Social Class: A Glimpse of the Future

October 18th, 2026-Today is my 40th birthday, and I am quite happy with my current status in life. I have two children, Claire Louise and Lillian Pearl, ages 10 and 12; both go to a prestigious private school just a few blocks away. I have been married to a wonderful man for about 15 years now, and we both have excellent, high-paying careers. I have a master's degree in Public Administration and my husband has an MBA. We live in a wonderful gated community close to the best schools and shopping areas. Luckily, with our combined incomes, my husband and I can afford to support my mother while she takes care of our two little girls while we put in long hours at our offices. Life is great…But the real question is, how did I come to have this picture perfect life?

I will begin by first explaining where I fit into the social ladder when I was growing up and working for my education. According to Gilbert and Kahl, I was born into the upper middle class-both of my parents had degrees, and both of their parents had degrees. My father was a highly ranked officer in the U.S. Military, and my mother a math genius. After I was just 5 years old, my parents divorced and my mother wanted nothing to do with my father-leaving her a single parent to 4 children with a degree that really doesn't do anything for you other than balance your checkbook. After the separation, I belonged somewhere in between the working and lower class.

For years, our family lived off of welfare as my mother was laid off of job after job (a common occurrence in the computer science field). My brother and sisters and I wore old clothes and ate "free lunch" in school. In less than a year, we had transformed from an upper middle class family who belonged to several Officer's Clubs to living below the poverty line and accepting government handouts. For me, a child who knew next to nothing, the transformation was not nearly as traumatic as it was for my mother.

My mother was born to a very highly educated prestigious family in Connecticut. Her parents were world-famous scholars who spent years abroad doing diplomatic and philanthropic work in third world countries…how could she be living off of welfare? Slowly but surely, she raised our families social class from lower to upper middle class again. The change was almost over night, and I remember thinking of how nice life was when I had new clothes and name brand shampoo and conditioner from a salon…I barely even questioned what the change was and how it occurred.

Having grown up in manner in which qualifies little or no prestige to the average American, I pride myself on my knowledge of what the other side (which still isn't that bad) looks and feels like. I remember having holes in my shoes and not having enough to eat at home. Having memories like these pushed me to do well in school and motivated me to excel in my field of work, politics. When I first went to college, I was shocked at the leisure in which my peers lived. Knowing that through family ties, the people in my classes had a natural advantage over me in the workforce, I struggled through college working for local representatives and state legislators; working hard to create a name for myself. After graduating with my bachelor's degree in political science, I began working with a local law firm that sponsored me through grad school.

After finishing my second degree, my husband and I served two years in the southern African country of Namibia with the Peace Corps. There, I learned valuable knowledge about the problems Africans face everyday…disease, famine, hunger, and the problems caused by the widespread political corruption. Shortly after returning from my two years of service, I took advantage of the Peace Corps' one year of noncompetitive eligibility for employment in the federal government to apply for and secure a position in the lower level judicial court system. From there, I based my developing political campaign and platform on the skills I learned in Africa about international relations and foreign diplomacy. To say the least, my political career blossomed. My personal and political background appealed to both the working class and the upper classes. Having grown up among the average working proletariat, the lower classes identified with me as a person and trusted in my political movements. The middle and upper classes admired my personal work ethic and ability to make the most of what life handed me, and supported me politically by financially backing my programs and campaigns.

Although this story has yet to be played out, I believe that my family's social class, my personal education, and my ethnic background are all factors that will contribute to my great American dream. Being from the middle class, I have advantages over the average American; I grew up in a better location, and was exposed to a more educated and diverse population. The location in which I was raised also greatly affected the quality of education I received, making it possible for me to attend a better and more prestigious college. Even though people do not often openly admit that race and/or ethnicity does not always give a person an edge in life, I am Caucasian, and I benefited from that fact largely when I was growing up. I was hired for better and more qualified jobs, which my peers of different ethnic backgrounds were often declined for. I also held public positions throughout my standard education-which prepared me for more responsible leadership roles in real life.

Quality of life is also something that is strongly affected by a person's social status and class. At my current rank, middle class, my quality of life is nothing to ashamed or proud of. One perk of being in one of the higher classes is that I have access to health insurance, although it is not the best coverage. I can go to the doctor's office, even though he might not be the best in the area. In addition, I can purchase prescription drugs with help from my insurance provider, even though the percentage discount is minuscule.

Another way in which class affects my quality of life is the type of food I eat. My diet is probably not the best one out there, but my social class provides me with the choice of what type of food I eat and where I buy it from. In comparison to those of the lower classes, I can afford to buy more nutritious foods that provide me with a healthier lifestyle. People of a lower class are more likely to be obese to due financial constraints and also the lack of education about the benefits of a healthy diet. The obesity factor can then affect what type of work a person can do and their physical health. By only qualifying for lower-paying jobs, an obese person of the lower class can only afford cheaper, less healthy foods-which creates a downward spinning cycle leading from bad, to worse. Complicating the matter even further, by working a less prestigious job, an obese person in the lower class receives in the best situation, only poor providing medical insurance.

A person needs a special drive in life to jump from one class to another. They must be able to work hard and push themselves to be excellent in all degrees. While growing up in the middle class has not been a terrible thing for me, I plan on being a part of the upper-class with the financial support of my husband. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the only group of people who has significantly increased their spending power in the last 20 years is the family where both the husband and wife hold bachelor's degrees (AFL-CIO). This step up in social class will provide my children with an enhanced education, a safer home environment with more healthy food, warmer clothing, and more financial support, all of which will improve their chances of survival in the working world.

In today's society, there are many factors that contribute to an individual's social class and their innate ability to rise and fall on the social class ladder. Those factors may be the social class and person is born into, the location in which they grow up, the education of their parents, their personal education, their race and ethnicity, and sex. Above all ascribed and achieved statuses, however, I believe in the 'American Dream' and that if a person has the will and the drive, they can aspire to the highest social class on Gilbert and Kahl's ladder.

Using the words of famous playwright Alan Jay Lerner, "On a clear day, you can see forever." In my future, I see a lifetime of service…service first of all to my family, to the world, and most of all, to humanity. Life is a struggle that never ceases- a struggle for more and for better things. And I can't help but think that if I just try as hard as I can, and for as long as I can, I can make it to tomorrow, and there will always be better things waiting for me tomorrow.

Work Cited
Indiana AFL-CIO. "New Data Show Many Working Families' Incomes Declining".
< http://www.inaflcio.com/documents/2004/news040806newdata.htm>