The
Differences of Social Classes in the United States
There are four general
rankings for social class which is the upper class, the middle class, the
working class, and the lower class. The upper class contains about five percent
of the U.S. population who earn at least $205,000 a year. Karl Marx describes these
men and women as “the owners of the means of production along with most of the
nation’s private wealth.” Many upper class people are business owners,
executives in large corporations, or senior government officials. There are
people known as the “upper-upper class” which includes less than one percent of
the U.S. population. Most of these families possess enormous wealth which is
primarily inherited. Wealth is defined as the total value of money and other
assets, minus outstanding debts. Their children typically attend private
schools with others of similar background and complete their schooling at
high-prestige colleges and universities. Then there is the “lower-upper class”
and the difference between the two upper classes is that the members of the lower-upper
class are the “working rich” who get their money mainly by earning it rather
than from inheritance. These people generally live in large homes in expensive
neighborhoods and send their children to private schools and good colleges.
Then there is the middle
class which is made up of 40 to 45 percent of the U.S. population. People in
the top half of this category are known as “upper-middles” who have an above
average income in the range of $116,000 to $205,000 a year. Income is defined
as earnings from work or investments. This income allows these people to live
in comfortable homes in fairly expensive areas. Roughly two-thirds of the
upper-middle class children graduate from college. Many go on to be physicians,
engineers, lawyers, accountants, and business executives. The other portion of
the middle class is called the “average-middles” who typically work at less
prestigious jobs such as bank branch managers, high school teachers, and
government office workers. Their income is between $48,000 and $116,000 a year
which is roughly the national average. These people are likely to be high
school graduates, but the odds are roughly fifty-fifty that they will complete
a four-year college program.
Next are the working
class people which is about one-third of the population. These people make
somewhere between $27,000 and $48,500 a year. These families have little or no
wealth and are vulnerable to financial problems caused by unemployment or
illness. They typically have jobs that offer fewer benefits such as medical
insurance and pension plans. More than half of the working-class families own
their homes which are often located in lower-cost neighborhoods. Only about
one-quarter of the working-class children will earn a degree from a four-year
college.
Finally, there is the
lower-class which is made up of about 20 percent of our population. Seventy
percent of the lower-class children manage to complete high school, but only 15
percent will complete a four-year college program. About 43 percent of these
people own their homes which is usually in the least desirable neighborhoods.
I would consider myself
to be in the working-class rank because my family just consists of my mother
and me. She is a cosmetologist and doesn't earn much money. She has had to
support me on her own since I was born. My family and I also fall into this
category because we have little to no wealth. We have never lived in a house
longer than a few years. We usually live in an apartment and we have often had
to move due to the rent increasing. I will hopefully be a part of the “average-middle”
class when I am done with college and start my career. Coincidentally, I am
hoping to become a high school Spanish teacher which is mentioned as a job that
someone in that rank would have.
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