Social Class

Person wearing red jacket seen from back wearing three paper plates of diminishing sizes labled Rich, Middle Class, and Poor

Class is (theoretically) a system of achieved status.

In a class based society, everyone has the same "essence" and the rules are (again theoretically) the same for all.

There is NO state level society in which status is based solely on achievement. Family, location, and chance always play a large role.

Next: American Economc Mobility