Lareau Chapter 5 Summary

Chapter 5
1. In Chapter 5 of the Gilbert text, when Lareau mentions the sense of entitlement that upper-middle class children feel and the sense of restraint that working class and poor children feel she is referring to the growth and development that the children have experienced growing up. According to Lareau, there are two types of child-rearing that occur in many cultures, which are cultivated growth and natural growth. Cultivated growth is often experienced by upper-middle class children, whereas natural growth is experienced by working class and poor children. Upper-middle class children feel a sense of entitlement and working class and poor children feel a sense of restraint through daily activities, language, and various institutions.
Upper-middle class children

An example of this could be a factory worker who has experience several bouts of unemployment and their growing sense of depravity, which could potentially lead them to communicate with their fellow working class workers since they may share similar problems. Another factor that can be considered significant in the development of class consciousness is polarization. Polarization can be described as the push that a capitalist economy has to drive small industries out of business and force them to become a part of the proletariat. An example of this would small businesses such as mom and pop stores or businesses that thrive on community help being brought or forced out by large corporations, like hotels and shopping malls. The depletion of small business enhances the gap that already exist between the proletariat and the upper class. This result in the disappearance of the middle class as the upper class gets smaller and the working class and poor increase