C. Wright Mills The Power Elite

Wealthy. Powerful. White. Men. All of these things are something the power elite have in common with each other. In addition, they presumably went to the same Ivy League institutions, and were a part of the same gentleman’s organizations. C. Wright Mills interpreted the world through a perspective which was influenced by Max Weber. In this perspective, he envisions the United States having a power elite who commands the 3 major resources of modern society, the economy, government, and the military (Ewell). What Mills means by the power elite has been interpreted many different ways. However, one thing that always remains the same is the three groups Mills decided were the most important and influential, the economy/corporate, government/political, and military elites. In addition, many discuss how Mills wrote about the power elite in the 1950s, but discuss how it may still be influential in today’s world. But the question of, “What did Mills mean by the power elite?” is a largely discussed subject. C. Wright Mills says on the first page of The Power Elite, “Some men come to occupy positions in American society from which they can look down upon, so to speak, and by their decisions mightily affect, the everyday worlds of ordinary men and women.” (Zweigenhaft). Of course, the people occupying the most powerful positions at this time were only men. In addition to this, these men were a part of the upper one third of the of the class structure, which included their income and the occupational pyramid, born of the same upper class, attended the same prep schools and Ivy League, and were a part of the same organizations and gentleman’s clubs. However, the power elite cannot just be written off as a mere reflection of the economic elites, as it is an alliance of economic, political, and military power (Elwell). According to Mills, the unity and coordination of the elites comes from a multitude of different things. This includes the interchange of personnel between the