To ask another 'class' question?

[PonyLo]

I know.
But i was reading another thread and it brought this to mind. People keep blithering on about it on MN, but the topic is often about signifiers such as clothes, house, job, schools, consumer choices and such.

So I had this thought - if a huge amount of people were just placed together in a big group wearing only a simple cotton dressing gown and no make up, could you tell what *social group they belonged to?

Like the bare bones?
My guess is that probably not! You might try to pick 'hair style' but I have found that varies wildly (I am middle class with a good amount of natural frizz). Which kind of confirms my suspicion that it's all about perception, rather than fact.

*'Social Group' is a much preferable description since it disqualifies attempts to use hierarchical judgements.

Jesus Christ 🙄

Is this 'class' then? It just seems thick

*shardash" · Today 00:09

To look at them you'd have a job, so just wait until they start talking. All would become clear fairly quickly.

I agree with that, you'd be able to tell by their accents and vocabulary, to some extent.

I think a lot of people on MN are desperate to climb the social ladder.
To presume tacky, rough handed imagery of the working class suggest insecurity.
If i was WC, i would pay this no mind. It is a cesspit of desperation!

Class, to me, is a construct to pacify those who have to work (99% of us), but need someone to look down on, which neatly explains why we have a dubiously titled 'underclass'.

Well, it certainly seems that way from some people in here! Cringe like. My Husband is dyslexic, did a fairly bad Leaving Cert, but he'd ride roughshod over these people.

I’d probably be able to tell class by the quality, colour and cut of the dressing gown, especially if it’s got a hotel logo on it. 😂

@Sinnerboy fyi, i don't have a job. I'm fairly smart. That's a pretty shitty attitude tbh.

You absolutely can't tell with accents and vocab. Bertie Ahern. He was a fabulous politician. He had neither the the accent, nor the vocabularly (considering he was dealing with the British Government). Intelligence is not defined by accents. It's a fool who assumes someone is less than because of an accent tbh. You have to listen to what they say, not how they say it.

This is ONS data plotting healthy life expectancy against deprivation.

Being smaller and iller because you are poorer is very much a current problem, and has worsened over the past decade. It sounds like it belongs 100 years ago, but it’s Britain in the 2020s, sadly.

If your sample of people were all aged 70, you’d immediately be able to tell who was wealthy and who was poor, even if they were all dressed in the same cloth nightgown.

This isn't going to be popular but wealthier people are more likely to be slim.
Someone told me this some years ago as her daughter was in a private school and there weren't any overweight girls in her daughter's class.

Of course there are exceptions - there will be wealthier fat people and there will be very skinny/malnourished looking poorer people.

But if you are aware of it, you will see its true, especially for women.

Which is of no consquence? Unless you admit that you judge heavier people as less than?

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/headlines/2023/jun/british-five-year-olds-7cm-shorter-western-peers

Sorry to disabuse you, but British children who grow up in poverty today are measurably shorter than their wealthier peers, as demonstrated by the national schools measuring programme, which weighs and measures every child at age 5 and age 10/11.

“Children in the poorest areas of England are both fatter and significantly shorter than those in the richest areas at age 10 to 11,”

Your reply is of no consequence.

I replied to the OP's question as to how do people know/see as a marker to what social group other people are in.

My reply is of every conesquence. Otherwise,i wouldn't make it. .

Yes, by how they spoke.

It doesn't seem to answer the OP's question so perhaps you can elaborate on whatever point you were trying to make?

No. I was specifically replying to you.

Do you watch the Chasers at all? It's almost like being fat doesn't stop you from being incredibly intelligent. Equally, i'm the weight of a 9 year old (i'm 42). I'm a bit intelligent. But no more than anyone else.it's certainly not clever to be this weight at my age.

Chickenkeev Today 01:24

The "have a job" comment wasn't made by me and it means to have trouble, or difficulty, to to lack employment.

I 'lack employment' . I also lack the ability to walk. I did not used to be this way. I always worked. But thems the breaks. Here i am.

Sorry, I don't know why you are pretending that I'm criticising people for not having a job, or being disabled.

I am not.

I made a neutral observation that you can usually tell that someone is middle class, or not, simply by the way they speak. You've then extrapolated that into all sorts of other things, which I didn't say / write.

Nobody said you were doing that. So don't pretend anyone did. I extrapolated nothing. And it's almost like you were extrapolating yourself there. Don't take the piss, there's no need. It's Mumsnet ffs. I can't be arsed.this is my safe space, and i won't give it up.

I'm not trying to be horrible to you and I certainly don't want you to go away, or duck out.

You said you didn't say that to me, have you quoted me by mistake? See below and your comment about not having a job:

Chickenkeev · Today 01:24

Chickenkeev · Today 01:20

Well, it certainly seems that way from some people in here! Cringe like. My Husband is dyslexic, did a fairly bad Leaving Cert, but he'd ride roughshod over these people.

@Sinnerboy fyi, i don't have a job. I'm fairly smart. That's a pretty shitty attitude tbh.

Class is purely about values and norms -clothes ,jobs,houses may provide indicators but are not defining features.

Using reflexive pronouns in a non-reflexive context is usually a strong indicator. 😁