Social class identities Flashcards
What are the 4 classes?
- Upper class (+ super rich)
- Middle class
- Working class (traditional + new)
- Underclass
What is social class?
A ‘contested concept’ as it is difficult to define which social class someone belongs to, but there are indicators of an individual’s social class position
What do Palkuski and Walters think about social class?
Changing, no longer significant
- Social class, as a means of identity, is no longer significant, so is dead
- There has been a shift from production to consumption in the definition of identity (work centred to consumerism)
What do Postmodernists (Taylor/Polhemus) think about social class identity?
Changing, no longer significant
- Uk provides choices and opportunities to everyone, depsite social class/background, such as: university, travelling, home owning
- Choice over social class identity- supermarket of style/pick n mix
What did Offe say about social class identities?
Changing, no longer significant
- In today’s society, fewer individuals share a common, unifying experience of full time work
- We create our own identities, regardless of family’s class, qualifications, job, etc
What is an example of changing social class identities?
- Contemporary UK gives choices and opportunities to everyone (uni, travelling, homeowning)
- Media gives access to a range of info and cultural experiences
What is an example of social class identities NOT changing?
- Social class backgrounds remain the most significant indicators of outcome (education, health, life expectancy)
- There is a difference is culture and lifestyle between people from different social and economic backgrounds
What do Marxists think about social class?
Not changing, still significant
- Social class is still significant, as there are still divisions within society, due to class
- Ruling class on top, working class ordered to follow values
What does Bordieu say about social class?
Not changing, siill significant
- The rich stay rich and at the top of sociey (through capitals)
- The poor stay poor
- The ruling class use their power to ensure that they, and their children stay in their societal position
What are the 3 types of capital?
- Cultural capital (knowledge, attitudes, skills, education and advantages)
- Economic capital (economic resources)
- Social capital (resources based on group membership, relationships, networks of influence and support)
What are some of the indicators of social class?
- Holidays
- Accent/language
- Occupation
- Wealth/assets
- Housing
- Money/income
- Cars
- Education
- Norms and values
- Hobbies/activities
Who are the upper class?
Those with inherited wealth, often in the form of land or money (from inheritance)
What are the 3 main groups of the upper class?
- Traditional
- Owners of industry and commerce
- Entertainment stars
What are the key features of the upper class?
- Private education
- Military service
- Employing domestic staff
- High culture
What are some of the activities enjoyed by the upper class?
- Polo
- Shooting
- Ballet
- Going to the theatre/opera
- Hunting
What did Mackintosh, Mooney and Scott say about the upper class?
Still significant, not changing
- The upper cass operate on ‘social closure’
What is ‘social closure’?
- Closing off opportunities to ‘outsiders’
- Their (upper class) education, leisure time, daily lives are separated and partially invisible from the rest of the population
What is the ‘Old Boys Network’?
- Shows how education connects the upper class, to create a ‘social capital’
- These connections enale for the rich to remain wealthy and powerful, as they use their connection to maintain status ofr their children too
What is Bordieu’s cultural capital?
Still significant, not changing
- Parents socialise their children into the attitudes and knowledge needed to succeed in high society
- This may include the right ways of speaking, etiquette and confidence in different social situations
Who are the super rich?
- People whose economic capital comes from their achievements, not their inheritance
- Success comes from hard work
- E.g: Elon Musk
What are the characteristics of the super rich?
- Flashy
- Conspicuous consumers with branded labels
- Flash cars
What did Bordieu say about the super rich?
Still significant, not changing
- They have a large economical capital
- A low social capital
- And high social status
Who are the middle class?
A large class, made up of a wide range of different groups with an emphasis on respectability and self control
What are the characteristics of the middle class?
- Children raised with a commitment to education and success in their careers
- Higher social capital
- Rapidly expanding as a social class
What are the 2 main categories within the middle class?
- Established middle class (larger group, with a higher social and cultural capital)
- Technical middle class (smaller, socially isolated group with low social and cultural capital)
What are the 5 main categories of career within the middle class?
- The professions (lawyers, doctors, teachers)
- Managers (government officials)
- Self employed (business owners)
- Financial and creative (finance workers, stockbrokers)
- Lower middle class (white collar workers- non manual work- sales staff)
What are the norms and values of the middle class?
- Deferred gratfication
- Commitment to education
- Concern on own fitness, health, wellbeing
- Respect for high culture
- Focus on future orientation
What did Wyne say about the middle class?
Not changing, still significant
- Argued the middle class possess economic, cultural and social capital
- There differ from the working class
What did Savage and Roberts say about the middle class?
No longer significant, changing
- It is difficult to generalise middle class identity
What did Bordieu say about the middle class?
Still significant, changing
- Middle class children at university are seen as a ‘fish in water’
Who are the traditional working class?
Individuals focused on traditional, long established and basic industries (mining, docking, iron and steel, shipbuilding)
What are some of the cultural features of the traditional working class?
- Close-knit community
- Men=breadwinners, instrumental roles
- Women= houswives, expressive roles
- Obtaining a skill, getting a job and money are seen as more important than education
- Strong sense of working class identiy and loyalty to social class
- Commitment to the old labour party
- Enjoyment and participation in pop culture
What did Bordieu say about the working class?
Still significant, not changing
- Working class children at university are like ‘a fish out of water’ as they are less focused on their education
What did Willis say about the working class?
Still significant, not changing
- Found manual labour to be central to a man’s masculinity
- Working class aspirations are based on parents’ careers and children want to ‘follow in their father’s footsteps’
What did Hoggart say about the working class?
Still significant, not changing
- Found the working class had very strong morals and maintaining respectability in the community was linked to ‘doing the right thing’
- Their security of life, risk of unemployment, injury, ill health and poverty led to:
- Immediate gratification
- Present orientation
- A sense of fatalism
What did Hutton say about working class identities?
No longer significant, changing
- Decline in trade union memberships and manufacturing sector, dispersal of working-class communities
- Working class identity has eroded
What is immediate gratification?
Enjoying the pleasure of today, rather than putting it off for later
What is present orientation?
A focus on the here and now, rather than the future and long-term goals
What is a sense of fatalism?
An acceptance of their situation, as they don’t see much hope changing or improving their lives
What are the cultural features of the new working class?
- Privatised, home-centered family lifestyle
- Work is now seen as a means of making money
- Little loyalty to class
- Changing gender roles
- Emphasis on consumer goods
- Rise in number of homeowners
What did Skeggs say about the new working class?
No longer significant, changing
- Working class women distanced themselves from the traditional working class norms and values
- Desire to be seen as respectable- homeowners, careers
What did Savage et al say about the new working class?
Not changing, still significant
- Men focus on manual labour and social clubs
- Women organise their social lives around local families (good social capital)
Who are the underclass?
The lowest social stratum in a community, consisting of the poor and the unemployed
What are the main characteristics of the underclass?
- Bottom of society
- Lack of opportunities
- Unqualified and unemployed
- Idle and lazy
- ‘Welfare scroungers’
- Single parent families, irresponsible parenting
- Poor health
- Low payed and unskilled jobs
- Criminality and poverty
What did Charlesworth say about the underclass?
Still significant, not changing
- As a form of compensation, the underclass turn to drink and drugs
What did Dennis and Erdos say about the underclass?
Still significant, not changing
- Boys growing up with a single mother turn to crime and deviance as they do not have an appropriate role model to look up to and aspire to be
What did Macdonald say about the underclass?
Still significant, not changing
- ‘Underclass’ is used to describe people who are ‘structurally separate and culturally distinct from the regularly employed working class’
What do Marxists say about the underclass?
Still significant, not changing
- ‘Lumpenproletariat (lump at the bottom of the pile)
- Seen in a negatve light due to a lack of contribution to things such as capitalism and consumerism
- Don’t aid the rich staying rich
What does Marshall say about class identities?
Not changing, still significant
- Individuals in the UK have a strong class identity
- 90% could place themsleves in a social class, if prompted
What does Savage say about class identities?
Changing, no longer significant
- Weak social class identities
- Few of his sample thought Britain was classless
- Most saw themselves as ‘outside’ classes
