The United States is portrayed as a country full of opportunities where class mobility is possible and favorable for people. However, the American dream may be unachievable for most of the country’s residents. The statistics from the film Inequality for All demonstrate that the gap between the middle-to-low American class and the top 1% is extremely large (Kornbluth, 2013). In this case, class is defined by one’s income, separating people into categories based on their buying power. However, the class can also be social – Domhoff (2022) argues that this type is linked to other kinds of power. For example, one can have the power to influence politics, people’s opinions, the market, and more – this is the ultimate ability that defines one’s place in society.
The movie and the article affirm my ideas about equal opportunities and the American dream and challenge capitalism as a perfect economic model. The film’s stories of the families affected by layoffs are not unique – they are common among low-income Americans (Kornbluth, 2013). While the American economy is regarded as one of the world’s fastest-growing, the profits are given to people at the top of the companies’ corporate ladder. At the same time, low-income employees face harsher living and working conditions (Kornbluth, 2013). In the article, Domhoff (2022) demonstrates that the working class in the US does not have the same power as it does in Europe, where countries have more democratic policies. As a result, the American dream becomes impossible for many people – they do not have power due to their social and economic class.
Before the economic model is called effective, it should benefit all Americans. The disparity that defines the American economy is proof enough that certain people gain enormously at the expense of the majority of the population (Domhoff, 2021). Some people are so affluent that they would still be wealthy even if business ceased. This inequity does not reflect a well-balanced economic paradigm and exposes a significant power imbalance. Overall, economic classes are divided by their purchasing power, but this distinction is also part of social classification, which includes other aspects of power and influence.
References
Domhoff, G. W. (2021). The corporate rich and the power elite in the twentieth century: How they won, why liberals and labor lost (8th ed.). Routledge.
Domhoff, G. W. (2022). Basics of studying power.
Kornbluth, J. (2013). Inequality for All. [Film]. 72 Productions.