Third Blog

          The United States of America is a society of classes.  In my opinion, there is a huge difference between the top 1-2 percent of people in this country and the people who are considered poor.  While the economy is continuing to grow at a slow rate, the income is rapidly increasing for the top 1-2 percent.  The concept of classes didn’t really occur to me until I got older.  I am very fortunate to have a life where money isn’t really an issue.  It is interesting to see the difference between social class now and social class back in the nineteenth century.  For many years I have learned about Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and their book, The Communist Manifesto.  Their book discusses the poor working conditions and low wages of the working class in nineteenth century Europe.  Both Marx and Engels opposed capitalism.  They did not want the income for the top 1 percent to be so high.  Marx and Engels believed everyone must view the history of social class and the struggles that occurred between the classes.  They explained the most important classes were the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.  The bourgeoisie owned all of the major factories and companies, while the proletariat had to sell their labor to the capitalists and owned a very small amount.  They argued that the conflict between these two classes would eventually lead to a revolution where the proletarians would win. With the disappearance of the bourgeoisie as a class, they believe there would no longer be a society of classes.  

Following the writings of Marx and Engels, the idea of communism came about.  This caused the creation of communist groups, such as The Communist Party of the United States (CPUSA), which had peaked in the 1930s.  During this time period there was another huge conflict, The Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 to 1941.  Family incomes had dropped drastically for many.  I found the slide “Judging Poor Women” to be intriguing.  I didn’t know there was such thing as the deserving poor vs. the undeserving poor.  The Migrant Mother with Three Children picture is an attempt to reflect the deserving poor, but the truth behind the picture shows that the circumstances of the mother and children featured in the picture are actually false.  I can see though how the image captures what is seen as someone who is considered to be “the deserving poor” based on the emotional appeal and the positioning of each person. 

The reading this week, Peyton Place by Grace Metalious, relates to the topics we have discussed in class.  The setting of the book is 1937, which is the middle of The Great Depression.  There is a clear distinction between each character and what social class they belong to.  In the book, we see the struggles Selena faces as a member of the lower class.  She lives in the poor area of town.  Selena is the victim of abuse by her stepfather, Lucas.  Although this is a totally different time period than today, Selena can relate to many women who currently struggle in poverty and face abuse.  It’s scary to me that women can live such harsh lifestyles, while there are fewer women who are currently receiving welfare than in the middle of the twentieth century.

In my opinion, there seems to be a trend in the advantages given to those who are considered to be wealthy.  In my old high school, majority of the students have an advantage that gives them the ability to move up the socioeconomic ladder.  For example, many are provided private tutors paid for by their parents.  This helps them and gives them an advantage for getting into a better college, when there are Americans today who don’t even attend college at all.  After attending a good college or university, they are then able to receive a degree and get a successful job.  These advantages are continuing to take place today.  After becoming aware that social class definitely exists here in the United States of America, I am intrigued to continue learning what certain things pertain to the higher and lower classes.