Social Class

Social class, also known as social stratification is defined as "the hierarchical arrangement of large social groups based on their control over basic resources" (qtd. in Kendall 236). Different social classes can be distinguished by inequalities in such areas as power, authority, and wealth, working and living conditions, lifestyles, life-span, education, religion, and culture. Early in the nineteenth century the labels "working classes" and "middle classes" were already coming into common usage. And the types of people who owed their success to commerce, industry, and other professional professions, evolved into what we call now the "upper class" people.…