1 / 12

CLASS OPPRESSION & PRIVILEGE

CLASS OPPRESSION & PRIVILEGE. By Professor Jos é Alamillo CES 101:Spring 2008 01/16/08. What is Capitalism?. Capitalism as a rational individual attitude (Max Weber) Capitalism as “free trade” or series of exchange transactions (Adam Smith

dakota
Download Presentation

CLASS OPPRESSION & PRIVILEGE

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. CLASS OPPRESSION & PRIVILEGE By Professor José Alamillo CES 101:Spring 2008 01/16/08

  2. What is Capitalism? • Capitalism as a rational individual attitude (Max Weber) • Capitalism as “free trade” or series of exchange transactions (Adam Smith • Capitalism as mode of production that requires exploitation of workers (Karl Marx)

  3. Marx’s Theory of Capitalism • Mode of Production: Feudal Mode (lord-serf ) Slavery Mode (master-slave) Capitalist Mode (employer-worker) -industrial capitalism -Monopoly Capitalism • Means of Production/Relations of Production • Two classes: capitalists (owners) & proletariats (non-owners) who sell their labor to capitalists • Surplus Labor/Necessary Labor = Profit or Rate of Exploitation

  4. What are Social Classes? • Social class is based on POWER • Social class is based on STATUS or Social prestige that determines one “life chances” (Weber) • Three Classes in U.S. society: (1) upper class (2) middle class (3) working class

  5. What is the Middle Class? • Lack of consensus on the definition • families with incomes between $19,000 and $91,000 each year • Middle class is made up of three classes:(1)lower (2) middle (3) upper middle • Four criteria: (1) income (2) wealth (3) education (4) occupation

  6. Class Inequality in America: Income Share of total income received: Top %5 make more money than bottom 40%

  7. Class Inequality in America: Wealth The ratio of the wealth of the richest 1% to that of a household with typical wealth in the middle.

  8. Class Inequality in America: Education 3/4 of the students at the most elite private colleges come from upper middle-class families. Only 5% come from families with household incomes under $35,000.

  9. What is Class Privilege? • Class standing and life chances are largely determined at birth (1 out of 5 surpass their father’s income) • Inherited privilege matters more today because mobility has declined since 1970s • People do not choose to be poor they are limited & confined by capitalist system • What is your position within the class structure?

  10. Declining Social Mobility Percent Chance of Moving up the Ladder From Bottom to Top Income Quarter, 1960s and 1990s

More Related