Class: A Guide Through the American Status System

. U P D A T E S: 2nd JUNE, 2011 I..........There is an English edition of this book. It is called "Caste Marks", and has the same text as "Class", but no illustrations, except on the book jacket. I have also written a review for it on Amazon. II.........PLEASE NOTE: I liked this book SO much that I wrote my VERY FIRST Amazon Review For it! . . ORIGINAL REVIEW: . Other tomes (tombs?) may be more scholarly. Still others may be more recent, ("Class" by Paul Fussell was first published in 1983.) But the fact is, I have never before come across a book SO easily read, so obviously joyously written, with SO much useful detail! (Ahah! I finally know how to achieve the "rich look" in dressing: LAYER your clothes: a dress is never as good as a jacket dress, a jacket dress never as good as a suit with blouse, and scarf tastefully adorning the neck!) In this book, Mr. Paul Fussell lets loose a "fussilage" of wit and truths, (sometimes painful truths), yet written in so breezy and easily-read style that even the painful parts are a pleasure, (or almost a pleasure), to read... (Does Mr. Fussell pronounce his name "FUSS-EL" of "FYuse-ELL", I wonder? Knowing this would surely given an indication of his own class....and/or class pretentions!) Although this book is not meant for scholars, it has much useful sociological information. (This means Mr. Fussell hhas done all the work for the reader!) His style is breezy, informative, with tongue definitely in cheek -- although he speaks of facts. I suppose what separates this book from a scholarly work is that it has many of Mr. Fussell's OPINIONS in it -- but, with his irrefutable logic and many examples backing him up, one cannot help but agree with 99% of what is said. It even has illustrations - PICTURES! The twenty whimsical (yet dead-on!) drawings by Martim de Avillez enter into the spirit of Mr. Fussell's writing so well! They are realistic -- but witty, with the expressions on the people depicted telling all! (I shudder -- with total delight -- at the thought that this wonderful book could perhaps, be made into a movie someday, (soon, please!) If so -- I beg the producers to allow Mr. Fussel free reign to write, and/or approve the screenplay. It would be complete sacrilege if any movie made of this book did not convey the dead seriousness and light touch with which Mr. Fussell writes -- and Mr. de Avillez draws! In sum, this book is witty, it's light, it's easy to read, but conveys a lot of information. The info is as true today as it was when this book was written -- and is absolutely essential reading for anyone interested in American social mores -- (and or social climbing in the American system. Four things only disappoint me here. 1) The book is too short...I want to know more! 2) There is no index. 3) There is no bibliography. (However, many essential books ARE named in the text) And 4) -- Perhaps most eggregious of all -- the paper, (at least in the paperback edition), is of the type which has too much sulfite, and will probably crumble into dust far before the social system it so delightfully summarizes changes. This is too bad -- and totally unfair to this wonderful book. Maybe this is the publisher's little joke about the paperback edition -- it is, of course, cheaper than the hardback -- thus more available to the masses...a "prole" edition, as Mr. Fussell would describe it -- despite it's nice large print and good binding. I surely hope that the Hardback edition has better paper! Anyway, I have decided to buy the hardback and see! I will then solve both my holiday gift problem -- and, hopefully, my lingering sibling rivalry with my sister, (which must, sadly, be the longest-running sibling rivalry in history --though we both do try very hard to end it) -- by presenting my totally non-status seeking sister with the paperback edition. In fact -- she hates anything to do with status-seeking. But it's time she knew the truth! After all -- with its light touch and heavy doses of wit -- this is the only book on the subject which she probably would ever even consider reading. (I shall present it to her on her next visit in the next few months -- so I shall see if she actually reads it or not.) For, two people working to improve the family's status have to be better than one! I can only hope that this book will bring her to her senses, and that she will finally become as much of a happy status-seeker as I am. Who knows -- she might indeed achieve a higher status in life. I hope then that she will not forget who gave her this "magic" book! Far more realistic than the "Harry Potter" books, yet with the promise of truly changing one's life as much as a letter from "Hogwarts" would, I believe this is the perfect holiday present -- or birthday present -- or UNbirthday present -- for anyone you know who wants -- or should want -- a better life. Even yourself! ADDENDUM: I couldn't help myself. When my sister called this week, I HAD to tell her about this wonderful book, even before her visit. Bracing myself for yet more criticism of my class-consciousness, and her saying "that's not important", as she usually does when I mention things like this -- I instead heard, "I read that book! And I loved it!" This from a person who has sung Joan Baez songs since she was 17, was a vegetarian for a year, never colours her hair, and hates all formal gowns! But the truth will out, it seems. This book has tons of truths in it, and even my sister -- who never wanted a "Sweet Sixteen" party...much less a formal debut, (which I have always pined for), just had to see the truth here. My sister, (and I too) do not have much money.... But you don't overcome your problems unless you know what you're up against. The ephemeral "equality" of the U.S. is, in the end, as real as the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. It's a pleasant myth. Maybe the Founding Fathers did dream of a land of complete equality.....but human nature, and the dream of a better life for one's self, have a way of turning ideals on their ear. "CLASS" is a classic, in that it gets to reality in an eminently readable fashion. Now, at last, it seems my little sister is smart enough to acknowledge this. Perhaps she has finally grown up, after all!

A long time ago I read Paul Fussell's "The Great War in Modern Memory", this book had always stuck with me, unlike many other books that I have read and forgot. This one was suggested by someone whose opinion I valued, so I bought it and quickly read it. It was very entertaining, and insightful, if sometimes depressing! I read the whole book over a weekend, and I am not entirely sure how it is meant to be taken. Sometimes I felt like Fussell was being totally serious and honest, at other times it read like satire. He clearly has some low opinions of some of the classes that he describes. Everyone seems to want what they don't have, except maybe the lower classes which appear happily ignorant of their situation. I don't know that one can read this book and use it as an actual guide to class in America, but you can read it and perhaps use it to help you to reflect on yourself and your own situation. It is pretty clear from reading this book that Fussell didn't buy into the American myth of societal mobility. In Fussell's telling you can move a bit, but not by much. He has pretty rich and complex descriptions of our classes and thinking that there is just upper, middle, and lower is far too facile for Fussel. Each of these thumbnails of class has several subgroups, and there is even a group above "Upper", who knew? Money has a major role to play in class, but it is clear to Fussell that money itself does not determine class. It is far more complex, it is about taste, behavior, expectations, and even what we think others think of us, or that is whether we care. The "uppers" don't care too much what others think, it is the great American middle class that is so concerned about keeping up with the "Joneses" and their concern pegs them to where they are. If you are interested in class, or understanding American social strata, this is well worth a read. It is even fun to read, but it might challenge your view of where you fit in American society. Be prepared.

You'll either love or hate this book. And, if it's the latter, I hope I can convince you to at least like it. Fussell is a keen observer of cues that might suggest wealth, poverty, and the kind of class labels people might apply at first glance. He gets it right. Those judgements might not be fair, but... they happen, whether or not people are conscious of it or would admit to it. This book is ideal for anyone studying sociology and social behaviors in general. It's also perfect for any actor, to get all the cues right when portraying a character. For those aspiring to a better job, or more respect in an apparently closed community, this is a must-read. I'm not saying that prejudice is okay. In fact, I'm a champion of civil rights, equality in the workplace and community, and so on. The fact is, especially in some segments of society, people will judge others based first impressions and external cues. For as long as those attitudes remain, a book like this is invaluable to understand - and perhaps overcome - some people's innate reactions, especially when they're unfair. Though some of this book seems rather dated, there's enough in it to recommend it, especially in an era when society seems more polarized than we'd like. You may need to overlook Fussell's personal opinions, but the cues he's talking about are well worth noting. Even if they're harsh, they can be at the root of social challenges many face every day.

This book had me laughing somewhat unexpectedly! I couldn't help but read out parts of this book to my husband. If you have ever seen Downton Abbey and enjoy the way the Dowager says things, you will like this book. It's witty, and points out the obvious but not so obvious in a really hilarious way. It appears to come from a more upper crust perspective, however this could just be because that is mine, it's hard to say. I will say this though, it's clear that in the 30 some odd years since this book was written, our world has been taken over by proles. Everywhere you look, prole habits abound. I refuse to go down with the ship!! I was obsessed with this book until completion. A must read. For me, anyways!

I can never look at the world with the same eyes after reading this book.

it’s a book gives a general idea about 60s-70s the features of Different classes in US, the lifestyle, the habit, the cloth, the food, the vocabulary they use, the hobby, the transportation, the car, etc. sometimes the fact you still could find right now, it’s very interesting but it requires you have high level vocabularies

a weird topic to talk about, although this author once again wrote this excellent book revealing some facts to take into consideration when mingling about this topic.

Extremely witty, and despite Being written 40 years ago, the observations remain just as relevant. The quality of the book itself is poor - but yourself a hard cover -prole!