TOPIC 6 SOCIAL CLASS DOUBLE STARR

What are the key elements of upper‑class culture? (Sutton Trust)

Upper‑class culture is built around exclusive education, strong family ties, and elite social and leisure activities.

Why do upper‑class young people tend to socialise with others from the same class? (Sutton Trust)

Because their lifestyle is exclusive, meaning they mostly mix with people who share similar backgrounds, leading to closed social circles.

What is meant by inter‑marriage in the upper class? (Sutton Trust)

Upper‑class individuals often marry within their own class, strengthening kinship networks between elite families over generations.

Which schools are associated with upper‑class education? (Sutton Trust)

Elite public schools such as Eton and Harrow, followed by prestigious universities like Oxford and Cambridge

What did the Sutton Trust highlight about upper‑class education? (Sutton Trust)

The Sutton Trust found that elite schooling gives upper‑class children access to powerful social networks and pathways into top universities.

What is the ‘old boys’ network’? (Sutton Trust)

A system of valuable social contacts formed at elite schools and universities that helps upper‑class individuals access jobs, power and influence later in life.

How do public schools socialise upper‑class pupils? (Sutton Trust)

They teach high levels of self‑confidence and a strong sense of social superiority, reinforcing upper‑class identity.

Why is upper‑class culture considered exclusive? (Sutton Trust)

Because access to elite education, social clubs, and high‑status leisure activities is restricted to those with wealth, heritage and social connections.

What did King & Smith (2018) study?

They studied how the clothing brand Jack Wills markets an upper‑class lifestyle through its designs, imagery and marketing strategies.

How did Jack Wills use clothing design to reflect upper‑class culture? (King & Smith)

Jack Wills used logos and imagery linked to sailing, skiing and tweed, all associated with aristocratic and upper‑class traditions.

Who were the ‘Jack Wills Crowd’? (King & Smith)

Privately educated students at elite universities like Oxford and Cambridge, who were targeted by the brand and became associated with its identity.

How did Jack Wills target upper‑class students? (King & Smith)

By gaining a presence at elite events such as Oxford/Cambridge skiing trips and polo matches, sponsoring events, giving out merchandise

How did widening university access affect Jack Wills culture? (King & Smith)

As more working‑class students entered university, upper‑class students embraced Jack Wills to maintain their high status within a more diverse student population.

What does King & Smith’s study show about social class in a postmodern society? (King & Smith)

Even in a society based on choice and fluidity, many groups still try to maintain clear class boundaries and hierarchiesbecause it benefits them.

What did Gillies find about middle‑class parents and education? (Gillies)

Gillies found that middle‑class parents use their cultural capital to navigate and manipulate the education system to benefit their children.

How do middle‑class parents use cultural capital in schools? (Gillies)

They join school structures like the governing body or PTA, giving them influence over school decisions.

How do middle‑class parents use language as cultural capital? (Gillies)

They know how to use the ‘right’ language with teachers — confident, formal, articulate — which helps them get what they want for their children.

What is the overall argument Gillies makes about class and education? (Gillies)

That middle‑class parents can work the system to secure advantages for their children, reinforcing class inequalities in education.

What did Hey find about middle‑class girls’ sense of power? (Hey)

Hey found that middle‑class girls felt more powerful than the working‑class girls she studied because they had higher levels of cultural, economic and social capital.

Why did middle‑class girls feel less need to use sexual or physical capital? (Hey)

Because their existing cultural, economic and social capital already gave them status, so they didn’t rely on appearance or sexuality to gain power.

What forms of capital did Hey link to middle‑class girls’ confidence? (Hey)

She linked their confidence to cultural capital (knowledge, skills), economic capital (money, assets), and social capital(networks and support).

How does cultural capital help girls accumulate other forms of capital? (Hey)

Those with high cultural capital are better positioned to gain economic capital (money, resources) and social capital(influential networks).

What does Hey’s study show about class differences among girls? (Hey)

It shows that class shapes girls’ power and behaviour, with middle‑class girls relying on their capital, while working‑class girls may use other strategies to gain status.

What did Skeggs find about working‑class women entering health professions? (Skeggs)

Skeggs found that working‑class women realised they needed to change the way they spoke and dressed to fit middle‑class cultural expectations in professional settings.

Why did working‑class women feel pressure to change their speech and dress? (Skeggs)

Because health professions are dominated by middle‑class norms, and adopting these norms helped them gain acceptance and respectability.

What does Skeggs’ study show about class and identity? (Skeggs)

It shows that working‑class women often feel they must modify their identity to access opportunities, revealing how class shapes behaviour and self‑presentation.

How does Skeggs link class to cultural capital? (Skeggs)

She argues that middle‑class cultural norms act as a form of capital, giving advantages to those who can perform them — and pressuring others to adapt.

What wider point does Skeggs make about class inequality? (Skeggs)

That class inequality is maintained because middle‑class standards are treated as the default, forcing working‑class people to change themselves to fit in.

What do Pakulski & Waters argue about the role of class in shaping identity? (Pakulski & Waters)

They argue that class is no longer the dominant force shaping people’s identities; instead, identity is increasingly based on lifestyle and consumption choices.

What do postmodernists like Pakulski & Waters say identities are now based on? (Pakulski & Waters)

Identities are now based on lifestyle, consumption, and personal choice, rather than occupation or class background.

How have leisure activities changed according to Pakulski & Waters? (Pakulski & Waters)

Traditional class‑based leisure (e.g., golf for middle class, greyhound racing for working class) has declined; now leisure is diverse, flexible, and not tied to class.

Why is it harder to guess someone’s class from their hobbies today? (Pakulski & Waters)

Because hobbies like hang‑gliding, ballroom dancing or football are no longer linked to specific classes — they’re chosen by individuals across the social spectrum

What do Pakulski & Waters say now defines identity instead of occupation? (Pakulski & Waters)

They argue we are now defined by what we buy, wear and enjoy, not by our job or class position.

What did Marshall et al. find about how many people still identify with a social class? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

They found that 60% of people said they belonged to a particular class, and over 90% could place themselves in a class when prompted — showing class identity still exists.

What does Marshall et al.’s survey suggest about class identity today? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

It suggests that class identities survive, even though lifestyle and consumption identities have grown.

What do Marshall et al. argue is the most powerful source of identity? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

They argue that class remains the most common and powerful source of social identity, contradicting postmodernists.

How do Marshall et al. respond to the idea that class has ‘died’? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

They argue that people may talk less about class, but this is just a change in language, not the disappearance of class itself.

What examples show that class language has changed rather than disappeared? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

Terms like “marginalised,” “deprived,” or “Just‑About‑Managing” still refer to the working class, just using new labels.

What wider point do Marshall et al. make about inequality? (Marshall et al – criticism of Pakulski & Waters)

They highlight that income and wealth inequalities still exist, proving class divisions remain significant.

What does the embourgeoisement thesis argue? (weakening class divide, embourgeoisement)

It argues that working‑class people are becoming more like the middle class in terms of values, lifestyles and jobs.

What historical change helped blur class boundaries? (weakening class divide, embourgeoisement)

Since WW2, when classes mixed more (e.g., fighting together), class boundaries began to weaken.

How has the shift from manual labour to service jobs affected class identity? (weakening class divide, embourgeoisement)

Large numbers of working‑class people moved into non‑manual service jobs, making them more similar to the middle class.

Why is the term “middle class” used more broadly today? (weakening class divide, embourgeoisement)

Because it now includes routine white‑collar workers (ONS classes 3 & 4), not just professionals (classes 1 & 2).

How does embourgeoisement challenge the idea that class shapes identity? (weakening class divide, embourgeoisement)

If working‑class people adopt middle‑class norms, values and lifestyles, class becomes less distinct and less important for identity.

What does Giddens mean by the ‘democratisation of society’? (weakening class divide, Giddens)

Digital technology gives nearly everyone access to information, reducing traditional class barriers.

How does technology weaken class divisions? (weakening class divide, Giddens)

Because anyone can share opinions, access knowledge, and participate online, regardless of class background.

How does Giddens link technology to power? (weakening class divide, Giddens)

Technology gives ordinary people more agency, reducing the power gap between rich and poor.

How does Giddens’ view connect to Marxist ideas? (weakening class divide, Giddens)

More access to information helps people recognise their class position and challenge inequality — echoing Marxist ideas about class consciousness.

How does Giddens support the idea that class is less important for identity? (weakening class divide, Giddens)

If digital access gives everyone a voice, identity becomes less tied to class and more shaped by online participation and choice.