Social Class Essay

When sociologists talk of societal class, they refer to a group of individuals who occupy a similar position in the economic system of production. Within that system occupation is really chief(prenominal) beca subroutine it provides financial rewards, stability and benefits like healthcare.Social classes are very complex, save the relationship between source and wealth is undeniable. (Marger 40) People can change the genial class they are in, but it is not simply adept factor that determines ones social class. Occupation, income, wealth, education, and status are all major factors that can help determine which of the five social classes a mortal belongs. An individual can change his or her social class if they have the desire to do soMany sociologists suggest fiveUpper Class EliteRepresent institutional leadership, heads of international corporations, foundations, universities Capitalist elite owners of lands, stocks and bonds and other assets wealth derived from what the y own Forbes magazine publishes a list of the 400 wealthiest families in America. In 1997, net worth had to be at least $475 million.Bill Gates, in that year, had net worth pf 39.8 billion. Of all the wealth represented on the Forbes list, more than half is inherited. Newly acquired wealth, nouveau riche, have vast amounts of money but not often accepted into old money circles.Upper Middle ClassRepresent scientific and technical knowledge engineers, accountants, lawyers, architects, university faculty, managers and directors of public and private organizations. Have both gritty incomes and high social prestige. Well-educated. Difficult to define a middle class (i.e. upper middle, middle middle and dismount middle) probably the largest class group in the unite States because being middle class is more that just income, about lifestyles and resources, etc.Lower Middle Class Clerical-administrative Provide support for professionals Engage in data collection., record-keeping Parale gals., bank tellers, gross revenue Blue-collar workers in skilled tradesWorking Class Craft workers Laborers in factories Restaurant workers Nursing home staff Repair shops, garages Delivery services pitifulWorking poor work full-magazine at wages below poverty line Social services UnderclassSocial class is one of the most important concepts that sociologists discuss and yet its definition is often illusive. There are two classical sociologists who are most important in the discussions about class .Karl Marx and exclusive Weber have different views upon social class in contemporary societies. In Karl Marxs perspective, social class has a two-class system whereas Max Weber argued that social class has three dimensions of stratification class, status and party And what is frustrating about both is that they did not produce a viable definition of the things that they wrote extensively about.Karl Marx 1818-1883Karl Marx argued in that location are two major social classes, the ruling class who own the means of production and the subject class, who dont own the means ofproduction and are a diverse group of people controlled by and working for the ruling class. These two groups are better known as the bourgeoisie and project. In particular, the bourgeoisie use a mode of production, in the form of capitalism, to oppress the proletariat. Whereby the owners of production (bourgeoisie) use the (proletariat) workers labour to produce their supererogatory value. In turn they pay their workers the smallest amount assertable to make a profit, thus exploiting the working class.The defining factor in what makes them a separate class is the bourgeoisies ownership of the means of production, not their wealth, because they dont produce the surplus value, the proletariat do. The bourgeoisie only appropriate the surplus. In essence the bourgeoisie are a class for itself whereas the proletariat are a class in itself. Marx identifies that the reason we have classes is due to a group sharing a common interest and economic position. The bourgeoisie own the capital of land, machinery and raw materials. Whereas the proletariat own nothing, they can only sell their labour power in an attempt to survive and provide for their families. This in turn results in the social/power relations between the bourgeoisie and proletariat.Max Weber 1864 1920 bit Weber agrees with Marxs theory of the class distinction between the bourgeoisie and proletariat, he is more interested in the individuals trade value. For Weber, an individuals class position is determined by their current market value. This market value is established by the individuals level of education, natural talent, skills and acquired knowledge. With these skills the individual is undetermined to numerous life chances and opportunities to further their career and increase their standard of living. Their market value equals their economic gain. Market value is defined by their ability to market themselves t o a particular job opportunity. For instance, a university degree makes an individual more marketable and as such they have greater chances to work in their favourite(a) field. They are given greater financial rewards and in turn move up the social ladder.Consequences of social classDifferent consumptions of social goods is the most visible consequence of class. In modern societies it manifests as income, inequality, through the subsistence societies it manifested as malnutrition and periodic starvation. The conditions at work vary greatly depending on class. Those in the upper-middle class and middle class have sex greater freedom in their occupations. They are generally more respected, enjoy more diversity and are able to exhibit some authority. Those in lower classes tend to feel more alienated and have lower work satisfaction overall. The physical conditions of the work place differ greatly between classes. While middle class workers may suffer alienating conditions or lack of job satisfaction, blue-collar workers suffer alienating , often routine, work with intelligible physical health hazards, injury and even death.In the more social sphere, class has direct consequences on lifestyle. Lifestyle includes tastes, preferences, and general style of living. These lifestyles could quite possibly run into education attainment, and therefore status attainment. Class lifestyle also affects how tikeren are raised. For example, a working class person is more likely to raise their child to be a working class and middle class are more likely to be raised in middle- class. This perpetuates the idea of class for upcoming generations.Since social class is often self-reported, it is difficult to assure the accuracy of the information collected. Even if the data is accurate, social classes are not the same in from each one region or city. What constitutes upper class in one location may be middle class in another. The lack of consistency winding in researching s ocial class accounts for the difficulty in using it as a reliable variable. Schools and the workplace are greatly influenced by social class.The play of employment is changing because workers can no longer expect to work their port up through a connection. Many companies look outside of the company for people with the right educational background instead of hiring from within. This greatly limits the potential for advancement of workerswho lack formal education. For people to move up in the social hierarchy, they must obtain higher education. Instead of spending years at a lower level position, people are spending more time in school and moving directly into management. . Therefore at this day and age, more importance is givin to education in order for one to work his way up the social ladder.