QOTW: Economic Classes
July 9, 2007 | Filed under Money, Q.O.T.W.
Economic classes in Melbourne, as explained by yours truly. Because you know, my opinion is the only one that matters. Daily Life from the perspective of a twenty year old female.
| Working Class | Middle Class | Upper Class | |
| Suburb | Broadmeadows | Burwood | Toorak |
| Clothing | Target | Witchery | A/X |
| Transportation | Public Transport | Toyota Camry | Volkswagon Beetle |
| Graduation Present | Case of Beer ($30) | Subsidised trip to QLD ($200) | All-expenses-paid trip to any location desired ($5000+) |
| Part Time Job | MacDonalds | Retail | Job? What job? |
| Weekly Allowance | Allowance? What allowance? Earn your own money bitch! | Occasional $20 every few weeks | $300 a week |
| Saturday Night Hangout | Local Pub | Bridie O’Reillys | GPO |
Where does that place me? Well…technically middle class, but with working class sensibilities (parents not subsidising my income, taking public transport instead of driving, etc.).
However, as a friend (technically upper class if you consider the size of his house and the fact that both his parents are high-earning lawyers) once said to me – it doesn’t matter how much money you have, or what type of house you live in. It’s your tastes and what you do with what you have. He then goes on to explain how he’s a working class boy at heart because he spends his money on cheap nasty-tasting beer, but how I’m upper class at heart because I save my money to spend on month-long vacations every year, only wear branded clothing, and drink ‘fancy’ imported teas and coffees. So, I suppose:
Question Of The Week: What economic class do you technically belong to, and which do your tastes and habits mark you as a member of?
29 Responses to QOTW: Economic Classes
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Oh, interesting question! Class politics have been a growing part of my life these past few years, so I’ve sort of been… in the middle of a crisis regarding the whole shenanza. I agree with your friend about tastes – wealth doesn’t determine class, brains and breeding do.
Technically, I think I’m upper-middle class. My tastes/habits and background might put me in upper class – I have pretty fancy likes, and both my parents come from money/influence. We’re not as wealthy as we used to be, though, so our income would probably stick us in upper-middle class.
Chantelle on July 9, 2007 #
My family is middle class, but I’m very much a working class girl.
My money goes towards food and nothing but… because that’s all I can afford.
Nellie on July 9, 2007 #
Definitely Middle Class. I don’t understand Working Class because I’ve never worked, boo me. And upper class, too overwhelmed by it. :p
Juice on July 9, 2007 #
Technically, I belong to middle class, but my values are that of a working-class person. I’m quite happy to wear cheap clothes, earn my own money and take the train or bus. I haven’t got an upper-class bone in my body.
Jordie on July 9, 2007 #
Comfortably in working class. For me it goes:
Suburb: Moved around a lot
Clothing: Hand me downs / whatever on sale / gifts from relatives
Transportation: Public
Graduation Present: What graduation present?
Part Time Job: Unpaid internship
Weekly allowance: None
Saturday night hangout: Home / Friend’s house
Belinda on July 9, 2007 #
My family’s technically probably Upper-Middle Class. And I’m definitely Upper Class at heart with my fancy taste in clothing, shoes, cappuccino/latte and stuff and I always save up for holidays or fancy new electronics. Oh and I love dining at fancy restaurants! I spend A LOT of money going out to dinner. ;)
Though I do use public transportation to get around, but that’s because here in Holland it’s free for students! Plus, I don’t know how to drive a car. Lol. :P
Susie on July 9, 2007 #
My parents are working class, but have managed to raise us middle class.
Suburb: Moved around a lot, but always in good neighborhoods.
Clothing: Department stores sometimes on sale sometimes not.
Transportation: Mostly my parents drive me around, now I’m learning to drive my dad bought us a new car so we can get more practice and we have something to go around in. Sometimes I do have to use public transportation.
Graduation Present: For our 8th grade graduation we had a party and got a laptop and a cell phone. for our HS grad we just had a party.
Part Time Job: Retail
Weekly allowance: Ummm, not a set allowance, but whenever we need money we ask my dad and he gives us some money to go shopping or to the movies, spending money in general.
Saturday night hangout: Home / Friend’s house / Movies / Mall / Restaurant / Party
Noemi on July 9, 2007 #
Technically I’d be a member of the upper class, but I’m rather scruffy, so anyone would be forgiven for thinking otherwise. My wardrobe is full of all the ‘big names’ yet I’m most often seen in discount track pants and a kids sweater, teamed with slippers…yeah, kinda got the whole trailer trash thing going on.
I tend to generally keep this quiet online because I don’t want to be seen as a showoff, but out of my three closest family members, two of those are millionaires. I don’t take advantage of this in any way though – if you want to improve your standard of living and your financial situation you have to work your ass off, not expect people to spoon feed you hundred dollar bills. Despite the wealth in my family, it’s always been drilled into me that if I want all the nice things in life, I have to get a job and work for it. That’s how it works in the end – it’s not right bludging off others and sitting on your ass doing nothing, even if you COULD have everything you wanted in an instant.
It’s nice to know that the money’s there though, if anything happens, eg OMG MY COMPUTER’S BROKEN!! CAN I HAVE A NEW ONE PLEASE!! or the time when I stuffed up the billing for PSGR and Nan came around almost immediately to renew it for me.
At the end of the day I guess I’m an upper class brat posing as a bottom of the barrel bum.
Mmm, alliteration.
Rhiannon on July 9, 2007 #
Well I’m not middle class, but I think I do get a couple of benefits over working class…
As for habits, I suppose it’s working class. :P
Vera on July 9, 2007 #
Working class it is for me, minus the beer but PLUS the public transport that makes me go “whee!” …
Suburb: Moved around a fair lot
Clothing: I’m not overly picky, so mostly from Target, but with some (rare) stuff from Sandy Bay, etc.
Transportation: Publique, je c’aime …
Graduation Present: Haven’t graduated yet, but either staying here in Sydney like any other holidays (love-lay), or maybe (!) going down to Melbourne to jab you for your birthday.
Part-Time Job: Not working yet, but may get a job at the library or cinema.
Weekly Allowance: Flexible according to the father figure. Usually I just ask him when I need money.
Saturday Night Hangout: My place, in front of the computer, DVD night involving sentimental romantic comedies and dramas, movie cinema, or sleep in the bed.
TADA! *boom boom, tch!* Love the drum rolls-cymbal moment.
Xuan on July 9, 2007 #
I guess I would say Middle Class.
I live in an area of Montreal that has a bad reputation but actually isn’t that bad.
I dress up in cheap to mildly expensive shops (Le Château
Julie on July 9, 2007 #
Hey! My comment was cut down…Anyway, to sum it up, Middle Class.
Julie on July 9, 2007 #
Interesting question! I think I’m technically middle class, but…
Suburb: I don’t know where mine would go, but a lot of Hong Kong/Taiwan ppl live here :S
Clothing: I have a mix of all three in my wardrobe. lol.
Transportation: Public transport on weekdays, a car on weekends (hmm but used to drive to work everyday though!)
Grad present: Don’t even remember, might’ve been closer to the middle class one.
PT Job: Yeah I had ones in hospitality and office admin type work.
Weekly allowance: none since I started working PT!
Sat night hangout: hrm… not sure about this one.
kat on July 9, 2007 #
I’m pretty sure that my family as a whole falls into middle class. But I’m kind of in between middle and working.
Josh on July 9, 2007 #
I thinik my family is kind of middle-upper class.
My suburb is middle class.
Our clothing ranges from upper middle to upper class.
Graduation present? i wouldn’t really know, but
I’m guessing upper class.
Neither of my siblings has had any jobs.
Our monthly allowance is definitely upper class.
I don’t really “hang out” on Saturday nights, but I think my sister spends a lot of time in upper class places.
So there you go.
Natasha on July 10, 2007 #
My family is a working-middle class.
Although my biological father promised me a trip to Europe as my graduation present. :P
Jennii on July 10, 2007 #
… same as you.
‘Cept upper-class has a totally different meaning for me. :P
Jenny on July 10, 2007 #
Interesting question. My family brought me up middle-class, but now that I do not live with my parents and I am a mixture between middle and lower. However I do have an “upper class” car, furniture, TV etc but I am paying them off.
Bobbi-lee on July 10, 2007 #
Upper Middle Class, and Upper Class. But A/X sucks.
Mike Haddad on July 10, 2007 #
By those definitions I’m Middle Classed, with some working class aspects. But over here I’m definitely working class. :P
Amber on July 10, 2007 #
Well, right now, I’m a working class girl. Only I don’t have a job because I can’t have a job (on a student visa). T_T Back at home though, I’d definitely be somewhere between upper and middle class. I’m a spoiled princess at heart.
Aravis on July 10, 2007 #
I’d say I definitely have working class tendencies, mostly because I enjoy buying dirt cheap clothes from Primark.
Anastasia on July 10, 2007 #
As a side note, young people of upper class in Australia drive Beetles?
Reply: One of the girls I went to high school with was given one of those new Beetles when she got her license…
Julie on July 10, 2007 #
This is surprisingly a very difficult question to answer for me.
I don’t care whether my clothes are branded or dirt-cheap, but it’s important to me that I always look presentable. I take public transportation, but only because I find it easier than driving. Travel is my greatest luxury, but I have to work hard so I can afford it. I have way too many shoes, but none of them cost more than $60. I can sleep on a mat on the floor, but I cannot stand a less than impeccable bathroom. The list goes on…
Basically it’s important to me that I earn my own money, look good, travel, and have a comfortable home. What does that make me?
Nikki on July 10, 2007 #
I’m pretty sure I’m middle class. My Dad has an amazingly high-paying job, although he still calculates which packet of chips is cheaper per gram. My clothes aren’t even from Target but from op shops instead. And we catch lots and lots of public transport.
But there are some ways in which we definitely resemble middle-upper class… the fact that we have four computers, two of which are for one person (Dad), being one of them. And I guess the fact that I get (or am supposed to get) $30 a week. But I usually don’t, and instead get about $300 every three months. Which makes me look rich for a while, but then I spend all the money and have to beg for money to buy a $2 metcard.
Jessica on July 10, 2007 #
I’m guessing I technically fall into the middle class and looking at some of my stuff it seems to fit quite right (car, iPod, some of my clothes). but then a lot of my daily habits are pretty working class. Like I pack my lunch so I don’t have to buy food on campus :D and my shoes have to have some major damage before I throw them out and get new ones. So I guess I’m kinda both…the thought of having to pay for grad school which can take anywhere from 4-8 (
marilyn on July 10, 2007 #
I strongly believe that when you have the love of your family and you’re happy with yourself and your life at this point, that you’re really rich
Rich doesn’t always mean having a lot of money or material stuff.
I guess I belong to Middle Class but aren’t we stereotyping and boxing people up here?
Reply: Probably, but unfortunately, economic wealth comes down to how much money you have, not how much love you have. :P If we were talking about emotional wealth though…
Chans on July 10, 2007 #
Here in Denmark it’s certainly not “working class” to use public transportation. I have met quite a few “someones” at the bus or train.
I guess we fit the middle class.
Nan on July 11, 2007 #
I’m spoiled but, middle class. I’m the precious child that my parents wanted for a long time & were finally able to have… I got private school & music lessons & computers & cellphones & iPods & a car & clothes & trips &c.
Even though, I, personally, don’t have much money or a stable source of income – I’m very good at getting things from difference sources. I have expensive tastes and I’ve gotten in the habit of spending money… Sometimes, I want to strangle myself for falling deeper and deeper into the pit of expensive upper class sensibilities. My goal now is to figure out how to maintain an upper class lifestyle independently and to give back to all of those who have given me so much. God help me.
Chantelle on July 11, 2007 #