The Future of the Social Class
The Future of the United States Social Class System: Dark or Sunny? The issues of social class and inequality have been addressed time and time again throughout the history of society. The structuring of a social class varies from rigid, like the caste system of India, to blurry, like that of the United States. Two separate depictions of the United States social class system are introduced. These essays give us a better understanding of the way our class system is structured and also predict the path our society is heading towards. In their essay "How Many Classes Are There?" Dennis Gilbert and Joseph A. Kahl divide the American social classes into six separate and distinct groups based on a combination of income, education credentials, and occupation (431). Both of these men are highly educated in the area of sociology. Gilbert is a professor at Hamilton College and Kahl has taught at Harvard, Washington University in St. Louis, and Cornell. Both have also written books on the subject of social class systems. Gilbert and Kahl believe !that there is a pattern that is followed in placing someone in a social class. This pattern is based on community studies and the way an individual believes (s)he fits within society a
But not only is education important for the individual who is hoping to reach the next step on the hierarchy, education is also important for a society as a whole to move up a step in the quest for survival. In their study, Gilbert and Kahl found that 60% of the American society falls into both the middle and working class (434). ------------------------------------------------------------------------**Bibliography**Works CitedGilbert, Dennis and Joseph A. Gilbert and Kahl have six separate groups that they address while Murray only focuses on the two extremes of the rich and the poor. It is my belief that Gilbert and Kahl present a more accurate representation of the social hierarchy of the American society. in Writing in the Disciplines: A Reader for Writers. An aspect that is hit upon by both essays is the mobility of individuals from class to class. The research conducted by Gilbert and Kahl seems to clash with the research performed by Murray. Murray believes our society is becoming more like a caste system and that our society is on the brink of complete social separation (443). At first glance, we see a sharp contrast in the findings of Gilbert and Kahl's research compared to Murray's research.
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