same social class as me. Growing up I never viewed myself as exceedingly wealthy or poor by any means but I knew my parents had to work hard for whatever income they could get. My family is what this article identifies as “middle class”, but after reading it should I begin to think of myself as less than that? According to the article, classes should not even be discussed because there

According to Gregory Mantsios many American people believed that the classes in the United States were irrelevant, that they believed we reside(ed) in a middle class nation, that we were all getting richer together, and that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed in life. But what many believed, was far from the truth. In reality the middle class of the United States receives a very small amount of the nation 's wealth, and sixty percent of America 's population receives less than 6 percent of the nation 's wealth, while the top 1 percent of the American population receives 34 percent of the total national wealth. In the article Class in America ( 2009), written by Gregory Mantsios informs us that there are some hu

Republicans praise the middle class but preach that giving the wealthy tax breaks will give us all relief in return. Which leads us all to ask, what is the true cause of middle-class suffering? In this analysis, I have selected “The Phantom Menace: What War on the Middle Class” by Clive Crook and “A TED Talk on Income Inequality” by Nick Hanauer for comparison. These readings place focus on issues within the middle class in America. Hanauer appears to think that low wages and unfair taxation are the main culprit of middle-class struggle. However, Clive Crook feels strongly that these economic inequities are so small compared to other growing problems for the middle class. Nick Hanauer holds a valid point about income inequality being an important issue, but I am not convinced it is the largest problem the middle class faces. Clive Crook’s article leads me to believe a stifling combination of broken social systems and having a class-based system in general are more troubling for Middle-Class America than economic inequality itself.

Social mobility has allowed many of us to gain an understanding of how social status and financial class play a role in employment. Along with other factors that suggest family structure and education within the home can have a major impact personally and socioeconomically. Gender and race also influence job roles, training, and wage earnings. There are various levels of movement in the workforce, however, some allow more opportunity while others make it more difficult to advance. For instance, opportunity structure “The structure places limits on the possibility and degree of occupational mobility in society” (pg.331Social Inequality). Whereas circulation mobility considers changes that have occurred within the workforce and can allow individual

Of this group, about 1/3rd belongs to the upper-middle class. The annual income of person belonging to this group is $70-$75,000. The jobs that the typical upper-middle class person holds would have a prestige rating of 65 or higher. 2/3rd?s of the middle-class population is the lower-middle class. White-collared individuals make up the majority of this class, earning anywhere from $30,000 to $60,000 a year. Lower-middle class Americans have a set standard of priorities. They take pride in the fact that they are financially stable, and promote hard work, and press on education. Without education, the members feel that they would not be where they are economically, and preach the importance to their children so that they, too, can live a lifestyle very similar to that of theirs (Norton).

For this summary and response essay my audience is my Ivy Tech English class, and Professor Jo Johnson. The class and I have all been assigned to look into a core reading covering some form of economic justice. The essay I am writing will cover the topics and provide insights on the economy and politics of the unofficial class system present in the United States, in specific, that of the Middle class. It points out flaws and various ways the middle class is mistaken and manipulated. It also provides a deeper look into if the Americans who consider themselves part of this middle class truly have it as bad as some say.

It has been a well-known fact for several decades now, that the middle/working class is the backbone of the United States. This economic class of Americans are what hold the country stable through their hard work and purchasing power. However, lately there has been a few jabs thrown at the middle class, such as the 2007-2008 recession, problems with minimum wage and its efficacy to create a comfortable life, and political matchups between candidates that reflect the middle class in different ways. I believe that the middle class has had to make decisions that will benefit them financially but hurt their desires such as, having a fewer amount of kids.

A blue collar worker that makes 25 thousand dollars a year is put in the same socioeconomic class as an engineer making 200 thousand dollars based on the Pew Research Center's Calculation of middle class. The definition of middle class lumps those making four times the median United States income with those living paycheck to paycheck and feeling like they live more impoverished than anything leading to a confusion in identity. Is the lower middle supposed to feel proud and content with their situation considering they are categorized with engineers, doctors, and lawyers, or are they to feel impoverished because if they took a 5 thousand dollar pay cut, they would be below the poverty line? The gap between the lower middle and the upper middle

“In the United States, people like to believe everyone has an equal chance at success. This emphasis on self-effort perpetuates the belief that people control their own social standing. However, sociologists recognize that social stratification is a society-wide system that makes inequalities apparent” (Griffiths et al., 2016, p.188). There are many factors that drive social inequality; globalization and immigration, technology advances, the family you were born

The three theoretical perspectives that we will describe in this paper are: (1) modernization theory; (2) dependency theory, and; (3) world systems theory. We will first begin with the modernization theory.

Inequality is the state of describing the non-similarities or beneficiaries two parties do not share as a whole. Apathy is the lack of feeling or of an interest in a commodity, idea, or principle. So apathy may be a source of inequality if the non-beneficial party's plea, in sharing of the same amount of benefits, become a lack of interest to the benefiting party. Yes! the social and political lack of interest towards the less fortunate may persist but the effort to eliminate inequality would lead to its decline. Inequality wastes human capital and human potentials and it needs to be eliminated regardless. As a politician the best way to address inequality is to monitor and commit to realistic but courageous targets to reduce it. And, also

Throughout history, social classification has been a basis of economic and social stability. Social classification was introduced to even the predecessors of human civilization, the Mesopotamian civilization. But, due to natural flaws within the structure of the social classification system, this system concluded in becoming biased towards the upper class and unrighteous toward the lower class. Because social classification consistently had flaws which made the system more prejudiced to the lower class, throughout historical times, social classification primarily affected a society in a negative manner.