Domhoff’s quote implies that the upper class in America is a complex system that comprises people with similar backgrounds. It is evident in the example of the upper class and corporate community, which are closely interconnected (Domhoff, 2022). People in these circles tend to have similar lifestyles due to their attendance at elite schools, restricted parties, and other events which are only accessible to the elites (Domhoff, 2022). According to Domhoff (2022, p. 58), it is a complex social network that “converts economic power into status power.” However, the causes of this network derive from similar lifestyles and backgrounds. Children of rich and powerful people receive the best possible education in elite preschools and communicate with other people from elite households (Domhoff, 2022). Domhoff (2022, p. 62) emphasizes this point by stating, “these schools become surrogate families that play a major role in creating a national upper-class subculture.” Therefore, social circles of the upper class derive from similar social backgrounds, starting from early childhood.
Other experts support this thesis by acknowledging the importance of education to the American upper class. Zweigenhaft (2015) demonstrates that nearly 30% of top American companies’ CEOs received distinctive education from elite institutions. Evidently, Harvard graduates have higher chances of becoming corporately successful, but many directors also received elite pre-education, supporting Domhoff’s thesis (Zweigenhaft, 2015). Besides, Domhoff (2015) emphasizes other aspects of similar lifestyles among the upper class, such as elite neighborhoods for accommodation and their preferences for country estates. These power indicators serve as the shared social parameters that unite people in the upper class. Therefore, according to Domhoff, the upper class is a “complex network of overlapping social circles” that derives from similar lifestyles.
References
Domhoff, W. G. (2015). The class-domination theory of power. Who Rules America? Web.
Domhoff, W. G. (2022). Who rules America? The corporate rich, white nationalist republicans, and inclusionary democrats in the 2020s (8th edition). Taylor and Francis.
Zweigenhaft, R. L. (2015). The role of elite education for white men, white women, and people of color in the U. S. corporate elite. Who Rules America? Web.