In society groups are divided and arranged in a hierarchy with each layer having different levels of power and wealth in the society, we call this social stratification. Individuals whom have wealth and power rank in the highest level of society. While those with less wealth and little or no power are at the lowest rank in their society. All societies have social stratification. Slavery is one system of social stratification in which you are either an owner or you are property.
In other societies such as India, there is the caste system in which it divides people based on birth. Individuals are ascribed their status meaning they cannot change, earn or choose their own status. It simply follows them throughout their lifetime. Lastly there is the class system of stratification which is based on socioeconomic status. Being based on material possessions and money, a per- son can change their class as long as they are able to possess more.
Luckily enough for myself I was born in the class system of stratification into a middle- class family. I say luckily because I was fortunate to have life chances that many others struggle to have or have no access to. My parents were able to provide my siblings and I with the materi- als that we wanted not just with those that we needed. As for my mother life was not same for her. She was born in a working poor family. It was much harder for her as she was faced with ob- stacles and disadvantages. Her parents were poor which meant if she wanted to go to school, she would literally have to work for it. It was tough on her parents to not be able to provide the tu- ition necessary for their daughter to continue on with her education.
However, they thought it be better to be able to put food on her plate and not let her go to sleep on an empty stomach. My mother was able to find a job that accommodated her school schedule and was able to continue on with her high school education. That is until my grandfather became sick and was no longer able to work. In turn my mother had no other choice than to drop out of high school and get a full-time job to help with my grandfather’s medical bills and medicine. My grandfather was able to recuperate but by that time it was too late for my mother to return to school.
My mother continued on working to build up her wealth not just to provide for her par- ents but for herself as well. She later met my father whom was part of the working class. They married, at first my grandmother rejected my mother because she saw this as a sign of hyper- gamy, but later realized that my mother was a hard-working woman. With both of my parents hard work they were able to have social mobility and moved up the social ladder.
This opened up the doors for them to live the American Dream and be able to move to the U.S. My mother’s ulti- mate goal was that her children would not have to suffer what she went through and be able to provide them with what she did not have. As for my father he desired to be able to provide enough so that my mother no longer have to work and grant her the wish of finishing her educa- tion. They both were able to grant their wishes due to their hard work which led to a better so- cioeconomic status.
