"Engaging the Text" #2 on p.322

I think that the main point of the essay is not that the wealthy are exploiting the poor, but rather there are class differences, which most Americans wish to ignore. Based on one’s class one has different opportunities and chances of success. Underlying the whole argument is that income determines class. Mantsios argues that there are huge economic differences between the classes, the middle class is not only shrinking, but only accounts for a small portion of America’s wealth, and the higher one’s class (income) the better chances of success and health.

I appreciate Mantsios’s perspective and he saw some valid points but, I think he is somewhat misleading in his definition of lower, middle, and upper-class. He seems to define “middle class” as those “household earning between $25,000 and $75,000” (RA, 335). I am not sure how this is really representative. Why isn’t middle class those whose income is between $50,000 to $100,000? Who decided what income level determines middle class? This income level might make Mantsios’s arguments more persuasive.

It seems that Mantsios might be manipulating the numbers. He throws out many different facts which seem to support the point he is making at the time, but it does not seem the numbers or percentages add up. For example, in one sentence he says the poor and upper class each account for one third of Americans. This means the middle class population accounts for one-third. Then he states the “wealthiest 20% of the population versus the poorest 20% is approximately 11 to 1” (334). It appears he is swamping the reader with statistics to make a point. However, if one steps back one can see these figures are not linked. He is changing the basis and the group he is comparing. It is deceiving for Mantsios to say that this ratio (11 to 1) is so high and that in Japan and Germany it is 4 to 1. Perhaps Japan and Germany do not have as many “poor” as their population is only a fraction of ours. Mantsios uses so many numbers that it is confusing to the reader and bombarding the audience into believing the author’s stance.

Nonetheless, I believe like Mantsios, that America is not a classless society. Class makes a difference in one’s opportunity and chance for success. If one has money to spend on better schools, if one’s family owns a business and has advantageous contacts, and one has higher expectations because one does not have to worry about making enough money to feed the family, then one has a better chance at succeeding. In this light, assuming money dictates one’s social status, the higher the social status, the better the chance to succeed. This seems like more a fact of life, than en exploitation of the poor and middle class by the wealthy.

note: I have an older version of this book, so the referenece pages might be off.