Standard of Living In a world immersed in consumerism and material items, many individuals are able to enjoy a comfortable quality of life. But, quality of living does not necessarily correlate to standard of living. The measurements used to justify the standard of living are subjective and numerous. Quantification of an individual’s standard of living, verses their quality of life, is difficult to characterize and poses a challenge to scholars when analyzing social status of both past and present generations. Regardless of class status, a certain quality of living can be obtained. Though income and conditions may not be ideal and prosperous, the addition of material items can greatly improve the comfort in which one lives. A factor contributing …show more content…
Throughout the ages, individuals holding more power within a community generally have a higher standard of living. During 19th century England, for example, while the national wealth increased, it was not evenly, or fairly distributed. “The “average” working man remained very close to subsistence level at a time when he was surrounded by the evidence of the increase of national wealth,” (Thompson). The working class remained in poverty as the fruits of their labor went directly to the powers controlling capitalism in their community. Similar to the economic situation driving poverty in today’s modern society, the rich continued to become richer, yet the average worker’s compensation did not correlate with the level of their labors. …show more content…
It is through the possession of these luxury items that makes distinguishing standard of living difficult. On the surface, an individual may seem well off; wearing brand name clothing, or supporting brand name items, these luxuries may cause a false perceptions of individuals living in poverty (Lowrey). The presence of material items within an individual’s life does not necessarily correlate to their income level. The same challenge is in place for analyzing social structures of the past. As consumerism and innovation gained momentum in 19th century England, luxuries considered to be a poor standard, such as potatoes, beer, and tea, transitioned to become necessities for the diet of the middle and upper class individuals (Thompson). This transition from a poor to a rich commodity, further increased the gap between the lower class and the upper class levels quality and standard of
Drawing from the eudaimonic view and from SDT, Kasser & Ryan (1993, 1996) related money and materialism to well-being. They predicted that people who place a strong value on wealth...
The point is made quite clear that the distribution of wealth in this country could not even be considered a distribution at all. The money did not circulate, except in the case of whatever a poor family could afford, which was not much. This is not a country where you could work your way into power without even a step up. If anything, this country could be considered more authoritarian, in which those in power stayed in power until someone tried to overthrow them.
With each class comes a certain level in financial standing, the lower class having the lowest income and the upper class having the highest income. According to Mantsios’ “Class in America” the wealthiest one percent of the American population hold thirty-four percent of the total national wealth and while this is going on nearly thirty-seven million Americans across the nation live in unrelenting poverty (Mantsios 284-6). There is a clear difference in the way that these two groups of people live, one is extreme poverty and the other extremely
The video “In Sickness and In Wealth” is about how healthy your body is connected to your means of health. In this video it views the life of four individuals with different lifestyles and different levels of income. In this video it displays the life of a CEO, lab supervisor, janitor and unemployed mother, all from Louisville, Kentucky. It explained how their social class affect their standard of living as well as their health. In this video demonstrate how social class shapes access to control, resources and opportunity, resulting in a health-wealth incline.
Through the Middle Ages, society was divided into three social classes: the clergy, the nobles, and the peasants. However, as people entered into the Renaissance, these classes changed. The nobles during these times started to lose a lot of income, however, the members of the older nobility kept their lands and titles. On into the Renaissance, the nobles came back to dominate society and w...
Wilkinson & Pickett, (W&P) assert that society on the whole would be healthier, more successful and happier if the gap between the affluent and the poor was tightened. The ‘Spirit Level Book’, written by them in 2010, is one of the most influential books on social policy to date and it argues that not only does inequality affect the ones down the bottom of the ladder but everyone across the board. Affluent countries perform better when social indicators are more equal across society. This essay will assess the validity of Wilkinson & Pickett’s conclusions by comparing the works of authors that support similar arguments, to the work of authors who disagree with them. A comparison of these different approaches, with a critical look at what and how inequality is being measured reveals that there is no definite answer to the problems raised by Wilkinson and Pickett, although many of their statements are valid.
Living in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, our culture has naturally valued prestige and luxuries. We admire fancy items and often judge other individuals by the clothes they wear, the car they drive, and the schools that they attend. The “American Dream” serves as a motivational factor for people; believing that hard work and dedication can bring “success” to ones’ life. Although this is partially true, it is difficult for individuals in the middle class and lower class.
Shahab, Lion "Socioeconomic Status and Health." Cambridge Handbook of Psychology, Health and Medicine. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. Credo Reference. Web. 8 May 2014.
Divisions within the social stratum is a characteristic of societies in various cultures and has been present throughout history. During the middle ages, the medieval feudal system prevailed, characterized by kings and queens reigning over the peasantry. Similarly, in today’s society, corporate feudalism, otherwise known as Capitalism, consists of wealthy elites dominating over the working poor. Class divisions became most evident during America’s Gilded Age and Progressive era, a period in time in which the rich became richer via exploitation of the fruits of labor that the poor persistently toiled to earn. As a result, many Americans grew compelled to ask the question on everyone’s mind: what do the rich owe the poor? According to wealthy
Socio-economic class or socio-economic status (SES) may refer to mixture of various factors such as poverty, occupation and environment. It is a way of measuring the standard and quality of life of individuals and families in society using social and economic factors that affect health and wellbeing ( Giddens and Sutton, 2013). Cockerham (2007 p75) argues: ‘Social class or socioeconomic status (SES) is the strongest predictor of health, disease causation and longevity in medical sociology.’ Research in the 1990s, (Drever and Whitehead, 1997) found out that people in higher SES are generally healthier, and live longer than those in lower SES.
Landes, D., 1999. The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 38-59
While money cannot buy happiness, ‘the status and security’ (Hout, 2016, p. 219) that accompany being in above average social classes is linked with more happiness.
Standard of Living, in a purely material dimension is the average amount of GDP per person in a country (therefore determining access to goods and services). However the term has a much broader, non-material dimension involving issues of quality of life and are therefore much more difficult to quantify. There is no single measure of SoL, but a range of indicators, which can be used together to give a good idea of a countries’ SoL. Reasons for GDP figures alone giving an incomplete understanding of SoL in a country will be explained in this essay, along with problems faced when comparing levels of development between countries.
The lifestyles of this wealthy class, called the nouveau riche and who emerged in 1783, were considered lavish. Though they weren’t apart of the English aristocracy, they were able to live comfortable lives like them. This new class was able to emerge because of the influx of immigration into the rapidly forming cities; people were in search of employment. As these people arrived to the newly formed cities, factory owners obtaianed a larger labor force that would work for them. Nevertheless, they would continue to pay workers fixed wages and make large profits (Manolopoulou and Eagleton 3). Despite this change of social stratification in England, the society remained patriarchal. For marriage to occur, a woman had to either bring land into marriage or pay a dowry. In addition, any land or property inherited by women had to be passed on to her husband. Furthermore, patriarchal forces were reinforced since women were still restricted to the same low-status, low-paid, and low-skilled jobs they always had. A reason for this continuity was the decrease of employment opportunities given to women during the industrial revolution (Chalus and Barker 82). The dominance of men at the end of this time period was still
Poverty not only prevents people from buying the things they need, it is about stress, poor health, sub-standard housing, lack of facilities, inadequate infrastructure, fear of crime, and problems associated with the stigma of living in a deprived area (Tomlinson & Walker, 2009).