Classism is the belief that our value as human beings is directly related to the social class to which we belong :
the higher our social class , the higher our natural , or inbom superiority . It is only right and proper , classists believe , that those in the highest class should assume leadership roles , for they are , by birth , more intelligent , honorable , energetic , and dependable than those beneath them on the social scale . Analogously , classist ideology tells us that people born into the lowest class have , by birth , a greater tendency to be slow - witted , dishonorable , lazy , and undependable .
In traditional classist sociŃties , social class is determined by birth and cannot be changed by the accumulation or loss of wealth because class superiority or inferiority is believed to be in the blood " - that is , determined by the class to which our parents belong . Marxist theory , in contrast , rejects the idea that the social class into which we are bom determines our superiority or inferiority as human beings . All our class standing determines is whether we'll be socially advantaged or dis advantaged . In other words , Marxist theory considers classism unfair and unwise because it grants privileges to a small segment of the population and withholds privileges from a large scgment of the population without regard for individual merit . And unfortunately , classist idcology is hard to defeat . The United States , for example , tried to climinate classism by creating a society in which one's social class can change with the accumulation or loss of wealth . This method , it was thought , would allow individuals of merit to rise to the top .
However , Marcist theory points out that the accumulation of wealth , especially of enormous wealth , isn't necessarily a sign of merit . All too often it's a sign of questionable ethics . Indeed , as history has shown us , the accumulation of great wealth , or even the maintenance of great inherited wealth , depends upon such unethical practices as the exploitation of cheap labor , the production and sale of such dubious commodities as alcohol and drugs , the exorbitant pricing of such necessities as healthcare and prescription drugs , and the destruction of the environment .
In addition , classism exists in the United States , despite the fact that Americans can change the social class into which they were born , because those who occupy the upper class at any given point in time usually expect to be treated , and usually are treated , as if they were superior to those below them on the socioeconomic ladder . And members of the American upper class usually have the same kind of political clout as upper - class people in traditional classist societies . Analogously , those who get trapped in the lower class in the US , due to limited educational and occupational opportunities , are treated as if they were inferior , as if it were their fault that there aren't enough high - paying jobs to go around .
