High schools are notorious for demonstrating stratification, describes in out text as inequalities among groups, relating not just to property but to attributes such as gender, age, religious affiliation or other. Milner argues that teenagers are cruel to each other because they lack power in many aspects of their lives and seek to create social structures where they can get power. THis theory helps explain why cliques and social exclusion are so common among teenagers.
Most of us think that the pettiness of highschool cliques passes with time and would like to believe that social status begins to play a less dominant role as we mature into adulthood. But I think that class matters for people of all ages. Class matters first because it affects the opportunities that are available to you. Members of the working and underclasses have much less access to good education and other benefits than their upper middle class counterparts. But class also defines how we view ourselves and others. There were many examples of this in the stories section of the People Like Us website. Individuals who had either experienced upward or downward mobility tended to also experience alienation from family and/or friends. Even if all social classes experienced equal opportunities, class would still matter.
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I think you analysis of why teenagers want to be part of cliques. I think they are becoming adults, and want to assert their power, but still have to follow guidelines of their parents, schools, etc.
ReplyDeleteAs far as class mattering to everyone, I agree, but I think if we get carried away with it, we hurt each other, and society. I think we have to balance wanting to be in good neighborhoods, and have nice things, along with helping others, and treating everyone as a human being.