Division Of People Into Social Classes
Social class refers to a class of people, based on social power, wealth or another criterion. I agree with Helen Keller’s quote on the role which social class plays in the being of a person from childhood up to adulthood. Social class also known as social stratification is mostly divided into three common classes being lower, middle and upper classes. People in the same class tend to have same levels of status, influence and wealth. The upper class is mostly made up of powerful and wealthy in the society, they usually are the ruling class and also control the means of production. Middle class is made up of people who own small business, low level managers and professional workers. Lower class consist of people who earn low paying salaries/wages, they tend to live in abject poverty. (Grant, J. Andrew (2001), “Class, definition of.”)
Division according to social classes have been there since time in memorial as evidenced in the early Egyptian era where Pharaohs and rich people were buried in huge beautiful tombs while the poor people in the society were buried in small caves without much fanfare. Karl Marx argued that class was defined by ones relationship to production means mentioning bourgeoisie who survive through the hard work of the proletariat. (Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels (1943). “Manifesto of the communist party”,) Max Weber on the other hand stated that class is usually related by ones position economically rather that means of production. (Weber Max (2015/1921). “Classes, stande, parties”)
Social classification takes place from conception and follows one immediately they take their first breathe outside the mother’s womb till we make our final breath on this world we find ourselves enclosed inside this imaginary social walls. As much as these walls are abstract we cannot cross and mingle with the other side easily. This divisions follow us from prenatal care, school, where we reside, how we interact among others. Therefore I support Helen Keller’s statement “poverty is the fundamental cause of most of the physical, moral and economic ills of humanity” and will prove so by comparing different areas of residence. It is common all over the world. A good example of this is how people reside in towns and cities. To expound on this theory further I will use Beverly Hills a city located in Los Angeles. The richest street is Beverly Park Circle deep inside Beverly Park where houses have a median house value of $16M. (CBSLOCAL April 16, 2015)
Beverly Hills is populated by the who’s and who’s of Los Angeles as it is clear not everyone can afford to reside in the area. Most of the residence in Beverly hills are whites. At the same time we have Harlem which is largely made up of housing projects. Harlem streets which offer residence mainly to black families are populated by drug dealers, gun violence and prostitution dens. Beverly Hills is a safe and silent neighborhood with ample security and immediate response from the police when called upon which is rare. Harlem on the other hand is a dangerous neighborhood where drive-by are common and happens almost on a daily basis. It is rare to find a person who reside in Beverly hills trafficking drugs, in fact it is unheard of as children raised in this area tend to be brought up with a silver spoon and getting what they want all the time. It is common for them to go for vacations outside the country, eat health, when sick they attend the best medical facilities in the country, they attend expensive schools where they interact with other rich kids.
On the other hand we have a person brought up in a housing project in Harlem where the houses are tiny this result with him/her sharing a bedroom with the siblings feeding from hand to mouth. They lack social amenities like air conditioning among others, go to a public school. He/she is forced to learn from a young age to be independent and provide for themselves. A person who has experienced these conditions from childhood is forced to be psychologically tough and learn from a tender age.
Bell Hooks in her book Where We Stand talks extensively about classism, sexism and racism and how poverty affects the society; she narrates her life story as a way of allowing the reader to get an insight of what she went through. (Bell Hooks 2000 “where we stand:class matters”) Bell did not come from a wealthy family and had 6 siblings. She came from hardworking parents who had nothing left for luxuries after providing basic needs. She goes ahead to explain that her siblings and her would long for material things such as clothes and gadgets which she saw other children had. Her parents could not afford such necessities leaving Bell admiring others. she goes ahead to say that missing such things shattered her hopes leaving a long lasting pain in her life. She argues that the pain lingers in one’s mind for years to come. (Bell Hooks 2000 “where we stand:class matters”).
Bell was able to rise from one social class to the next due to her prolific writing career. She states that once she made it out to the upper class, she found the going tough as his own friends and relatives viewed her with suspicion. Bell wanted to live a simple life and stay true to his roots but relatives and friends questioned why she was still living the same way as before yet she had the means and method to live lavishly. Other friends and relatives also thought that she will abandon them for new friends to match her new social status. (Bell Hooks 2000 “where we stand:class matters”)
We see that although Bell is able to raise her social class due to her writing career she is still not being accepted into the upper social class as a rich person due to her skin color. Bell Hooks or Gloria Jean Watkins is a black woman in America who experienced racial prejudice due to her skin color. Policies that can be used to reduce poverty all around the world include equal distribution of wealth. Governments all over the world cannot put a cap on maximum on wages being paid out but have the ability to put minimum wage on their subjects. Government word is law and is usually respected and followed to the letter in the said jurisdiction. Regulating minimum wage in the labor market will go a long way in reducing this gap.
Provision of certain goods and services by governments to its subjects. A government can provide certain goods such as stationeries and services such as education, medical, security among others. The provision of these services gives an opportunity to those who cannot afford them to also rise up out of poverty. We tend to be told that “Education is the key” as it equips one with the required skills needed in the job market. Once one is employed with a raised minimum wage they are able to raise their standard of living and hence reduce the poverty level.
In conclusion, division among social class has always been there since time immemorial and as seen through Helen Keller’s argument it starts immediately after conception and goes on throughout one’s life until they breathe for the last time and are buried or cremated. All we can try and do is reduce the gap between these classes.
REFERENCES:
- Grant, J. Andrew (2001), “Class, definition of.” In Jones, R.J. Barry. Routledge Encyclopedia of international Political Economy Entries A-F Taylor & Francis. P161. ISBN 978-0-415-24350-6
- Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels (1943) “Manifesto of the communist party”, selected works volume 1; London p231
- Weber Max (2015/1921). “classes, stande, parties” in Weber’s rationalism and modern society, edited and translated by Tony Waters and Dagmar Waters, pp, 37-57.
- CBSLOCAL April 16, 2015 “Beverly Hills named 2nd and 3rd Most Expensive in America” CBS Broadcasting Inc. www.losangeles.cbslocal.com Bell Hooks 2000 “where we stand:class matters” Routledge.
