Phillip Smith

April 9, 2014
English 1102
Ms. Hofmann

Note to reader:
I worked on several things while writing this Inquiry Project. The first thing was I
included one of the three introductory paragraphs in my first paragraph. I was informed
that it would be more interesting to read if I included it or made it my first paragraph. The
second thing that I addressed was the inclusion of my more personal connection to social
classes and its effect on me. After reading comments from Johnathon and Randy, I felt
that it would lead to better progress. The last thing that I did was I included a conclusion
and rounded things off within the paper; I also separated paragraphs because it felt like
there was a big mash-up of information.


In this day and time there is a constant pressure to be in a better class system than
one may already be pertained in. In this there is almost a competition between individuals
because of social classes. These social classes are in some way either predetermined, or
based off of educational status, creativity, or hardworking ethical practices. With a 7.6%
job loss, there is still a struggle to find jobs. There then becomes a lack of social class
definition. The question then becomes, Where does society see themselves in todays
economy? The angst to find a proper foothold in the two major groups : Upper, and
middle class has caused a social class warfare. Under Karl Marx he created the system
which is the bourgeoisie and proletariat. This has reflected on society, and you constantly
see a separation between groups of individuals.
After a three or four year recessional extent the outcome of many peoples previous
class structure has changed. There has been movements from the upper class to the
middle class and then even from the middle class all the way down to the lower class.
This course of event caused many individuals to feel a sense of discouragement because
some people lost all that they had , because they tried to stay afloat and stay above the
water. To go further there are many sublevels that are included in the three categories.
They are the upper class, upper-middle class, middle class, the working class and last the
lower class. These class structures have constantly been modified or re-evaluated ever
since the recession bubble has begun. Some factors that increase the level by which
people associate themselves with are educational level such as (high school degree,
Bachelors degree, and/or a master degree) as well as the job position that they hold. It all
seems that social classes continuously increase based off the need for education
advancements and this educational advancement increases the odds that people will have
a better chance to move up the social ladder. According to the Boundless source the
American dream is ones membership in a particular social class is based on educational
and career accomplishments. This seems to be the effort made by each individual under
the American vision to better their own position and to try to define their social and
economic position.
Being raised in a middle class family, I have seen the effects of the recession. We
went from being a upper middle class family to working middle class. My mom went
from working as the Vice-President of Human Resources at Wachovia to not having a job
for about six months. She went from making high six figures to relying on her severance
package. My family had to rely on not only her severance package, but also my dads
trucking drivers income which doesnt compare to a Vice-Presidents income. This
changed had a lot of different outcomes that were both positive and negative. The most
positive thing that I realized was that you have to be more appreciative of the things that
you already have, because you never know when your situation might change. The
downside of having an income change for a family of four would be that money becomes
tighter in the household. It required a change of mindset because the things that I was so
used to getting or being able to do was now limited. It takes time for families to move
from one class to another and it was definitely evident in my case. To increase the
struggle that I saw was seeing my mom apply to so many jobs and was told that she was
over-qualified for the job, it enhanced the stress that we were already feeling. I know that
many other families may have gone through this same struggle.
In todays society there is a constant movement in class system. This constant
stratification has allowed for people to experience the finer things in life, which in other
measures may not have been available before. In the New York Times, it was described
within the article that 40 percent of Americans believed that the chance of moving up
from one class to another had risen over the last 30 years This statement describes the
constant change that society is seeing within itself because of the ever so widespread
changing paradigm that Americans have. There are so many opportunities that bring
about this idea. One major bump in society that we see is the lottery. When people win
you have the chance to leave the class you were in and start a new life. In this, society
may have created this stigmatism that there are class structures and only the elite may be
able to progress or create the opportunity. Based off of the information within the New
York Times there has been a period in which the new research shows that it has not.
This statement concludes that there is not any progression stance between the social class
standards, such as the movement from poor to upper class. There has been a constant
leveled playing field where the present day mental state of the United States is centered
around a structure system that still supports an idea where the American Dream is a
common goal.
This whole idea of social classes was started by Karl Marx during the nineteenth
century. His idea of a two class system is what we have based upon on our current class
and economic structure. This idea being the bourgeoisie and the proletariat In this the
bourgeoisie are the capitalist and the proletariat are those who are considered the working
class. To continue to address how Americans see themselves within the current
economic recession, and according to Karl Marx the successful members of the middle
class would become members of the bourgeoisie, while the unsuccessful would be forced
into the proletariat. This statement addresses the current situation that we see in the not
only America but also the entire world. The constant stratification to belong to a group or
identity pushes individuals to try and conform to an idea that we are pushed towards by
outside forces.
From this database we see that there is a fluctuation of ideas on the middle class.
As many mentioned earlier the location in which you grew up increases the factors or
level in which you become affected by the social bubble. A person who has a higher
degree of education, and a higher annual income has more of a job security. In saying
this, society begins to supplement the idea by labeling each other. The upper class can be
labeled as those with great wealth and power and also the nation's political and
economic institutions as well as in the media. It generally means there is too much
power given to those and so the more money you have the more power you have to
control the largest sectors within life. There is too much interest and advancement for
those who classify in this class system. In a poll conducted by the New York Times they
had about 40 participants. In this they took four of the participants response to show the
different perceptional changes that we have based off of factors. These factor(s) are
mostly centered on income. This income factor separated these four individual into
different categories of classes. Also the thing that separates them further is that they each
have a different present circumstances and job position. They range from business
owner/marketing executive to a widow. When it was furthered examined it can be seen
that peoples own personal lives such as taking care of loved ones, ingenuity.
People begin to craft their lives based off of education, life situations, and the
career field. In my case, my family was affected by the current economic recession. From
what Ive seen no matter what the education level is you can still have a change in your
social standard. So, to make amends people classify themselves based off of certain
individual subfields. This is where Karl Marxs ideas begin to take form and you have the
bourgeoisie and proletariat formed in society because they are sectored by their
occupation.

Phillip: This unfortunately is not working. Please read through my comments. Please make an
appointment to use the WRC to work on this paper and please see me.



Work Cited
Dobbs, Lou. War on the Middle Class: How the Government, Big Business, and Special
Interest Groups Are Waging War on the American Dream and How to Fight Back. New York:
Viking, 2006. Print.


"Marx on Social Class." Marx on Social Class. Sociology 250, 03 Oct. 2002. Web. 01
Apr. 2014.


Scott, Janny, and David Leonhardt. "Class in America: Shadowy Lines That Still
Divide." The New York Times. The New York Times, 14 May 2005. Web. 24 Mar.
2014.


Staff, NPR. "For LBJ, The War On Poverty Was Personal." NPR. NPR, 08 Jan. 2014.
Web. 24 Mar. 2014.

"The Class Structure in the U.S." : Stratification, Inequality, and Social Class in the U.S.N.p.,
n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.