Summary Of The Vanishing Middle Class By Elizabeth Warren

In the essay “The Vanishing Middle Class,” Elizabeth Warren discusses how the American middle class is under attack economically. As a United States senator, Warren is concerned with the issue of why this economic class is getting smaller. She explains that in the last four decades, the middle class is slowly shrinking due to the change in income and where the money is being spent. Our economic middle class is shrinking while the lower and upper class is raising. Her essay shows and tells the readers exactly what they can do to avoid from being pushed out of the middle class.

Diction

Most of the time when someone reads or is told about a form of economics it can be difficult to understand and follow. Warren’s diction is simple for the reader

The first form of evidence that she uses are from studies that give statistics on where and when money is being placed. She says, “In the early 1970s… families were putting away 11 percent of its take-home pay in savings.” Using statistics not only count for great evidence but backs up the research for the middle class.

From the economic research, Warren uses them to form her second form of evidence, graphs. Graphs are an effective way to show exactly how something changes over a long distance. Figure 1 of the essay, shows how today’s average family income is more than their parents from previous generations. By using graphs, she shows that as time goes on every small little thing can change how one can fall into certain brackets based on their actions.

Another form of evidence that Warren uses is that of quotes from professors who have backgrounds in economics. She repeats the terms used by experts to tell readers that it is the people themselves that lower their economic class.

Warren makes it easy to follow along while comparing the statistics from the 1970s to the present day. She begins by telling the audience that the middle class is in dire need of help. Then goes through telling the reader the reasons why the middle class is vanishing by using common knowledge of spending.

Also, Warren moves between sections by using cause and effect. Whenever a main topic is finished, she beings the next section by relating the previous to the next. For example, a selection of the essay deals with both parents going into the work force to stay in the middle class. She then goes into the next sections saying that because both parents are working it increased the risks that the family can face.

Action

During the essay, Warren never tells the reader in any way that people need to take action to change the standing of our economic standing. Instead she lets us know what we are exactly doing that is pushing families out of the middle class. Warren states, “…is all about consumption, about families spending their money on things they do not really need.” She makes people think about the things they can cut back to increase their economic standings. Warren implies that if a family want to rise out of the lower class and be placed in the middle class they need to take action themselves. One must stop spending large amounts of money on things like designer clothing and Michael Jordan