2. What is social class?
• Social class can be defined as many different things, however
the main themes surrounding social class include ‘wealth’ and
‘social status’. These two elements combine to create a
division of a society based on social and economic status.
• The three main class in society include ‘Upper class’ ‘Middle
Class’ and ‘Working class’ with the lower class linking closely
to a sub class called the ‘Under class’ who contain the most
negative stereotypes.
• The media use social class through out their productions to
appeal to target audience (using the socioeconomic grouping
chart) meaning their audiences will relate closely to the ideas
and themes within a production, helping institutions to gain
the profit desired
3. The Upper class
• Upper classes within society are usually considered to have the most
wealth/money and the highest social status.
• Stereotypes of this class include:
• Rude/snobby
• Linking closely to capitalism and the exploitation of other workers
• Higher authority
• Well dressed
• Posh
• Land owners
• High end properties
• Intellectual
These are easily represented within the media and the stereotypes
surrounding the upper class are often used to suggest to the audience
their higher class.
4. Middle Class
• Within society, middle class people are considered to be just under
those with upper class, however they can also arguable have more
money than the upper class, as they have to work for their earnings
instead of having inherited it.
• Stereotypes surrounding the middle class include:
• White collar
• Well educated
• Affluent
• Managerial
• Wear suits
• Play golf
• These are overall quite similar to the upper class however there is a
clear division between the two. The middle class are perhaps harder
to represent within media as they are so similar to the upper class.
5. Working class
• The working class are technically the lowest class within society, this
is they tend to have jobs of less skilled intelligence and are usually
lower class in comparison to the middle and upper.
• The stereotypes surrounding the working class include:
• Blue collar
• Factory workers
• Little savings
• Inner city
• Rented properties
• Work for people
• State schooling
• Manual work
• It is easier to produce these stereotypes within society as they are
easily recognised and usually overplayed to make the narrative more
dramatic
6. Lower/Under class
• The lower/underclass have not fully been established as an officially
class however it is argued by sociologists that they are the lowest
class, just under working class. The under class have the most
negative stereotypes surrounding them. These include:
• Drug/alcohol addicts
• Benefits thieves
• Lazy
• Trouble makers
• Live off the government
• Council housing
• No education/little intellect
• These stereotypes are usually the easiest to show within the media,
this is because they are used so often and link very closely to the
working class.
7. Upper class in TV drama
• One example of an upper class TV drama would include ‘Downton
Abbey’ This is a British TV drama that follows the life of the Crawley
family and it’s servants.
• Within production they use aspects such as Mise en scene and
setting to suggest that the characters are of upper class
• For example, within the Mise en scene you can see all characters are
wearing particularly posh and sophisticated outfits for their time
period, which is 1912, where the capitalist ideology was the beliefs
that were dominant within society. This would appeal to the upper
class as they can clearly recognise costumes and the high status of
characters, linking to them being in favour of a hierarchy between
the classes supporting the capitalists beliefs.
• Similarly, the setting of the production links to upper class
connotations as tit’s held within a giant very posh mansion. This
immediately suggests to the audiences that the production is for the
those of higher class as only they would inherit such a piece of land,
especially within that time period.
8. Middle Class in TV drama
• One TV drama that appeals to the middle class is ‘Modern Family
(2009)’
• This TV drama shows the ideal Nuclear American family (which is
supported by the functionalist Parsons who claims it is vital for the
nuclear family to exist as it fit’s the modern ideology of families) but
is Hollywood's over dramatized version of what a normal family
looks like today.
• The social class of this production is clearly identified through the
setting, this is because the main location of the production is a
‘Beautiful American Home’ which appeals to the middle class
members of society as they will relate to the setting.
• Similarly, this can be seen as a Middle class TV drama as it is claimed
that the characters have ‘enough disposable income to host
extravagant parties’ This appeals to the middle class as they will
have experienced similar situations and understand the theme,
unlike someone of a lower class would as they don’t have the money
to throw parties etc.
9. Working class in TV drama
• One production that could appeal to the working class the British soap
‘EastEnders’
• This can be through aspects such as Mise en scene, setting and audio,
which portray the working class lifestyle to audiences.
• The setting of the product links closely to the working class society, this
is because the production is set on an estate within London, and as the
word ‘estate’ is linked closely to working class this could appeal more to
them as they will relate to the setting/location
• Similarly, the use of a Market stall and a pub within the setting
furthermore suggest that the jobs within the production reflect those of
the working class that watch it.
Secondly, The Dialogue shows that the production is aimed at the working
class, this is because the accent of the characters is typically ‘London
Cockney’ which has negative stereotypes surrounding it as it is not the
desired ‘Queens English’ speak which we may see in Downton Abbey.
Finally, the use of costumes could suggest the production is aimed at
working class as the costumes appear quite everyday with occasional
casual suits. This would be relatable to the working class as it is typically
what they would wear.
10. Lower/Under class in TV
drama
• One main production I feel represents the under class is the
British TV drama ‘shameless’ This can be seen through
elements such as Mise En Scene, geographical location/setting
and themes.
• Within this production we can see it is predominantly aimed
at the under class as the geographical location is within
Manchester, on a council estate. This would be a similar
location to where someone of the lower class would live as
Manchester is known to be a rougher area within the UK.
• Similarly, the Costumes and props of the characters suggest
that the production is linked closely to the under class. This is
because tall characters seem to wear particularly scruffy
clothing with holding props such as bottles of alcohol. This is
