Soc714X Social Class

I've finished grading. Use GradeQuery to see your score and your grade for the course. I have comments on the term papers; if you would like to see how I evaluated your essay, stop by my office.

Thank you for an enjoyable semester. I hope you feel that your hard work paid off with a better understanding of social class from a sociological perspective.

Enjoy your summer. (I know that I'll see some of you again in the fall in 712G.)

I've created an anonymous survey about the course — we use it in the department to do self-assessment so you might have seen it before in another class — and would appreciate if you would take a few minutes to complete it. Your identifying information is not recorded; instead, your answers are sent to me by email from a null account. The information from the survey helps me make modifications to the course content and website.

Go to the qualitative course evaluation to submit the survey.

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We won't have a class meeting on T, 7/7, but I will be available in extended office hours to answer questions about the term paper assignment. You can use the lab to work on your paper during class hours.

Reflect on the material we've covered this semester, in class and the forums, and identify one aspect of social class that you think is particularly significant. It could be a fact that surprised you, or it could be one thing about stratification that you think sociologists explain well. Briefly describe the aspect of social class you identified and explain why you think it is significant.

Note: This is an in-class exercise.

Marx suggested that class conflict was inevitable because the organization of capitalist production impoverished workers leading to their awareness of their position. Class consciousness would then lead them to revolution — that is, they would realize that the only way to improve their lot was to overthrow the owners' control of the means of production.

This opinion piece by Felix Rohatyn in the Times caught my eye. It covers a lot of the same territory that we've been discussing about changes in the American economy and the consequences for ordinary people.

Here's the main point:

How does wealth (possessing it or controlling it) influence politics? We'll take a look at some information about money in politics in order to make some sociological observations about the relationship between social class and power in contemporary American society.

According to Gilbert, who is included in the capitalist class? Is the notion of a capitalist class (rather than, say distinct elites or powerholders) a useful way of explaining power in American society? Explain why or why not. What about corporate power? Is ownership (possession of wealth) more or less important than control of wealth?

The most common way that people achieve upward mobility in the U.S. is through educational advancement. Getting more education often — though not always — results in upward mobility. Failing to keep up with increasing standards in educational attainment can result in downward mobility. (For example, in the 1950s, a high school diploma was the minimum requirement for a middle class occupation. Today, a college degree is required.)

Each group will address the mobility prospects of a hypothetical case. Write a one paragraph narrative describing what you think the mobility outcome will be and why. Refer to information in Gilbert and the readings to support your explanation.

I. Meghan, white, 18 yrs., parents divorced, lives with mother (mid-career civil service), attended public high school in New York City.

II. Amanda, black, 22 yrs., lives with parents (father: police officer; mother: public school teacher), attends Kingsborough Community College while working for minimum wage.