Social class is such a sensitive topic, I think, because whether you are poor or whether you are rich, you are never going to be 'just right'. Those well off are usually viewed as rich and those who struggle even the tiniest bit are seen as poor. I think that is why we have such an obsession with the 'middle class'. We learned in class that people from basically any social class feel comfortable saying they are of middle class when people ask them and are likely to be accepted by others if they say they are of this class. This is probably because people aren't as judgmental towards those who are right in the middle; not too rich and not too poor. It's sad, to me, that people who are above the middle class may feel like they have to stoop down to middle class to feel accepted in many communities. There are people who are not afraid to flaunt what they have, but it is because of these people that others feel they need to hide their riches. This goes for the poor as well. People who look poor because they are unsanitary and obese from fast food, for example, set a bad standard for others who are not able to afford things most of us take for granted.
      I think it is extremely hard for someone to work their way up from a lower social class to a higher one, as we have talked about in class. As much as we, or at least I know I have, been brought up learning that hard work can take you far in life, the truth is, life happens every day and working your way up in class is not always a matter of working hard. Also, some people only see social class as what you have. My aunt and uncle have a beautiful, large house right on a lake and wear only designer clothes. My dad told me that they actually don't make that much money; they just choose to show as much as they cna. this makes me think that moving up in a social class isn't always by working hard but, from what other people see, 'moving up' could be as simple as buying the right things.