How Class Works: Power and Social Movement

by Stanley Aronowitz

Americans like to believe that they live in a classless society. Most Americans defiantly identify themselves as middle class, although economic inequality is greater in the United States than in most advanced Western nations. Offering an important revision of conventional wisdom, Stanley Aronowitz demonstrates that class remains a potent force in the United States. Aronowitz shows that class need not be understood simply in terms of socioeconomic stratification, but rather as the power of social groups to make a difference. Aronowitz explains that social groups from different economic and political positions become ruling classes when they make demands that change the course of history. For instance, labor movements, environmental activists, and feminists have engaged in class struggles as their demands for power reconfigured the social order. The emerging global justice movements—comprised of activists from heterogeneous social and political backgrounds—also show potential for class formation. Written by a prominent scholar and social activist, this book offers a stunning reconceptualization of the meaning and significance of class in modern America.

Genres: Sociology, Politics, Social Movements, Class, Economics, Philosophy, Nonfiction

272 pages, Hardcover

First published April 10, 2003

About the author

Stanley Aronowitz (1933–2021) was a professor of sociology, cultural studies, and urban education at the CUNY Graduate Center. He was also a veteran political activist and cultural critic, an advocate for organized labor and a member of the interim consultative committee of the International Organization for a Participatory Society.

In 2012, Aronowitz was awarded the Center for Study of Working Class Life's Lifetime Achievement Award at Stony Brook University.

Reviews

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thought this would be a conceptual book on class. It reads more like a short history of social and labor movements of the past few decades. If there is a distinction drawn and analysis of class it is between the ruling class and the working class.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a rock solid piece of social science that offers good insight into social movements and their relation to economics.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent explanation of how social class works, examining the roles played by social movements, power, and history.