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Social Class
A hierarchical division of groups or individuals dependent primarily on various economic and social conditions. The factors that determine class vary between societies. For Karl Marx, there were two social classes, the owners of the means of production (the bourgeoisie) and the workers (proletariat). Within societies, types of social classes can also vary. For example, one's social class can be viewed in terms of occupation, education, wealth, age, gender, race, or health. Differential lifestyles, marked by factors such as dress, language, and tastes, characterize various social classes. The United States has traditionally been divided into the lower, middle, and upper classes. Today, class distinctions include the working class and the upper-and lower-middle classes. As the gap between the rich and the poor grows in the ...