SOCIAL CLASS AND TASTE What is social class

SOCIAL CLASS AND TASTE

What is social class? Among many others definitions, social classes have been identified as ‘large groups among which unequal distribution of economic goods and/or preferential division of political prerogatives and/or discriminatory differentiation of cultural values result from economic exploitation or political oppression. Social classes are more than just aggregates of individuals sharing some characteristics: the lower position, for example, measured by the wealth of some, may have something to do with the position of the wealthier. This is the reason why some label this concept as explanatory.

The British Social Class System The British society has always been considered to divided into three main groups of classes: the Upper Class
Often people with inherited wealth. Includes som of the oldest families, with many of them being titled aristocrats. the Middle Class
The majority of the population of Britain. They include industrialists, professionals, business people and shop owners. Lower or Working Class
People who are agricultural, mine and factory workers. The British Class System today Although some people in the UK still refer to themselves as "working-class", "lower-middle" or "upper-middle" (and of course there are those who think of themselves as the "elite" class), to the majority of the British the meanings don't seem to matter much these days.

Socio-economic status Rather than the conventional upper, middle, lower class system. A socio-economic classification system is put in place. Since Class lines are becoming blurred meaning in the modern day not all people can be put into the classical three groups, this graph says that instead there

Social Class and Taste Bourdieu claims that aesthetic choices (how you look, what you eat, hobbies) are created by class-based social groups or "class fractions, " and actively distance people in one class from another. The Other idea was that Bourdieu also say’s, that with this difference in class and taste is broken up by class, and this means that anyone who is Upper Class could be repulsed by anyone who is lower class and anything that they like, and vise versa. http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=K 2 k 1 i. RD 2 f-c&lis - Shows how the classes use to be stereotypically in a comedic Faison. The difference in social class and taste is clear through out the media dating back a long time; Classic music is a upper class and highest type of media, where as Jeremy Kyle show is a lower class taste. This is built over time by society and just something that everyone agrees, but this is just because of how society view’s these things.

Has class consciousness disappeared? It is thought that people (especially working class) do not consider them to be part of a class With comments such as John Major’s ‘we are all middle class now’ it it easy to see how we can get confused and disassociate ourselves with classes. Since the Thatcher’s time in parliament in the 80 s Britain has seen the breakdown of industrial industries. Since industrialism was linked to the working class, what has happened to the working class. It is thought that many of them have gone into ‘white collared jobs’ or the public sector. What does the media do is people do not consider themselves to be of a class? Who do they sell themselves to?

In the 80 s Labour’s votes went down as office jobs came up 15, 000 people were asked where they placed themselves from right to left. However if we look at the figures we see that social class actually has little to do with how right or left a person is. Although the number of don’t knows mainly come from the D and E groups. This could be because according to the socio-economic classification chart, groups D and E have little education, which could lead

Gossip Girl A great example of how taste and class clash is “Gossip Girl” an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. It’s a story about the fabulous life of Manhattan’s upper class and the struggles of a lower class family from Brooklyn. Trailer - http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=a. KG 6 Zuc. W 5 IA Quotes: Ce. Ce: You will always use your dessert fork for your entre. You will always feel under-dressed, no matter what you wear. At dinner parties, there will be difference; there a language that sounds like English and you think you speak it, but they don't hear you. And you don't understand them. As time passes, you'll feel like people never see you when they look at you, but wonder merely; whether you're Serena's whim or her. . . charity case. Until the day comes when you realize that girls like Serena don't end up with Dan Humphrey. They end up with the Carters of the world. And people like you; they turn to cocktail party anecdotes of their foolish youth. So, why don't you give it up and spare yourself the pain, hmm? I'm sure Serena will understand.

Chavs: The demonization of the working class by Owen Jones The indpendent claims that this book by Owen Jones exposes class hatred in modern Britain’ It goes into the history of the last thirty years or so of the working class ‘in the public domain of news and culture’ from Hillsborough to the collapse of manufacturing work due to Thatcher. For example The Shannon Matthews incident where the community put forward efforts and money to find Shannon but when discovered it was the mum who done the hiding. The efforts of the community was ignored and the working class community and the whole nation was seen as lawless an corrupt in the eyes of the news.

To work out social class and taste you must be able to stereotype. For Example; Upper Class: Rupert Helmins Politician Votes Conservative Lives in Oxford Drives a Mercedes Reads the Guardian. Holidays to the Caribbean Drinks fine wines. Favourite food is Caviar

Middle Class: Tom Ridgewell Teacher Votes Lib Dem Lives in Milton Keynes Drives a Ford Focus Reads The Times Holidays to Spain Drinks Wine Favourite food is Lamb

Lower Class: Dave Green Builder Votes Labour Lives in Manchester Drives a Rover 25 Reads The Sun Holidays to Wales Drinks Beer Favorite Food is Fish and Chips

http: //www. independent. co. uk/artsentertainment/books/reviews/book-of-the-week -chavs-the-demonization-of-the-working-classby-owen-jones-2292230. html http: //yougov. co. uk/news/2012/10/29/wheretribe-trumps-ideology/