IST 494: Integrative Studies Capstone

By Victoria Vlasis

Alfred Lubrano’s Limbo: Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams contains many intriguing ideas and content. Unlike Fussell, Lubrano’s text seemed more modern and the interviews made it really connect with me on an emotional level. The moment that stuck with me the most was in the introduction of the book where Lubrano says, “Class is a map, script, and guide…. And it dictates what to expect out of life and what the future should hold.” The reason this was important to me is because he made it seem like you are how you are because of the class that you are a part of. I felt as if he was saying that because you are lower class, you must act a certain way. When I read Fussell, he wrote his book in the manner that the things you do and they way you are define your class.  This direct contrast between the two texts we have read inspired me to further analyze this.

Since I have never thought much about social class before this class, and Fussell’s book, Class: A Guide Through the American Status System, was one of my first exposures to the study of class, it was set in my mind that social class is a result of your actions, way of thinking, way of life, and your education and job. Looking at class as a guide, map, and script for the way you behave and live made me totally reevaluate my way of thinking.

Before reading the rest of the text, I really had to think about this statement. This changed my understanding of the book. If your social class tells you how to live, the Straddlers have it much harder than I would have dreamed, if I still thought your actions determined your class. When you come from a certain class and are expected to live a certain way, breaking free of that stereotype is a very difficult thing to do, especially if your family is holding you back. This makes interviewees stories even more heart-wrenching. The story of Dennis George, the ‘corner-boy’ who went with his ‘boys’ to brawl with the kids on another corner, almost lost everything because he acted like someone in his class was ‘supposed’ to act. He decided that life wasn’t for him anymore and went to school and became a hippie. But he had to rise above his peers and families class.

Before looking at class as a guide, I couldn’t understand why some of the parents of the people interviewed tried to stop them from going to school. I had to stop and think that everyone isn’t like me, and that the class they are in (blue-collar, working class) tells them that school in unnecessary to get the kind of job they need to survive. Parents don’t see the point in being $40,000 in debt after going to school, when if you don’t go to school, you can make $30,000 a year and be ahead, instead of that much in debt.

I have mixed attitudes that the social class you are in is a guide for you. I think that is true, because your roots will always be a part of you. Also, your peers and the media greatly influence how you act, what you wear, how you talk, etc. If you are part of the blue-collar world, most likely your friends will be as well. Children learn how to behave from their parents, and children interact with one-another and grow, and influence each other. If you are surrounded by lower-class people, then that is all you know. You will most likely act like all the other people in your class, because you are surrounded by them, and you are comfortable with them, because you usually keep in company those that you feel comfortable around.

However, I think the Straddlers are a prime example of how your actions can define your class, which is the opposite of what Lubrano is saying. If you aspire to do more, you can rise above your class. To join the middle-class (from blue-collar life) it is first necessary to get a college education. But education alone isn’t enough; you have to take on the values, morals, ethics, ways of thinking, and ways of life of the middle class. Like the Straddlers say, you cannot blend in at the workplace if you let your blue-collar roots show through. Most of the Straddlers still feel as if they don’t fit in, because they are living a life completely different of how they were raised. But, this change in lifestyle and attitude is an example of how you act and live can determine your class, rather than the other way around. I now believe that mostly your class determines how you act; but, if you are one of the few who can rise above, your actions can determine your class.

An article I found online talks about British postal codes, and how class can be determined just by knowing your address. Companies buy this information so they know where to target their ads. There are lists of each class, and characteristics of that class. Though these differ from American classes, there are striking similarities. This shows how your class can determine how you act and does determine where you live. This shows class as a guide, as Lubrano would say.

 Results of a longitudinal study on how your class origins affect your occupation are shown in this chart. These results show that most working (manual) class people are originally from the working class. People from the middle class tend to be more mobile, but people with upper-class origins are mostly in upper-class jobs. This is consistent that how you live can change your class. Though most of the working-class people stayed in that type of job, some moved up and this is because they chose to rise above, like people interviewed in Lubrano’s book Limbo. Without learning about class and mobility, it may be difficult to understand studies like these.

by Lauren Wagner

“It is in college where the great change begins.  People start to question the blue-collar take on the world.” (Pg. 47) This quote, by Lubrano, speaks of the great educational divide that everyone must face in their teens.  This is probably one of the most important times, in which we decide what we will do with our lives.  While much of what Lubrano speaks of in Limbo Blue- Collar Roots, White- Collar Dreams rings true, chapter 3 The Shock of Education: How College Corrupts sparked my interest.  I would like to discuss some of the alarming issues of education brought up in this chapter and explore the differences among working class and middle class college students.

While it is apparent from reading Lubrano’s book, most working -class children are less fortunate when it comes to a family supportive of education.  Very few straddlers are as opportune as Lubrano.  While every parent wants the best for their children, many are afraid they will be slighted, viewed as failures by others, or worse, by their children.  “Every bit of learning takes you further from your parents.”(pg. 48)   This does not have to be viewed as a negative though.   Growth should be view as a positive, where young adults form their own decisions and use the values instilled by parents.    

                For those whose working-class parents aren’t as supportive as they would like, it makes it that much harder to become successful.  In order to stay on track and get the most out of your education, one must start at an early age.  This is where the biggest differences occur between the working-class and middle-class.  Middle-class kids are groomed for success, while many working-class kids spend their early childhood years looking at school as a chore with no real benefit to them.  This is a huge problem because many working-class parents don’t have the tools themselves to teach their kids the value of an education.  “The best predictor of whether you’re going to have problems with your family is the distance between your education and your parents.”(pg. 48)  You may soon find yourself with nothing to talk to your folks or friends about.”  Lubrano calls this self-censoring.  To prevent any upsetting, many straddles feel it is best to talk about broad topics, rather than what might be occurring in their careers.  

Not only are students being treated differently by their parents, many studies have shown that teachers treat the “well-to-do’s” differently.  If we all looked back at our younger school years, the most fundamental building years, many could recall at least one instance of lack of respect or lack of attention from a teacher.  Whether this had happened to you or an observation of another classmate, it’s no secret that teachers hold different expectations for different students.   Patrick Finn says it best, “So we’re missing a whole bunch of people getting screwed by the education systems.”  By the time students should be preparing for college, most working class students will be far behind having little to no preparation for test such as the SAT or ACT.        

There seems to be a great divide between those working class students and middle class students.  It’s as if the middle classes or even upper classes have a sense of superiority over the students who have given everything (sacrificed) to have the same opportunities.  We see examples of this in many main stream movies and television shows.  Take Good Will Hunting for instance.  Once a foster child with no love and support, Hunting ends up a janitor at a prestigious college.   It isn’t until he one day took it upon himself to solve a near impossible mathematical equation.  The fight at the basketball court clearly shows the pent up aggression between the two groups of friends.  In this particular scene, Will and his onetime class mate have it out for each other, as Will can no longer take the bulling.  This is a prime example of the educational divide.  Whether coming from a working-class or middle-class family, children’s gifts and talents need to be nourished.  Some people can’t believe in themselves until someone believes in them.  

Rudy is another great example of a straddle overcoming the obstacles to crawl out of the black hole.  Rudy’s lifelong dream of become a Norte Dame Football star comes true, but not with much hard work and dedication.  Like Will Hunting, Rudy too comes from a blue-collar family with no financial means to support their son’s dreams.  However, with Rudy’s strong will, he slowly makes his way, one day and one goal at a time working as a school janitor.  It is through the tough love from his coworker that he finds his forgotten strength who tells him, “In this life time you don’t have to prove nothing to no one except yourself.”  

Education is the sign of a privileged life.  There are millions of people who may never get the opportunity to continue their education.   It is probably safe to say that everyone in this class is somewhat privileged to be able attend college.  Those who don’t have to work full-time to put themselves through school are even more fortunate.  Quite honestly, those who do have to work while in college, like myself, are doing a huge disservice to themselves not getting the full college experience.   

By:  Jamie Gibson

            Alfred Lubrano’s book, Limbo:  Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams goes into great detail about people from blue-collar roots that have graduated college and are now working in the working class.  Lubrano refers to these people as Straddlers.  Lubrano has brought up many important details in his book to illustrate the difficulties Straddlers might face coming from a blue-collar background to a white-collar world.  As many of us are graduating very soon to begin our new journey into the workplace, I particularly liked chapter 6, “Office Politics:  The Blue-Collar Way.”  There might be some of us that are from a blue-collar upbringing and are the first ones to go to college and are ready to graduate and start your career, or job.  “He’s always say he had a job, not a career.  “My profile was exactly like that of a blue-collar worker” (Lubrano, 135).  He points out that depending on your upbringing as to class; you either say job or career.  Some of us might relate to the difficulties we face upon graduation into the real world and I think this chapter gives a good description of the major differences between blue and white collared in the workplace.

            This chapter discusses how people from blue-collar upbringing are taught to always stick up for themselves in the workplace and don’t take anything from anybody.  Most blue-collared workers also are taught to freely speak their mind if they don’t like something their boss does and be very straight-forward.  On the other hand, white-collar workers from middle class are taught to never tell your boss if you don’t like something, to just deal with it because you must please your boss.  They believe “that the key to success is getting along with people” (132).  They believe you should never tell anyone the obvious truth in a given situation.  I can see where this might be difficult for people raised up with blue-collar values and taught that it is ok to stick up for yourself because there is not much you can lose.  I found a cartoon that illustrates what is expected in a white-collar job and it represents what Lubrano is trying to get across in this chapter.

            How do you get ahead in a white-collar workplace versus a blue-collared workplace?  Many Straddlers have a hard time transitioning into a white-collared workplace because they are raised to network.  “Blue-collar thinking goes like this:  Networking is making friends with people because they can offer you something valuable” (144).  To get ahead in life, you must know people to help you out, whereas the middle class is given opportunities because of their class.  I agree that it is much harder for the lower class to get ahead in life without knowing certain people.  In contrast, “there are ways to get ahead that have nothing to do with work” (143).  This sentence in the book describes how there are many other ways to get ahead in a company if you are middle class such as taking your boss golfing, socializing with your boss by having them over for dinner. According to middle class, it doesn’t take much hard work to move up in a company, if you go out of your way to become friends with your boss.  I do not feel it is right to try to “win over” your boss by taking them out for a round of golf or having them over for dinner to show off what class you are from.  I feel it is important to have a good work ethic and work very hard through high school and college to land a good job.  I do not personally have experience working in a company but my husband does and he said that it is true that some people he works with try very hard on a daily basis to become “friends” with the boss, for the sole purpose to move ahead.  I don’t agree with this, but I guess you have to do what you feel you need to do.  The show “The Office” came to my mind when reading this part of the chapter.  There are many examples in the show where Dwight Schrute in the show goes out of his way to be friends with Michael Scott, his boss, for the purpose of moving up in the company ahead of another employee, Jim Halpert.  “The Office” is a good illustration of this if anyone has ever watched this show before.

Another part that stuck out to me in this chapter was when Lubrano asked a few big-time Straddlers if they consider class when they hire people to work for them.  I was actually not surprised that they hire the blue-collar kid every time.  I was not surprised because time and time again they mentioned how they have to work much harder to get things in life and value what they have so much more than the middle class. Big time Straddlers wanted to give the job to a blue-collared person because they would value it more than someone from middle class would.  What are your thoughts on this? Were you surprised or not that a big-time Straddler would hire a blue-collared person over someone from middle class?

            In conclusion, I feel that this chapter is an important chapter to include in this book because it is another element that people from blue-collar roots must face when entering a company that is mainly middle class people working there. 

By Maureen Dunn

Alfred Lubrano has created detailed antidotes of the people who decide to venture outside their own class, and try to create a better life for themselves. Throughout the book we hear about the struggles that “straddlers” go through with their families, college education, and friendships. But what I thought was important was when he deciphers the interclass marriages. Most people in their own lives experience a form of marriage, it could be a legal marriage, common law, life partners, or just a committed relationship, but every form of relationships there is some form of fighting.  How do we fight? A. Lubrano describes a therapist who counsels married couples who are having trouble communicating.

                    “In counseling sessions between couples from different class backgrounds, Jensen has noted that working class people are more likely to believe someone who shows emotion when he talks. But in therapy, a partner born to the middle class will explain him or herself rationally in lawyer-like recitations of fact and circumstance: “ what I actually wanted from him was…,” or “What I was trying to do in the that situation was…”Middle-class clients often avoid emotion at these moments. The working-class-born person however, comes in splashing emotions around, unable to stay rational and explain his or her side calmly: “How could she say that to me when…?” “Doesn’t she understand how hard it is to…?” The more calm the middle-class person gets, the crazier it makes the working-class partner (168).”

This paragraph is unique because this can be any couple. I don’t think that most people marry into the same class, weather you’re marrying a blue collar person, middle class person, or upper class person everyone can experience this form of fighting. To be more specific I thought when the lawyer describes the language that people use while they’re fighting is interesting, “a partner born to the middle class will explain him or herself rationally in lawyer-like recitations of fact and circumstance: “what I actually wanted from him was…,” or “What I was trying to do in the that situation was…”Middle-class clients often avoid emotion at these moments. The working-class-born person however, comes in splashing emotions around, unable to stay rational and explain his or her side calmly: “How could she say that to me when…?” “Doesn’t she understand how hard it is to…? (168).”

I agree with this statement to a degree, I am engaged to a police officer, he was born into a middle-class family, but his father worked really hard and came from a blue-collar family. My fiancé has inherited those blue collar values, and when we do have arguments it reminds me of this passage. I am very “lawyer like,” and have actually used the line, “what I want from you is this.” While he has used the “don’t you understand how hard it is.” Every person has had a fight with his/her significant other and can understand the language of this text. It relates to everyone.

After completing the book and viewing working girl I realized that this text as a whole is mostly about relationships in life. Everyone has a moment in their life either in the past, present, or will happen in the future where you feel like that straddler. We date between classes, we have friends that are in different classes than we are, but we will always have a form of confrontation and that will show our family values. Are you the person that can express your feelings calmly and in a business like way? Or are you the passionate person in the relationship that wears their expression on their sleeve and wants to show your partner exactly how you are feeling?

To show an example of a couple from two different backgrounds I am using an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond  http://megavideo.com/?d=O2DN00HO.  Ray and Debra have decided to go to marriage counseling to work on their communication, because communication is the key to a healthy relationship. Debra who is upper-class is usually calm and can effectively express her feelings, while Ray who is from a working family is very passionate in expressing his feelings. The roles are reversed in therapy, then again when they get home.

I also found an article that talks about a couple who took a chance and married later in life, but came from different classes http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/19/national/class/MARRIAGE-FINAL.html?_r=1. They found that they had similar interests, but there was the underlying issue that one grew up with a butler and the other with the grandmother living next door.

As children we are taught to believe in fairy tales like Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, where a girl from the working class falls in love with Prince Charming and they live happily ever after. We are told that love knows no boundaries but is it true?  Can love really survive through different social classes in America?

By Jamie Toebbe

                After reading Limbo: Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams, by Alfred Lubrano I was really struck by the seventh chapter, Class, Love, and Progeny: The Ultimate Battle. In this chapter Lubrano talks about dating above or below your class and the effects it can have on your relationship. One statement he makes that really caught my attention was that he said, “Class is not benign. It is in fact, an invisible, powerful force that influences what people expect out of a relationship and how they communicate with one another” (Lubrano, 167). I have always believed that it does not matter where you come from, what your background is, or what the color of your skin is when it comes to dating, relationships, and falling in love. If you meet the right person then nothing else should matter. It seems I have been living in a fantasy world. As Lubrano showed throughout the chapter with several stories of straddlers and their struggle to find their place in the dating world, class is an important factor. Most of the straddlers, who began dating when they were just beginning to become a part of the middle class culture, were still used to their working class ways and talked about feelings of discomfort with cross-cultural relationships. They were embarrassed by their working class roots and uneasy when it came to being a part of the middle class world, feeling as though they didn’t belong. But I also found it interesting that Lubrano himself talked about wanting to date up because it “symbolized success and mobility” (Lubrano, 167).  In these cases, the straddlers were discontent with settling for their own class kind. They wanted more than the “nice girl who can make a nice home”.  It seems from the stories that Lubrano shares with his readers that most eventually fall for someone like themselves, other straddlers who know their struggle to get where they are, possibly a class all their own.

                I have always felt love conquers all. After all, aren’t we all supposed to be essentially equal anyways, no matter what class we’re brought up in? Since I was a kid I have been inundated with sappy stories that speak to love being the most important factor in a relationship, those fairy tale endings when the peasant gets her prince. Until I read this chapter I never truly contemplated how class might affect a relationship. It seems that a common theme from Fussell and Lubrano is that separate classes have separate values, which are instilled in someone from the time they are born. They are deep rooted and may be things that we do not notice or think about until you meet someone who differs in the way they feel about ideals you hold. Therefore, dating someone outside of your class might bring up issues that you would never have to consider if you were dating one of your own. When you go out to dinner (or supper) who pays? Does the guy always pick the girl up for a date? On your birthday, do you have a big celebration with your whole family, or just do something with yourselves? When you’re in a fight do you sit down and talk about it, or just stay silent and let it pass? And so on. There are countless issues that can come into play when dating outside of your class that I never considered. It seems that all of this would make dating, as hard as it already is, even harder.

                I considered my own relationships and it seems to me that for the most part, I have dated within my own class. I picked people similar to me, who hold the same values and beliefs and seem to want the same sort of things in life. I considered the idea that I may have migrated towards those people because they were in the same class as I am, and therefore we have been instilled with the same ideals. The only time I can think of when I dated outside of my class was a high school boyfriend, who drove a Saab to school when I drove a 10 year old Dodge Spirit. I was definitely dating above my class and I could tell. At the time I did not understand why I felt uneasy with his family, and could not put my finger on the reason something just wasn’t right, but looking back now it makes sense to me.

                The question I posed to myself then is it too hard to date outside of your class? Should people just date within their cultures? I don’t think so. I believe that having a relationship might in fact be more of a struggle because of differences in communication and values, but that might also be what makes that person unique to you, and what helps make your relationship unique. Lubrano showed that people can in fact make relationships work who are apart of different class divides, and hopefully people can take the best parts of their values to create a cohesive, collaborative relationship. After reading the chapter a movie I had watched several years ago came to mind, called Just Married. The movie starred Ashton Kutcher as a blue collar traffic reporter, who falls in love and marries an extremely rich writer, Brittany Murphy, with a snobby family. Murphy is swayed from her decision after an ex boyfriend, a man in the same class as she is, comes to see her on their disastrous honeymoon and persuades her that her new husband is not a proper match for her. Murphy wants to see what the French town they visit has to offer in the form of art and architecture and Kutcher seems more interested in watching a game at an American bar. In the end the two resolve their differences and decide that their love is more important than petty issues. I felt that this movie was a good description of how class differences can create rifts in a relationship making it complicated, but they are possible to get past. So to answer the question, does love conquer all? In the end possibly, but I think that class differences in a relationship can make it much more difficult.

By: April Griffith

                A blue-collar worker is a worker that has to do manual labor and earns an hourly wage, and usually do not require a college education, where as a white-collar worker is a salaried professional or an educated worker who performs semi-professional office tasks. Limbo is about blue-collared families and their children trying to step out and lead white-collared lifestyle. After reading Limbo, two parts that stood out to me the most. The first being in the first chapter where the author was describing his father and the second part of this book that would not leave my thoughts was the whole section on “Going Home: An Identity Changed Forever”.  Much like his father mine was a “rock layer”, (he did not like brick). He spent many years building rock walls on horse farms that he would never be able to afford, as well as the stonewall on University of Kentucky’s campus, where he never attended. However, he did say that if it made his children happy he would help with whatever means he had to go to school. He is proud of his work and honestly, I am too. Although I could never see myself doing that as my career, I had no problem helping him in the summer time.  I do not believe that if a child from a blue collar working family decides to go to school that they are turning their back on their family, and they will not be successful and that’s how/ what I feel Limbo portrays the children doing when they decide to go off to school.

                I cannot say that I have personally seen a parent not want their child to go to college and just find a job locally; unless it was, a family that owned a farm that they wanted one of their children to take over once they were incapable of doing it any more. I have my father’s work ethic; I can do anything once I put my mind to it. He was a hard worker and let me know that going to school will be harder than just finding a job so it is going to require a lot of discipline on my behalf.  It may be that times have changed since the book was written but I do know that since then college has become more accessible to the blue-collar children. Many schools offer financial aid that the requirements are first to go to college in your family, and low income.

                In the section Going Home, I can relate that the first time I went back home after leaving to go to school it was different, I cannot say if it was my family or me that changed. However, Lubrano’s stories in this section all made is sound like that when you go home you have changed so much that no one knows who you are anymore. However, that may be the case but those people changed as well. They got jobs and families and grew older. My family had to adjust with me not there, I was the oldest of five and the youngest was six, so my parents had to attend to them and not wait for my return. However, now that nearly ten years has passed, when I go back I still fit in with all my friends that still live there even if it is only for an hour or so visit. I will say that it is noticeable if someone is more educated than someone else is and who has a better job than others do, but I do not think that they are much different. They just chose a different lifestyle than I did. Just because a person went to college it does not mean that they have forgotten their roots or are disappointed about the way they were raised, I believe that the way they were raised had made them who they are today.

                In our society, I think it is fair game on what type of job a person wants, whether they want a blue or white-collar job. I found a blog that was written last month that titled “My Parents is a Blue Collar Worker and I Won’t Be Successful… They say!!!”   The writer of this blog came across this quote and was irate about it.  In many stories that were told in this book, it is stated that the blue-collar child could not be successful and would only fail. This writer believes that it is the parent’s responsibility to enforce the value of education in the homes. My father made sure we graduated from high school, dropping out was not an option, but it was up to us to go further and get a different job that suited us.   This blog goes to show you that there are many people out there who believe that a person is not contained to a category because they are born into it, it might require them to work harder but they can overcome anything. Another blog site that I found was a site where people had blogged about moving away and coming back to visit the place they grew up, “Going back to the place you grew up in after moving away“. They commented on how strange it was and how they did not feel like they belong, however, they never once mentioned the difference in blue-collar or white-collar status. I can say that I can relate with distinguishing between blue-collar and white collar than I can with the many other different types of social classes.

By Melody Davis

I really enjoyed reading the book Limbo Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams, because like the author Alfred Lubrano, I too am a Stradler.

“They were born to blue-collar families and then, like me, moved into the strange new territory of the middle class. They are the first in their families to have graduated from college. As such, they straddle two worlds, many of them not feeling at home in either, living in a kind of American limbo. “

In the book Lubrano takes a look at his own life as well as 100 others Stradlers, people who have had similar experiences growing up in blue-collar, working class homes and transitioning into the white-collar, middle to upper class world. He talks about the “C” word, class and how for so long it has been overlooked in our society. He argues that the different approaches we have on life are class based. He says that people think in terms of class constantly. The part that stood out to me the most is in the first chapter when Lubrano looks closer at the clash of values he feels exist between blue and white-collar people. On page 18, Stradler James Neal says this:

“Until you’ve had hard times, you’re not a complete person. And if you’ve never had them, well, a whole hunk of you is missing.”

When I read this I tried to think back at my own life and identify my hard times to see if they were what really “completed me”. As a person having blue-collar roots, I feel that hard times in general do make you stronger and help keep you humble. I think that many Stradlers will feel this way too because most of us had to endure some type of struggle. I’m not sure if James Neal was implying that people born in middle class families don’t have struggles. I think there is a lot that can be learned from having been through hard times, but I’m not sure I would say that a middle class person is necessarily missing a whole hunk of them if they haven’t been through hard times.

My father did not graduate from college. We were among the working class for sure. My father was and still is a Cincinnati Police officer. To this day he works countless days and nights risking his life on the dangerous streets to provide for our family. As a family we have definitely been through many hard times. For example; I know what its like to go days without electricity; We’ve had to take many cold showers when we didn’t have hot water; We ate mostly white bread, and did without many of the fancy material things that our friends may have had. I know that the “hard times” have helped me appreciate the things I do have now. My siblings and I are thankful and appreciate the sacrifices my parents made for us. Although growing up in the blue collar environment wasn’t easy, I take away some great life lessons. That is something valuable to me and makes me feel complete as a person.

This idea of Stradlers valuing struggle seems to go along with the rest of the book. Being grounded and balanced is what Lubrano observed to be important to other Stradlers as well. In the conclusion it talks about others who “take pride in a resilience born of relative deprivation”. He says that people in limbo are successful in the white-collar world because they are determined and know they have what it takes to make it through, because they have already endured struggles unlike many middle class people who had it easier. On page 226 Stradler Doug Russell says, “On the other hand, I might not have gotten anywhere if I’d come from the middle class. I had such drive and ambition to get somewhere because of where I came from. I pushed and got somewhere”. This supports the idea that people in limbo are grateful for their blue-collar roots.

 I found a Video Clip of Dean Lawrence R. Velvel of Massachusetts School of Law, interviewing Alfred Lubrano about his book Limbo Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams. I thought it was interesting to see what Lubrano looked like and hear from him why he wrote the book. He basically just elaborated on the different chapters. He talked about some of the struggles that working class people have and his personal transition.    

I found another clip on youtube from the TV show Friends that pokes fun at the division between blue-collar and white-collar workers. Dr. Ross is a white-collar scientist who works at a museum. He gets his friend Joey, a blue-collar job as a museum guide. The museum is supposed to represent the “real world”. Basically Joey tries to interact with Ross at work but comes to realize that in the museum, white-collar workers who wear white coats don’t associate with the blue-collar workers who wear blue blazers. I think it is funny, but in a way illustrates some of the points Lubrano makes in the book. In Chapter 4 Lubrano talks about the different Culture Conflicts that make it hard for the two classes to have relationships.  

I really enjoyed reading Limbo Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams. I identified with a lot of what Lubrano said as well as many of the other Stradlers he interviewed.  As I continue to strive to be upwardly mobile I will cherish the journey and learn from the hard times never forgetting my blue-collar roots.

Danielle Rodas

The movie Working Girl shows a woman, Tess, trying to rise up from lower-middle class to upper-middle class.  Tess is a very smart character, and seems to have what it takes inside.  She’s courageous, and innovative, and informed.  What she lacks in more on the outside.  Her clothes and hair give her away.  Her subservient manner and her accent give her away.  She seems to know this from the beginning, even while she doesn’t.  Her early attempts to be upper-class are as informed as her business sense.

In the earliest parts of the movie, the only things that differs between Tess and Cynthia is the hair color and the lesser accent.  Tess’s accent is still present, but her classes are helping her control it.  Tess is already making an effort, but it seems like she doesn’t have a mentor readily available to model herself after.  This all changes after she begins her job as Katharine’s assistant.  Tess is told directly by Katharine what ways she must change, but this is slow going still.  It is only after Tess realizes that her mentor is betraying her that she takes it upon herself to change fully and step up to her competition.  The scene that surrounds her discovery of Katharine’s betrayal is among the most significant in the movie.

It seems like it really clicks with her about 25 minutes into the film, while she is gathering things at Katharine’s house.  Tess’s interest in her surroundings leads to playing with Katharine’s things.  At first, it seems like she is a kid playing with mommy’s things.  She uses all that is available in the apartment or condo to imitate Katharine.  The voice recordings help her to mold her voice.  The vanity helps her test out make-ups and perfumes.  Tess even uses her workout machine while still in her workday skirt and top.  It seems like Tess is really playing around being Katharine.  But, this is more seriously Tess’s research into upper-class living.  The assumed little experience within her upbringing Tess had with upper-class women left her with little to base her looks and manners off of.  This is her time to really morph into the woman she has wanted to be all along, a woman of power and respect.

This scene is the turnabout for the movie.  Tess dresses like Katharine, becomes more assertive, less naïve about class differences, and so forth.  The text (movie) is largely about the appearances of class in business and casual society.  Of course, it is about the story and Tess’s struggle to be among the business elite.  But, this issue of class appearance is so much a part of that, it almost takes center stage.  Acting and dressing for your class is the stage of life in all its glory.  It’s hard for anyone, including myself, to see Tess before this point as anything more than a secretary.  I hear what she is saying and the ideas sound like more, but her attire and more importantly, her hair shout out her lower class status.

This relates to a show that I have been catching up on recently, The Office.  Pam Beesly Halpert is the receptionist for Dunder Mifflin, with dreams to rise above.  Her attire as the receptionist for multiple seasons is drab (not like Tess’s loud clothing) and dull in color.  Once a woman of higher status and better dress, Karen Filippelli, enters the office, Pam is also shown what kind of attire a professional woman of status must take on.  There are many times that Pam’s dress is ridiculed or criticized by others in the office, but here is a prime example: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OF6mhGDwow>.  The boss, Michael Scott, and Pam’s colleagues, Angela, Phyllis, Kelly, and Ryan all make comments throughout the show about Pam’s dress.  They remark that she could be or have more if she put more into the way she looked at work.

As Working Girl and The Office show, the motto “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have,” is tried and true.  Men and women alike must follow this rule.  If the job you want exists within the class above yours, you must imitate that class.  Potential employers and colleagues will not want to feel like you are out of place in their presence.  Dress code is not just a part of the manual, it is a part of the atmosphere you want to create and must work within.  It doesn’t matter if you work as an assistant/secretary in mergers and acquisitions for a prestigious firm or as receptionist in a paper sales company, dress matters.  If you want to get hired, if you want to get promoted, you have to dress for it.

Amberly Behrens

Sexual Harassment against women in the workforce has been happening for many years now. In the movie, Working Girl, Tess McGill is a victim of sexual harassment. She could have used her body at different times in the movie to get ahead with her male bosses, but instead, chose to use her brain.

Tess’ experience in the limo is an example of her being sexually harassed by a superior male figure. She could have went to the hotel suite, gave in, and got the new job but did not. The man tried to use his power to get what he wanted from her. A telephone poll by Louis Harris and Associates on 782 U.S. Workers revealed 31% of the female workers reported they had been harassed at work. Of them, 43% were harassed by a superior and 27% by an employee senior to them (http://www.sexualharassmentsupport.org/SHworkplace.html). This website shows more statistics on sexual harassment, not only to women. Tess did a great job of not giving in and getting herself out of the situation.

A woman in Tess’ position, 30 years old, stuck as a secretary, and no promise of promotion, would be inclined to fall for the sexual harassment and do what she could to move up in the company. Instead, Tess fought back. She stood up for herself and did what it too to get to where she wanted to be without using her body.

Being sexually harassed by a superior can not only be offensive, but intimating too. A victim of sexual harassment may not report the harassment or may go along with it in fear for their job. They may even give in to get ahead themselves. In that case they are just as wrong as the person harassing them. The person doing the harassing is usually in a higher position than the person being harassed. They have more control in the company and could have the person accusing them fired for any reason at all to save their own reputation.

A close friend of mine works at a local bar as a server. There are about ten other girls who work there also. The bar is owned by a middle aged single male, we’ll call him Chuck. Chuck is not the most attractive guy ever. He uses his ownership of the bar to boost his confidence and “sleep” with women. At a bar, the best shifts to work are the weekends, and all the girls want those shifts. Not all ten girls can work them and still make money. Plus girls are needed  to work the shifts through the week that are not as popular. How does Chuck decide who gets to work which shift? He picks the girls who give him the most attention when he hits on them to work the weekends and those who don’t, get the slow shifts during the week.

A boss hitting on his employees in sexual harassment. Chuck takes the harassment even further by seeing how for his employees will go to work the money making shifts. Something should be done about Chuck, but what? It is his bar. He can run it however he wants and the girls working there need the money, especially with the economy the way it is. Even if the girls stuck together and all turned him down, he would find new girls to come in and work and do what he wanted.

Not all workplaces are like this, and not every male superior will sexually harass his secretary or employee. I have worked for different men and women and never personally had an issue with it. But when it does happen, it should be taken seriously. No one wants to work in a place where they feel uncomfortable. If a person is sexually harassed there are steps to take to get justice. http://employment.findlaw.com/employment/employment-employee-discrimination-harassment/employment-employee-sexual-harassment-top/employment-employee-sexual-harassment-action.html This website gives in detail the actions that can be taken to fight against sexual harassment.

by James E. Mathes

Who am I and where do I belong are questions that are asked by all people.  Finding the answer to this question is what life is all about.  The purpose of this paper is display one view that displays how a few people view themselves.  The hope being is that the reader may gain an insight and understanding of why some people are different.  This paper is viewed from a different category-X then that from the book written by Paul Fussel.

The definition that is to be considered for this Category-X is anyone that exists outside of a class or peer age group is placed within this group.  This might be the person that many consider to be too elderly to attend school.  The person that arrives for school in Levis and shirt and tie plus an expensive sports coat on a motorcycle would defy placement.  The young girl that is at home in a garage during the day and a fancy dress ball in the evening fits into this group.  The point being that they cannot be placed into a class.  The medical doctor that drives a truck for pay on weekends fits this group.  There is no end to the people that belong to this group.

   The book by Paul Fussel says that the person that belongs to his group are the ones that know no boss or working hours and have made it by their own labors.  Yes, they would belong to this group as well.  By Mr. Fusel’s reasoning, the homeless and cast outs would belong as well.  This is reasoning by circular logic.  To belong to a true classless category, one would have to have a means of being totally independent of a boss and knowledgeable enough to exist in a changing environment of changing classes without losing focus.  The person must be at home with what and where he is while appearing to belong.  In other words, the person must fit into the group without the appearance of strain.

    Category-X is a group of people that have earned the right to be independent in action and thought.  They may have worked for a boss until they are in a position of financial freedom that allows them to do as they please as long as it interferes with no one else’s right to do the same.  They may have been schooled enough to learn enough to be free to think for themselves.  This would be true in the case of musicians, inventors, writers or actors.  Actors are a group that belongs only is they are free to interpret the role as they see fit.  Rote actors are nothing but a group of paid hacks. 

    Hippies are a group that always gets mentioned when speaking of a group that live outside of class society.  This is no really true.  It is true that they are rebelling against society but as a whole and not as a class.  The saying “Toke up and drop out” gives the best answer to that by asking, “What are they dropping out of?”  As soon as they grow tired of rebelling they return to the class they rebelled against.  The grandparents of this generation are the hippies of the sixties.  How are they acting now?  Today they will not even admit they were hippies. 

    Point now is to figure out why certain people act in such a free manner concerning class without being put in their place by society.  One must remember that Americans love people that are different as long as they are different the same way that all Americans are different.  In other words, Americans are comfortable with people just like them.  

    The first case to investigate is that of the elderly man enrolled at university when everyone knows that only young people will use the knowledge to better themselves.  To take the viewpoint of this man is not hard to do.  He has felt the cold wind of eternity and realizes that his time is limited.  Death is the great equalizer.  He wishes to deepen his knowledge so that he might enrich his own life and the life of the people around him for so long as he exists.

     Everyone knows that in today’s society that one must be young and beautiful.  The elderly at a university is a mockery of this concept.  Historically the elderly have been the repository of knowledge and venerated by the young.  The Young Americans of today have forgotten this and cannot wait to hustle grandma and grandpa off to the home for the elderly and take over the old folk’s money and processions.  It appears that the young has a plan that eliminates the wait for death and allows them to grab the money at their first opportunity.  The higher the class the faster the grab. 

     What about the young girl in company of the elderly?  She may be from a culture where the elderly are venerated and she might wish to be respectful.  She might also wish to acquire knowledge that only the elders might have.  But, how is she judged?

     Why would a person want to live outside of a class?  Is it possible that they do not wish to put up with the problem of keeping up appearances?  Self-fashioning is done by everyone.  The public face one dons in the morning and have as they leave home is not the one they have behind closed doors.  This is normal since everyone wants to be accepted.  Even Category-X dons the face he wishes the world to see.  Does this mean that everyone is a phony?  Each person has to answer that for himself.

     In summation, people belong to Category-X.  This is a category that does not seem to recognize class structure.  They move from class to class with pretense and are comfortable anywhere.  Since they are classless but have class they are calm or appear so in any setting.  How do they do it?  Education and observation are two excellent ways.  Loads of money does not appear to help because you cannot buy poverty.   Do you belong to a class or a category?  If so, Which and why?