In Ain’t No Making It, Jay Macleod explains his theories and findings on social reproduction of inequality. He begins by telling us more about some authors and their theories. This helped me have a better understanding on what this book is really trying to portray. One author I found interesting was Bernstein who focused on language patterns and social reproduction. By bringing up issues like this one that most people usually don’t think about, I was able to look at the problems that the Brothers and Hallway Hangers faced from a whole new perspective. I would not have noticed this throughout the book if these issues were not mentioned right away. I come from a very traditional family that believes that success depends on how much work you …show more content…
I cannot help but feel bad for the Brothers because with every challenge they faced, they still kept a positive outlook on life. Jay Macleod added this to one of findings and stated, “no matter how diligently they devote themselves to schools, they cannot escape the constraints of social class.” (p.150) The Brothers situation shows us that believing in achievement ideology does not mean you will automatically be successful in life. Even with hard work, they struggled to find a stable job that would help them reach the middle-class …show more content…
The United States is the land of opportunity but we will most likely never reach social equality, which will always be a problem for people in the lower classes. I do think it is harder for children in the lower classes to succeed in school since they have to learn how to blend in with the middle class and the social norms of the middle class on top of getting their diploma or degree. I believe Jay MacLeod did a great job in explaining his theories with his research findings. My views on reaching success in life are very traditional, but reading this book makes me realize it is a completely different world in “the projects.” I always thought it was that individual’s fault for not getting out of the projects and they chose to live that type of life. MacLeod’s findings and interviews with the kids made me realize that is not the case. I now see that social inequalities make it very difficult for social mobility to
We should care to learn about these two men because this story proves that even with a challenging early life growing up you can still have a successful life. The author showed that with all that he went through growing up he was still able to grow up as a “Rhodes Scholar, decorated veteran, White House Fellow, and business leader.” (Moore) .” which is an amazing
The book Class matter shows the importance of how much people should value and appreciate the importance of a classroom education. How much you dedicate yourself to school can help you gain enough knowledge to be successful in the future. Having good quality education in America seems to be the closest thing to a ticket to class mobility. The book was very interesting in explaining what social class really is in America, and the way it affects people's lives on how they live day to day. The different types of social class is what shapes our society. But I think this book is more for those people who aren’t that aware of social class, or for the ones who feel that we live in a society that is classless rather then the actually people who have realized the consequence that class really has on someone’s life. Many people can relate to what stories are told in the book if not, they know of a person that can relate to these stories. As a person that grew up in the lower class, I can definitely relate to most of the stories told in this book. From experience, there is a big difference in this country between the rich, middle class, and who are the poorest that we see daily. Even those in the so called working class have to make continuous sacrifices and live very differently from those positioned firmly in the middle class. Some people may have decent jobs but the bills and other expenses people may have make it harder on people than those who are in the same class but don’t have to necessarily go through the same thing as others. The chapters that I read in this book broaden what I said to a better more clear understanding.
Mantsios defends his claim by sharing the four myths and opposing seven realities of the American dream of equal opportunity. Then comparing three profiles of people from upper, middle, and lower classes, then by proving the correlation between educational attainment and classes. In a country with democratic principles, the general public makes an impact on the country, but it’s truly governed by politicians and the incredible power of wealth. Mantsios gives up the economic spectrum break down by giving the facts on the differences between the one who have very little, a lot and not enough money. One myth that Mantsios makes in his essay is how “all Americans do not have an equal opportunities to succeed. Inheritance laws ensure a greater likelihood of success of the offspring of the wealthy” (295). The huge gap between the upper and lower classes shows the social struggle. Higher income classes have a more likely chance for successful inheritance which allows the wealth to get passed on to the offspring. However, Davidson contradicts the theory’s that were presented by Mantsios by stating “Maddie represents a large population: people who, for whatever reason, are not going to be able to leave the workforce long enough to get the skills they need”(349). However, if Maddie works hard enough she can prove Mantsios wrong. That doesn’t mean she has to go to college or get a higher education, of course, that would make everything simpler. All she has today is work her way up in the company to make something of herself to show that she can still reach her full
Gregory Mantsios presents himself as an expert in this essay because he states a lot of facts. The author uses stats, his own opinion, and my favorite thing that brought me in was the myths that he told the reality’s for later in the essay. Mantsios believes that no matter what social or economic class that you fall into, you have a fair chance at succeeding in life. I feel that the intended audience is the citizens of America or people in the workforce since they are the ones that have to deal with this situation. The thesis of this essay is “Perhaps, most importantly, the point that is missed is that inequality is persistent and structural- and it manifests itself in a multitude of cultural and social ways.” The author discussed the problems that occur from economic and social classes. The purpose of this argument is to debate on what kind of people will be successful in life. Everyone has a shot at being successful, and that they do with it is
Social reproduction is examined closely by Jay Macleod in his book "Ain't No Makin' It: Aspirations and Attainment in a Low-Income Neighborhood." His study examines two groups of working class teenage boys residing in Clarendon Heights, a housing project in upstate New York. The Hallway Hangers, a predominately white peer group, and the Brothers, an all African American peer group with the exception of one white member. Through the use of multiple social theories, MacLeod explains social reproduction by examining the lives of these groups as they experience it, being members of the working class in society. These social theories are very important in understanding the ways in which social classes are reproduced.
...ion, for instance, can send their children to public or private universities. Thus leaving children whose parents lack the monetary access to only attending community colleges or just completely putting a halt to their educational process. This lack of mobility for children who cannot further their education, according to Bernstein’s study (2003), “[puts] a lid on the intergenerational progress that has long been a mainstay of the American experience” (p. 95). Bernstein’s research indicates a flaw to the American Dream because it does not provide an equal opportunity for the children of the poor, and without education they cannot move upward in the economic spectrum.
Morosely, people hitting poverty level are truly given zero opportunities to advance their education. In America, it 's not common that the A+ education is given to you. It 's not entirely easy to land the greatest job ever with just a high school diploma. But, the cost of college has made the difference between having a job that pays well, and having a job that pays immensely for people living in poverty. Poor people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, childcare, health care, and education. The cost of living per month for a single, childless person in America is $2,372. Galbraith stresses importance of improving housing across the nation.(Galbraith 405) With unemployment rates remaining high, jobs are hard to find in the current economy. Even if people can find work, this does not automatically provide an escape from
Life will almost certainly get better for the underclass, we as human beings have always evolved from the gravest of situations. I predict that in 10 years, with all of the technology we have, our youth will seek answers as I once did, and want for more. Theirs already an increase in college enrollment in the urban areas, and a decrease in high school children dropping out. This is a clear observation of the change to come; our youth are more concerned with filling out college applications, than government assistance paperwork. And that alone gives me tremendous hope that our future generations will make a huge difference, not only has the underclasses behavior changed in a positive way toward education, but their attitudes towards life itself shows a want to succeed and a will to be more than just an underclass citizen.
has generally lowered, further showing the inequality that exists in our nation. It is usually difficult for the lower classes to achieve financial success because a high income job requires good education which the lower classes lacks because they cannot afford it.
Dan Walton takes the firm stance in explaining how half of all inequality is within families, not between them. And it is each family’s own “pecking order” that helps to foster such differences. Conley argues that with every set of siblings exists a pecking order, or a status hierarchy. This hierarchy emerges from the constructs within society and in most
The lack of education can lead to poverty and poverty can lead to a lack of education, this is a cycle that is hard to get out of. Author Wes mother was able to go to college and get her degree. She wasn 't the first to go or the first two finished. She was able to overcome the situation poverty and found a way to go to college. This desire for college was something she gave to author Wes. She knew the public school was a bad place to be for her son so she did what she had to have the money to send Wes to Riverdale Country School. Author Wes got the schooling that had more of a focus on attending college as an end goal by attending Riverdale Country School. Since he went to Riverdale Country School he got the desire to get a degree that he probably would have never got in the public school in his neighborhood. The other Wes mother 's life was different and she didn 't put that need to get a degree into her
I 've been enrolled in the most accelerated programs available for me at school, and thus I 've learned to respect the power of education to make or break me as a person. But even I am here at UT, and not at Harvard (ok, I 'm not actually smart enough to go there, regardless of affluence), or the University of Washington in St. Louis, or Rice, because I have economic limitations. What is there left to say about the Brothers or the Hallway Hangers, who are way worse off than I ever was? Then again, the educational aspirations did make some difference for the two teen groups: at least the Brothers are generally employed as opposed to being in jail or trading drugs as the Hallway Hangers are the latter group rejected the importance of education. Even if the difference is small, just an echo of the meritocratic possibilities the higher classes are enjoying, it is a benefit of the Brother 's more conformist approach to attempting upward
Growing up in a more privileged environment things may come easier to one. But one should not be surprised of those that are in a less fortunate situation that are not able to reach certain heights, compared to someone from a more privileged back ground. Even if one is not in the best environment, they are able to make a choice to keep fighting for a better life. In the podcast “Three Miles” that is exactly the attitude described from a girl name Raquel, on the other hand Melanie froze her life doing what she thought she deserved. Though Raquel and Melanie had similar backgrounds in that they were raised in the same poor neighborhood and attended the same indigent high school, in the end Raquel was able to succeed in her life after getting denied a Posse scholarship, whereas Melanie worked in a supermarket for ten years, feeling that was as good as it was going to get.
This theory identified the important role of education and training in establishing an individuals’ social class. Davis and Moore view a job position’s pay as a reward and motivational device for an individual. These rewards have to equally match the amount of training and education required to qualify for the position. Davis and Moore’s theory explains, “Rewards must be sufficient both to attract adequate numbers of individuals to occupy positions and to motivate adequate role performance. It is hypothesized that differences in rewards are necessary because positions are not all equally agreeable or equally important to the society, nor do they require the same talent or training” (Cullen and Novick 1424). Members in the high class have very well paying jobs that usually require a large amount of education and training before entering the workforce. This, in turn, is rewarded by the amount of money they can make when they obtain the proper qualifications to work in an intended field. The lower class individuals usually hold lower wage paying jobs that require little training and little education. These jobs are much easier to perform and therefore are awarded less capital to do. The middle class lies in the middle of the two. The jobs held in this class require a fair amount of schooling and training and earn a fair amount of
The opportunities diprived from the lower class are better education earlier, healthy lifestyle, and affordability (The outliers).