Classification of classes #8

"Class can be harder to spot than racial or ethnic differences, yet in many ways it's the most important predictor of what kind of financial and educational opportunities someone will have in life."

      Growing up i never thought of class as anything but a word; never fully seeing the bigger picture; that is imbedded in our society. I guess to some degree i had the mindset of being middle-class do i even dare to say upperclass; never questioning the social  stratification but definality knowing it existed especially when i went to school. from the friends i had to the clothes we whore on a daily basis.

             In the documentary "People Like Us" looks at the way Americans constantly evaluate and categorize other "social Status" this un-question ideology deeply-held of egalitarianism and fairness, where citizens are in fact subject to sharp class distinctions and inequalities of opportunity.

  "  I found it funny how we could define a person class simply by looking at photographs".

      The film touch on various of class and the rolls such as the fallen gentry, social climber working stiff and social critic people who are defining "class" exploring the many variables that contribute to the determination of a person class; such as, ancestry, education, and money. According to the film, individual defined class as having money, how you were raised, and your state of mind. Evidently we use status symbols in order to show others were we should be within the social hierarchy.

American has a secret that cannot be described in a traditional sense.  It is more of “The emperor wears no clothes” kind of secret. Everyone knows class stratification exist but people do not talk about it openly, like it’s something that should be avoided bring discomfort for the inhabitants of the “Land of Free”, and the inheritor of “equal opportunity”

        I guess it would be wishful thinking if Americans citizens would actually acknowledge wealth as the deciding social class identifier and try and change the mindset of generations to come.

But then again just like in the reading “Media Magic” by Gregory Mantsios, he states four beliefs that are widely held bout class in America. The media is distinction that the middle-class is comprised of the upper class and white-collared workers, and the under-class solely defined as the poor and colored. The implication disclosed in the media is that “we” are burdened by “their” inability to support themselves “really” As mantsios point out, “for the media” ‘we’ the affluent not only stand apart from the ‘other’ the poor, the working class, the minorities and their problems.

Furthermore, America is built on this illusion that everything is equal and fair, there are to many deciding factors that define class most, which is man, made. Can I go deeper and say this is foam of social control letting each person know indirectly know where they stand and what is expected of them.. I must say this has been one of my favorite blog because the material has enlightening me to a point that my mind is coastally running.