Class Matters

This week in sociology class we explored class. No matter who you are the class you where born in and raised in can and will impact the class you will belong to as an adult. Those born in a lower class will tend to stay in the lower class and those brought up in a higher class will tend to stay in the higher class. Thus things inherited by the generation before you, can soley put you on the fast track to success. Lower class families have less to pass down so they will continue to stay on that path. Not only did we learn that class can be inherited but we also looked at a few stories and data that shows us that class means alot more then looking "classy". In one report, we found that the stresses of living in a lower class will significantly speed up your aging process. Because lower class families live in poorer communities, crime rates will be up, business will be low, housing will be expensive, etc. All these examples will put people through enough stress to lower there lives by years. Another story looked at was of one house cleaning women of the working lower class. Her story was touching and extreme because she would try to adapt and help her fellow workers, she barely had enough for herself to live on. At one point the cleaning crew where driving to the house and they had forgetten some supplies, about 3 dollars worth, and even if the entire crew of people put there money together, they would still be short of 3 dollars. In conclusion, class can tell you your if you are to die earlier or live longer, whether you live it easy and successful or you struggle and stress about daily living. All major changes that class can implore on you.

Class and Prestige

This week in sociology class we talked about prestige, and with that, the actions and ideals of the upper, middle and lower class. Specificly we would read an arcticle called " The Uses of Poverty: The Poor Pay All". This article explains that maybe the only lesson why poverty is so persistent is because it has positive functions for the rest of society. We would learn that the only way that one goes up the socioeconomic ladder is to take someone else down. Amazing, that poverty has made it possible for the existence and expansion of respectable professions like, crimiology, social work and public health. Only because poverty exists, these occupations have strived and evolved. Even today in our major cities of the world poverty has give jobs to law enforcement, health care services and most importantly sociology experts. The lower class seems like the class that does nothing good for society but, in reality it might be the one class that helps more then any other class.