To ask what social class you would say I am?

[flowersandcake]

Hello!

So my friends and I were discussing class issues and one friend told me that I would have 'no idea about anything as I'm upper class' and another strangly interupted and mentioned that I'm working not upper class? I personally thought I was middle?

My situation is:
5 bed house worth 900K, no mortgage
2 Teenagers
Lucky enough to pay for their uni fees and sixth form fees, both at private sixth form, one went to a grammar and the other a state secondary school
DD owns a pony and DS used to
DD plays the violin and DS the drums
2 holidays a year (one longer one and either a week in cornwall/scotland or a couple of weekend city breaks)
Household income of 110-140K depending on the year as DH is self employed and can earn up to 90K.

I promise I'm not boasting or anything, we give 10K a year to charity and DS is in the process of persuading his dad to give his uni fees to a charity.

So what class would I be in your opinion?

RoadToRivendell

I agree with you Blue about speaking, I'm talking about informal writing. Most MC people I know do not labour over emails, even ones having a lot of recipients.

That never makes sense to me. Why on earth would you switch off an ability to be accurate when using spelling and grammar, whether you are in an informal situation or not? Bonkers idea.

I should just like to point out OP (as others before me have) that your livery yard are ripping you off!

Although I must admit that none of your info really adds up so...

And obviously no one will criticise the spelling of a dyslexic! I do know that.🙄

So shouldn't you check when you go online and decide spelling accuracy is weirdly a class denominator, if they are dyslexic or not before you do it?

Because the bottom line is, you could have been criticising the spelling of a dyslexic. You simply didn't know as you don't know rhe people you're criticising.

Here's a neat summary for us all

I read the Telegraph, use a serviette, say Bollocks so often both my toddlers picked it up, none of my furniture is chain store and my favourite piece in my house is my Grandmother's sideboard.

Does that make me classy then?

The chances would be slim, Bluntness 100.
🙄

mrsnec Your only 'fault' there is saying 'serviette' not 'napkin'. Serviette is traditionally regarded as 'non-U' - it's in the category of words that supposedly sound posher, so therefore aren't (see also dessert and pudding, toilet and loo).

I use the term 'fault' in the context of the thread - it's not a personal opinion, I hasten to add lest I appear judgemental.

Ha! I never know which of those is correct! But it's always Loo and pudding.

Hmm, on the one hand, my initial reaction is that poor spelling suggests less educated and therefore working class, but then I think of my MiL, and my friend's Mum, who were both the daughters of servants, both left school at 14, both would consider themselves solid working class, and both of whom had perfect spelling and written grammar.
I'm also thinking of Working men & women's colleges, and all the self - educated people , those attending evening classes in order to improve their knowledge and understanding- is it a particular type of education that is a class marker? is it PPE and Classics, or something different? I'm very sure that working class doesn't necessarily mean uneducated , yet education is up there with the class markers.
Along with hair, clothing and other tribal markings, although these are not clear cut either!
So a mixture of things, some of which change with time.

A reasonably established banker in his 40s will earn many multiples of £90k. That would be a low starter salary for a junior trader in his early 20s and he'd probably double that in bonuses.
If he works in the city he must have a fair few hours commute in if their 5-bed house costs £900k.

I agree with the above poster. I am terribly dyslexic. But I dont wear a sign above my head. Other than my very very bad spelling and writing skills. You would have no way to know this.

And I am public school educated.

I would say it is more the words you use and tone than spelling or grammer that is a class indicator.

Hi it's a fracture, waiting for nurse. Santiago had key x

DelphiniumBlue A public school education is a definite class marker. This would typically involve a knowledge of Latin and Greek, and traditional public school sports such as rugby and cricket. A good knowledge of modern European languages can also be a marker, as a sign of being widely travelled, possibly having an au pair etc.

It's unlikely that anyone UC would be allowed to grow up lacking basic literacy skills. Poor spelling and grammar would be addressed with extra tuition, probably at home as well as school - it's unlikely that someone struggling would be able to slip through the net, as class sizes are small. A good education in Latin can also make it easier to avoid certain common English spelling errors, as words can be related to their Latin root.

My view is that education for the working classes lacks the same certainty of a good basic grounding, as it can be a matter of luck how effective a given state school is; state schools suffer from funding and resourcing problems; there are more likely to be disruptive pupils who swallow up a teacher's attention. More self-motivation is needed if you want to succeed, and parental support is vital.

(I was educated at a comprehensive school that was fairly average for its time. It had streaming, and while the top streams were very good, the lower streams were utter chaos. )

@Pa1oma Was that meant to be a text message?

Apologies it's been a long day

From your post, it sounds like it .

Can't be working class if the wealth are handed down.

Plenty of 5 bed detached houses near me for around 900k and you can get from the local station to bank station in about 30 mins.

(Some) English people are so fucking weird.

If this is the UK then there are 3 classes:
posh, common, and people who worry about class.
You are definitely the third kind.

Working middle class

You call your sitting room a living room you are working class,
Class generally is based on your family and profession so bank managers, doctors and head teachers are middle class, folk who don’t need to work are normally upper class, and those who have to work are working class, the price of your house, kids school, music lessons and charity giving have nothing to do with it!!

Chinny reckon, I’ve heard that expression twice already today 😂😂

Actually imo class is about education and attitude. I have a group of friends, who are tradesmen: among that group is a builder, two carpenters and a painter/decorator. All are doing what they love, and good for them: working in an office is clearly not their style.

All are degree-educated, from well-off families, in fact - get this - the painter decorator is a right honourable. His family just happens to have no money any more.

I have so much respect for these guys who have been brave enough to stick two fingers up at class convention and do what is true to themselves.

All are cultured in the sense of their houses old and rambling with tasteful colours and second hand furniture, their kids are being brought up to appreciate the arts (several of their parents got their degrees at art college) so I just don’t believe that class is down to profession but it’s due to a multitude of factors: culture, upbringing, accent, attitude.

Who cares anyway? We are a multi layered society and one size doesn’t fit all.