If you're not from the UK (or UK citizen abroad), do you think the class system is different?

[Duvetstay]

There are so many threads on MN about class, as in certain foods are MC etc etc. There was a comment on one of these about the British being obsessed with class signifiers.

Which I'd say was true. But are other countries any different? Surely there are always "tribes"? My Dad is Australian and although it's different from the UK I wouldn't say it was without class signifiers (I've never lived there though)

Just got me thinking if the British are markedly different in this regard?

Look up "bogan"

I'm from a Scandinavian country and one of the big differences is the school system. Everyone just goes to their nearest school usually and there's no big difference between schools. Everyone gets free school meals throughout their school years too.

The standard of housing is better, there are no council estates as such but council owned blocks are spread out. Obviously some areas are more expensive than others but it doesn't feel like where you live says anything about your class.

Yup, I've met a few bogans Umbivalent!

Interesting, nordica... I guess the British class system does entrench itself through the generations as you're more likely to go to a good school if you're wealthy and your house is worth 4x as much if it's in a nice area so inheritance is considerably more.

From my observation,British society is obsessed with class and it looks so outdated.
I lived in a few Central/Western European countries and people never bothered about the place you live.You may have doctors/lawyers etc. living within housing associations in a block of flats or a teacher or
a tradesman living in a brand new home,built on the land purchased by aforementioned people.
It's all about who you are and how you conduct yourself,not where you or your family lived.
Why this class system still exist in modern and progressive Britain is quite a big mystery.

The class system in the UK is a bit of an embarrassment.

Many who claim to be middle class are without basic emotional intelligence and moral or spiritual health, while using their wealth/profession as a lone guy rope to keep up appearances.

Claiming to be a certain class/holding on to the class system, whether 'working' or 'middle' is surely a throwback to the days of servitude. I think those who claim they are of a class most likely walk around with a chip on their shoulder. A malaise.

DH is Australian & would definitely say there is a class system there. He grew up very upper middle class in British terms (parents’ jobs & education, private schooling etc) but was never accepted as being one of the “elite” because the family had emigrated to Australia in the 80s rather than being 4 generations “Australian”.

There’s a big thing in the posh suburbs of his city about being descended from the forefathers. They are less bothered by the nouveau riche than in the UK, so money can buy you a way in, but the elite descendants are seen as the pinnacle in the circles he grew up in.

I grew up in New Zealand. Definitely don’t use the class system there. It not really the same thing but nearest equivalent would be to refer to people as ‘rich’ or ‘not rich’. Obv wealth and class are not necessarily linked but in NZ calling someone ‘rich’ would loosely imply that they’re ‘of a higher class’ whilst saying someone is ‘not rich’ means they’re normal ie the majority of the population!

Many who claim to be middle class are without basic emotional intelligence and moral or spiritual health,

You seem nice.

In many warmer non UK countries people generally have a far better quality of life in terms of access to open spaces/unspoiled nature, good climate, arts, sports and culture from a grass roots level. Stronger immune systems too.

These are things that the UK 'middle class' value, yet are unavailable here.

@Umbivalent

Many who claim to be middle class are without basic emotional intelligence and moral or spiritual health,

You seem nice.

It's just an observation. Don't think the socio-ecconomic divide would be as wide if the so called professionals/wealthy and educated were using their conscience, schooling and expertise to uplift all rather than just themselves.

I’m Pakistani, the class system is extremely different due to the quoms.

I'm from Italy but grew up in the UK...I can tell there is a class system in Italy but not the "markers" like I can in the UK.

I would rather be working class in Italy than in the UK I think though (mainly due to the cost of housing, and also I like the Italian "high school" system where you choose options at 14). I'm from the richer North though, I might have thought differently if I was from Southern Italy.

@SaxonRock

The class system in the UK is a bit of an embarrassment.

Many who claim to be middle class are without basic emotional intelligence and moral or spiritual health, while using their wealth/profession as a lone guy rope to keep up appearances.

Claiming to be a certain class/holding on to the class system, whether 'working' or 'middle' is surely a throwback to the days of servitude. I think those who claim they are of a class most likely walk around with a chip on their shoulder. A malaise.

Ah yes lack of emotional intelligence - very much a middle class disease - scientific fact innit. 🦠

How’s that chip on your shoulder doing @Saxonrock 😂

I'm in Italy and I agree that the class system is different here. Fewer people go to private schools too so you get a real mix. My ds was at school with some millionaires but also some children in real poverty.

Brit in cana8and I can state that there is no class system here like there is in the UK. Which I much prefer

*in Canada

I spent most of my life in the US, there is definitly a divide.

I’m Indian and our caste system is notorious so I could stay on this thread all night.

Progressive Indians like to say it no longer exists, especially to foreigners. They’re lying. Now it’s the caste system with an added money and education twist.

NZ. There's a class system but it's less obvious than the UK - so people just work a little harder with the questions, "where did you grow up", "what school did you go to", "what do you/your parents/siblings do", questions about holidays and hobbies etc - it's all wrapped into ordinary conversation. There are different accents, and whilst there is an "old elite" accent, it isn't the only elite accent iyswim so there is less ability to automatically discount someone as not belonging to one's class on the basis of how they sound.

But as I said, it just takes more questions and observation.

Ah yes lack of emotional intelligence - very much a middle class disease - scientific fact innit.🦠

How’s that chip on your shoulder doing

I've already explained why I feel those who claim to be middle class might be low in emotional intelligence. I don't claim to be better than anyone else... there may be things I have a chip on my shoulder for, yes. However, I don't go around flaunting my material wealth or actively practise 'oneupmanship'... those who do so have low EQ. What other explanation is there for the (humble?) bragging from the middle (and working) classes?

In Denmark absolutely everyone is part of the same class. I believe there is a rural/urban divide but not really stark or obvious. There are a lot of oddities that mark our danishness though in the same way as odd thing mark middle from working class in Britain.

Things money can't buy

Manners
Morals
Respect
Character
Common Sense
Trust
Patience
Class
Integrity
Love

Taken from a quote, all the same I believe this to be true.

@PicsInRed

**NZ. There's a class system but it's less obvious than the UK - so people just work a little harder with the questions, "where did you grow up", "what school did you go to", "what do you/your parents/siblings do", questions about holidays and hobbies etc - it's all wrapped into ordinary conversation.

I do ask those questions, but always to establish a connection with others, never to distinguish class.

Class was one of the first cultural divides I noticed on moving to the UK. I had no idea where I fit and even now, many many years later, I feel outside the class system. If you aren't brought up in it, you never really belong to a British social class, because it's not about your job or your income or where you shop or who your friends are. It's more entrenched than any of that.

I still find it strange and regressive.

I'm in the Netherlands.There's definitely a class system, but it's much more subtle and most Dutch people deny it exists. They claim it's just financial, but then you find that everyone working in high level jobs has a titled cousin and have generations of family members in the oldest university fraternities. At least the British are honest about it.

Here, you go to your local school, but catchment areas mean undesirables are priced out. Perfect English is expected for good jobs and university, so families who can pay for internships in the UK and US give their children an advantage. Obviously you can buy those things. I think if you've got a Dutch name you can probably buy your children into the upper middle classes (same as the UK) but I'm not convinced it's possible if you've got a foreign name (maybe also like the UK, although immigrant background doctors seem to manage it in the UK). There's a fairly substantial and rich upper class that is hereditary. And there are two working classes: native Dutch who are comparable to the British, and foreigners who are treated as an underclass and confined to ghettos, much worse than in the UK.