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?