SOCI200-D01_Discussion Thread: Social Classes in the United States

Discussion Thread: Social Classes in the United States

Part A: 

According to Knox (2022), the United States is made up of four main social classes: upper, middle, working, and lower class. The upper class is regarded as possessing a considerable amount of wealth among the four classes that include individuals with personal property, real estate, stocks, bonds, or money. The people that make up the most out of all the classes would be the middle class including those between the upper and worker classes like professionals and businessmen. And those with the least amount of education and the most problems with employment would be considered the lower class (Knox).

Rather than merely observing how these social classes influence my local community, the Church, and the workspace personally, this social impact resonates with a much higher frequency but derived from a smaller scope. Though, yes of course it can be seen in small examples. But since we are so overwhelmed with the unyielding surplus of access to information through means of digital technologies like social media, we now can observe social evolution and changes on a global scale more than ever before. However, the same awareness can be examined through the scale of a small community with respects to this conceptual context equally so.

Well, firstly, regarding the upper class I cannot shake the compulsion to utter that this faction of groups of people in the world may tend to lead their lives in the pursuit of power, money, and greed. By using the nation of China for example, they are the most profit-influencing regime in the world. They dominate in global economic output. China accounts for almost 20% of world GDP, 32 % of world savings, and 30% of world investment (Sanyal, Arora, & Sharma, 2026). Capitalism is the engine that burns through the upper class of Chinese society.

These people focus on gains and results in large quantities. I would be led to believe that the upper class would be influenced by focusing on heavy materialistic things, extreme ideologies, and taking advantage of what they need to keep themselves where they are despite the cost. This place of wealth and power also instills a sense of invincibility and control. Now, one can also rationalize that all classes can exhibit this persona. Though, it is the upper class that would demonstrate this example on a more profound scale.

We can observe how churches that have grown into a functioning profitable business that nowadays sometimes are referred to as mega churches. They have lost the core principle in committing to God’s will and have slipped into the selfish and greedy poison of profit and prideful notoriety. The smaller non-profit fundamental churches seem to be an eventual place of refuge where there is a non-secular hunger or drawback for spiritual resuscitation. We may be in this world but does not mean we must be of it (Jn. 17:14-16, Scofield Study Bible, 2023). This is humanism’s greatest tactic is seeking the employment of self.

Part B:

I believe many classes of society, more notably the higher classes, can have or did have very spiritual lifestyles that influence their social life, family life, and how they conduct themselves in a professional environment. I am not saying that it certainly cannot be done or to state that a millionaire cannot lead a Christ-like life. But I am sure we all have our most discernable doubts. This suitably segues into a small passage I took notes on about this causation of the interactions between social statuses and one’s moral/spiritual compass and one’s personal definition of happiness despite their social class.

Sometime awhile back I was conducting my personal studies in the book of Notes for English Essays: An Anthology of Essays from Bacon to Lucas by David T. Pottinger. There was a short essay by author Oliver Goldsmith where he tells a socially insightful story where his main character is that of a common slave, or one we would socially identify as such by our culturally conditioned minds (Pottinger qtd. in Happiness in a Great Measure Dependent on Constitution, 1917). Therein Goldsmith’s story, what can be interpreted by the examination of the slave he describes in his essay reveals qualities correlative to our social studies and this current analysis of the social classes in our country as delivered in our textbook by Knox. The measure of happiness Goldsmith appears to reminisce is one of a condemned man seemed to be in the highest of spirits given the circumstances one would conceive for a slave such as he was. Goldsmith describes his demeanor as the embodiment of a fool but this slave hath exuded much wisdom despite his maimed conditions and gravely confined image to this dismal environment. This is a classic example of one who may seemingly portray a fool but rectify wisdom in another. Strangely put— I believe, to be a good fool one must circum-internalize a degree of wit, but to be a bad fool one does nothing to remedy their foolishness. 

Further examining Goldsmith’s slave character, I could see how someone would perceive at first glance or rather how the average person would perhaps observe and ascertain their foremost intuition, if you would even call it intuition, and have no other means for their own solitary interpretation— may they be blinded by the conformism, social correctness, and the conditioned mind tainted by syndicalism— the delegation to the masses by works of governed preordained progressivism and the magnitude of influence by consensus. Thus, in turn, one would likely react apprehensively to establish Goldsmith's slave as a mere fool to make play for their own appeasement and gratification.

 These two sources that I have observed through the personal accounts of my own sensibilities and premeditated willingness, I can see myself strangely comfortable and befitted in the likeliness of a place such as a prison, or a facility for those mentally "off course" sort-of-speak, or an institution of some sorts. Even the freedoms that come with being “so-called” homeless doth not greet me bad. A “wanderer” in relation to variable compatibility with my persona as to perhaps identify myself as a purported "traveler of the mind" one would conceive as silly and ridiculous coming from a synergistic conforming populace. What I would call recycled people or citizens, are those heavily constrained by society’s own thoughts and ideals and figure their lifestyle akin to what likelihoods are convenient enough for them among the socioeconomic norm.

We are products furnished by governed thought and shaped by influence of radical progressivism. I cannot recall for the life of me where I heard the words uttered,

"the past is too deep to dig up, and the future is too far away to reach."  (Anonymous)

Something along those lines had left me at a standstill, but I am certain that is not the words to be exact, but it gets the point across, nonetheless. This had been a phrase that I recently and mutually absorbed but my mind's short-term recollections are the worst I have for memory and stresses me to no end.

Further extending on this correlative interpretation between Knox and Goldsmith, for those able to fathom aberrant thoughts I believe more gifted than others— by which way of analysis— I see the typical modern man undergo his life proceedings in the fashion due to which he was told to do so or subliminally instructed. The concrete normalization of a systematic and humanistic anathema; one whereby which he lives his life like everyone else so that he too may be a participant of an accepted social collective to the comfort of his own satisfaction grows ever more each passing day and is quite disheartening that he cannot separate his undivided attention saturated by the overwhelming monstrosity from that of an unjustly controlled environment— even more so, one without the inclusion of our God.

We could verily see an example where the majority would rule out an individual to be perhaps mentally inept, insane, socially unacceptable, and in this case of Goldsmith's illustrations (thus gaining my interpretation) of a "fool" even. This is also where I could follow up with the grand reference of our Savior Jesus Christ. Our Lord, too, was designated by the social masses as mentally inept, insane, socially unacceptable and outcasted by the influence of a socially engineered collective governed by, quite ostensibly, impenetrable power and control. He sacrificed Himself at the greatest level from such a humble and lowly class of walk. Jesus eulogizes John the Baptist here in the book of Luke, 

“Behold, a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!”  (Ch. 7:34, Scofield Study Bible, 2003).

He was treated with such discrimination based upon His reputation in social settings. This classic form of outcasting— social shaming —was brought about by how groups would label Him as morally corrupt just because of the company He kept.

Another man that continues to compel my earnest interest is based upon his solitary studies and insightful withdraw from society. In conclusion, I would like to leave with another great quote from the revered Ralph Waldo Emerson with all things considered in this discussion, as he stated,

“The poorest experience is rich enough for all the purposes of expressing thought,” (1993). 

Works Cited

Emerson, R.W. (1993). Self-Reliance and Other Essays. Dover Publications.

Goldsmith, O. (1917). Happiness in a Great Measure Dependent on Constitution. In D.T.

Pottinger (Ed.), Notes for English Essays: An Anthology of Essays from Bacon to Lucas.

Macmillan Company.

Knox, J. S. (2022). Sociology Is Rude!: A Conversation on Sociological Theory and Thought. Kendall Hunt Publishing.

Sanyal, S., Arora, A. & Sharma, P. (2026). The World in Purchasing Power Parity (Trends since

1992). (EAC-PM). Business Today. https://businesstoday.in. Accessed 06 Aug 2026.

Scofield, C. I. (Ed.). (2003). The Scofield Study Bible: King James Version. Oxford University

Press.