What social class are you?

tailwindhome

In other news I'm like so typical Gemini.

EKE_38BPM

Sketchley wrote:

<rant>
Why why why must we redefine the carefully broken down barriers between the old class system to create new definitions? The best thing this shows is that the definitions of upper, middle and working (lower) class are no longer valid if indeed they ever were.

People are different get over it and stop trying to categorise them into nice and simple groups.

Anyway it's all a matter or perspective, to different people I'd could appear in any one of those categories and I might view them as being in a different category than they would put themselves.

</rant>

Spoken like a true Precariat.

Headhuunter

dhope wrote:

Currently renting and not living with the EPO, I'm 'Emergent service workers'
Looking to buy in the next few months, and if MrsDhope moved in then we'd suddenly become Elite however, which is of course where I see myself, or Elite Di2 maybe.

You've been looking to buy for a year or 2 now, haven't you? Come on, get a move on!

Ginjafro

Sketchley wrote:

<rant>
Why why why must we redefine the carefully broken down barriers between the old class system to create new definitions? The best thing this shows is that the definitions of upper, middle and working (lower) class are no longer valid if indeed they ever were.

People are different get over it and stop trying to categorise them into nice and simple groups.

Anyway it's all a matter or perspective, to different people I'd could appear in any one of those categories and I might view them as being in a different category than they would put themselves.

</rant>

Probably because the "British" are obsessed with class and its definitions. As a marketing tool such distinctions may be quite helpful to those wishing to sell us goods and services or politicians wishing to divide or unite the electorate. Other societies are interested in "class" too but perhaps in ways we do not always understand or recognise, eg the Indian Caste system or the US class system that tends to deny class but is most definitely class ridden with huge disparities in income and wealth between the richest and poorest. We may sometimes wish to deny or ignore the British habit of defining class or pigeonholing but many of us may prefer, for example, to distance ourselves from our brethren that appear comfortable on the Jeremy Kyle Show or those that read the Daily Mail!

sketchley

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Sketchley wrote:

<rant>
Why why why must we redefine the carefully broken down barriers between the old class system to create new definitions? The best thing this shows is that the definitions of upper, middle and working (lower) class are no longer valid if indeed they ever were.

People are different get over it and stop trying to categorise them into nice and simple groups.

Anyway it's all a matter or perspective, to different people I'd could appear in any one of those categories and I might view them as being in a different category than they would put themselves.

</rant>

Spoken like a true Precariat.

Spoken like a true Elitist

DonDaddyD

TailWindHome wrote:

If I include my 'normal' salary when I'm working we fit into Established Middle Class. Remove my salary and we're New Affluent Worker.

Yet another attack on stay at home parents....

EKE_38BPM

Sketchley wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Sketchley wrote:

<rant>
Why why why must we redefine the carefully broken down barriers between the old class system to create new definitions? The best thing this shows is that the definitions of upper, middle and working (lower) class are no longer valid if indeed they ever were.

People are different get over it and stop trying to categorise them into nice and simple groups.

Anyway it's all a matter or perspective, to different people I'd could appear in any one of those categories and I might view them as being in a different category than they would put themselves.

</rant>

Spoken like a true Precariat.

Spoken like a true Elitist

Spot DDD:

rick_chasey

Techincal middle.

Odd description, given that technical is a synonym.

stu-bim

A load of rubbish. I I had to pick one I am an new affluent worker with a good job.

vermin

Rick Chasey wrote:

Techincal middle.

Odd description, given that technical is a synonym.

It may be so, but techincal is the sloppy work of a feckless plebian mind. Vermin is elite in all respects, as you were already aware.

rolf_f

Established middle. Mind you, economically it means nothing given the North - South and London -everywhere else divides. There's a lot of Elite level Londoners who will be far poorer than established middle class people outside London.

meanredspider

Hmmmm - I'm not sure

First.Aspect

I came in as economy class, but I couldn't select pub quizzes or train spotting as hobbies. I think that would have increased my leg room lots.

wandsworth

This questionnaire annoyed me. It got lots of attention, because British people are obsessed with class, but was so simplistic. For example, it asked about cerain cultural activities (going to the opera, listening to jazz) but didn't ask about reading. The highest house value you could have was £500k, but it didn't ask about mortgages ... if I have a 500k house with a 400k mortgage, I'm worse off in financial terms than someone with a 400k house and a 200k mortgage (in that I have less equity i.e. actual wealth). The highest annual income bracket was £100k, which is a lot but way, way below the real top end.

I'd love to see how they scored some of the specific responses, e.g. whether going to the opera and knowing university lecturers bumped you up the scale but listening to rap and knowing shop assistants pushed you down.

mudcow007

turns out im Established middle..

in your face you bunch of low life luddites!!

DonDaddyD

The most patronising thing about this questionnaire is the word - 'Precariat' - being used to describe the group formally referred to as 'The Great Unwashed'.

Chances are the majority of them won't even know what that word means.

rubertoe

I'm going to be drinking Gin tonight, make of that what you will.

rolf_f

wandsworth wrote:

This questionnaire annoyed me. It got lots of attention, because British people are obsessed with class, but was so simplistic. For example, it asked about cerain cultural activities (going to the opera, listening to jazz) but didn't ask about reading. The highest house value you could have was £500k, but it didn't ask about mortgages ... if I have a 500k house with a 400k mortgage, I'm worse off in financial terms than someone with a 400k house and a 200k mortgage (in that I have less equity i.e. actual wealth). The highest annual income bracket was £100k, which is a lot but way, way below the real top end.

I'd love to see how they scored some of the specific responses, e.g. whether going to the opera and knowing university lecturers bumped you up the scale but listening to rap and knowing shop assistants pushed you down.

No, listening to rap doesn't bump you down and neither does knowing shop assistants. Actually the reverse. Rap counts the same as Opera and my lowest score was on the social side due to having too narrow a range of friends - I'd have scored higher knowing more shop keepers. Reading is an irritating omission but probably not a necessary inclusion. I doubt you need a survey to know, generally, which categories will have more readers in and which less.

And it is simplistic but it's only supposed to be a rough guide (the BBC site does have a longer test though it is much the same really) - the test is whether you see yourself as being in the right category. If you do then the test was probably adequate for its purpose.

That said, they should have had a question "does this test annoy you" and if you answer 'yes' you go straight to Established Middle Class!

Agreed about the mortgage thing though - maybe there needs to be a separate class for the fiscally stupid! And my comment about the regional angle is relevant as well. You can be far better off outside the home counties with far less money than Londoners.

rolf_f

DonDaddyD wrote:

The most patronising thing about this questionnaire is the word - 'Precariat' - being used to describe the group formally referred to as 'The Great Unwashed'.

Chances are the majority of them won't even know what that word means.

Who here had heard the term before now? Not me!

The term is a portmanteau obtained by merging precarious with proletariat.[2]

And a bloody irritating portmanteau it is too!

notsoblue

rjsterry wrote:

Wildly simplistic web questionnaire produces questionable results - well I never.

Could have put a very safe bet on DDD posting this though, teehee

He's BR's very own Hycinth Bucket.

notsoblue

DonDaddyD wrote:

The most patronising thing about this questionnaire is the word - 'Precariat' - being used to describe the group formally referred to as 'The Great Unwashed'.

Patronising? Its a descriptive term, and quite accurate I think.

http://www.policy-network.net/pno_detai ... rous+class

rolf_f

notsoblue wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

The most patronising thing about this questionnaire is the word - 'Precariat' - being used to describe the group formally referred to as 'The Great Unwashed'.

Patronising? Its a descriptive term, and quite accurate I think.

http://www.policy-network.net/pno_detai ... rous+class

Naah, patronising. It's only necessary because terms such as 'underclass' are now un PC. Of course, if Precariat catches on, in turn that too will become non PC as does any term that is used to describe a negative aspect of humanity.

byke68

Thought I'd take a look at this survey after all and ................................I'm a Emergent Service Worker! Not working class after all! Just as well as I've just applyed for a Waitrose Loyalty card

supersonic

I'm just a peasant.

porlyworly

Did the test, didn't get the result I expected, decided test sucks

Mark Elvin

Has me down as Elite, but I think the survey is bollox. I work for a living, as does Mrs E, so surely we are working class.

Headhuunter

Mark Elvin wrote:

Has me down as Elite, but I think the survey is bollox. I work for a living, as does Mrs E, so surely we are working class.

But as we discussed above, class has never been a question of being simply "employed or "unemployed", in fact much of the traditional upper class would have been unemployed because they didn't need to work! Class in the UK has always been a complex matter of how you speak, where you were born, who your parents were and your job/financial situation....

rick_chasey

vermin wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Techincal middle.

Odd description, given that technical is a synonym.

It may be so, but techincal is the sloppy work of a feckless plebian mind. Vermin is elite in all respects, as you were already aware.

In Liverpool? ?