A relatively financially stable class that generally works white collar jobs.
Class is defined by 4 things: Wealth (How much land/stocks/stuff you have. The top
1% of this country owns 80% of US wealth, leaving probably 15 - 20%to the middle class.), Income (Salary/wage of generally $60,000 - 150,000 or so, possibly more per year), Education (Generally middle class
people have at least some college education), and Prestige (How respectable your job is, so that is why a plumber can be paid more than a IT person, but is considered working class).
Most
people think the middle class is the class they are in. They think this because they know someone who has more
money than they do, and someone who has less. Really, the middle class only makes up about 30% of the US population. A MUCH larger silent working class exists. The poverty line is a false indicator of middle class, as it is unsustainable and really the
definition of "emergency poverty." Another
words, financially, nutritionally, health-wise, families cannot make it when consistently within 200% of the poverty line without
help.
The middle class is actually also a bit of a myth created by
school and the media. It is seen as the ideal when in fact, in
truth, it is out of the generosity of the working class (basically being underpaid to do all the grunt
work that someone has to do) that keep the gears of this country well-oiled.
Sorry to break your bubble!
Most movies out there show Middle
class as ideal if they talk about
school. "Middle class values" = Hard
work, perseverance, education.
