Upper Class

• Traditionally, the Upper Class were people who inherited Wealth, often in the form of land
• Mackintosh & Mooney (2004) are focused on the Upper Class
• Mackintosh & Mooney (2004) state that the key feature of the upper class is their invisibility due to social closure, meaning that their education, leisure times and daily lives are separated and 'invisible' to the rest of the population
• Mackintosh & Mooney (2004) states the upper class are invisible and operate by social closure - closed off to the rest of society (this is because their lives are so private, the rest of the population don't know what they do)
• Mackintosh & Mooney (2004) states the invisibility of the upper class is through social closure like sending their children to boarding schools, socialising in exclusive groups and leisure activities not accessible to the rest of society (e.g. Opera)
• However it can be argued that the upper class' numbers are in decline as well as their power and that the new 'super-rich' is based on achieved rather than ascribed status and wealth