This research paper analyzed the transformation of middle class American culture, and its definition. Here is a look at the introduction...
Introduction
The American middle-class relatively recently became very
diverse and affluent. Like other classes, they developed their own culture
which quickly evolved over decades. Today, a middle-class family is described
as having financial stability, typically able to afford some luxuries such as
vacations, and is usually a two-income household with access to good education.
This paper will evaluate the perspectives that different historians take to explain
the development of middle-class America since the 1700s. The following sources
have done a good job of evaluating only specific parts of middle-class America.
This paper argues that
through a combination of all of them, a more extensive understanding can be
achieved. Beginning in the 18thcentury, in conjunction with the
development of American capitalism, was that of the middle class. The emerging
capitalists manipulated the working class into adopting the values necessary
for accepting the well-oiled machine that is American capitalism. These values
came to define middle-class culture. The acceptance of this culture eventually
translated into efficient and legal mass exploitation.
2021