People Like Us [excerpt]

Tags: class, consumption/consumerism, inequality, theory, weber, cultural capital, status, stratification, subtitles/CC, 21 to 60 mins
Year: 2001
Length: 24:50
Access: No online access (limited clips available on YouTube; including Tammy's Story)

Summary: According to the creators of this PBS documentary, "class can be harder to spot than racial or ethnic differences, yet in many ways it's the most important predictor of what kind of financial and educational opportunities someone will have in life." The video explores how "income, family background, education, attitudes, aspirations, and even appearance mark someone as a member of a particular social class" and how these differences divide American society. While this documentary conceptually muddles concepts of class and status, it is an excellent and very entertaining exploration of these topics. This selection includes 3 excerpts that provide an Introduction to social class (begin at 0:15; end at 9:30), and excerpts that juxtapose upper middle class groups (9:30-13:30; 35:25-40:45) and working class groups (Tammy's Story: 52:45-59:00). The full documentary is 124 minutes. It is an excellent starting point for defining class, discussing class inequalities, or identifying cultural differences across class.

Submitted By: Paul Dean

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