"A social class is a group of people of similar status, commonly sharing comparable levels of power and wealth. In sociology, social classes describe one form of social stratification." Cheggs (n.d)[online].
“A large group of people whose economic circumstances, usually measured by their incomes, wealth and occupation, are broadly similar” Earlhamsociology pages (n.d) [online].
Social class can be said to be the level which an individual or a group of people are place by the society. It is also said to be the position of an individual in a society. “A caste system is a social system in which one’s social position is given for a lifetime.” Giddens (2009) [online].
The definitions given above explain the same thing; they all explain that social class is a level or group where an individual or individuals are placed by the society either because of their achievements, background or because of common (political or economic) interest.
There are two types of sociologists, namely macro and micro and they both have views about the existence of social class. According to Core (2011) [online] macro sociologists agree that there is social class and also that “the position within social structure (status, roles, institutions) determines human behavior” while the micro sociologists believe otherwise, their view is “human behavior is based on individuals interpretation of a situation and the meaning they give it”.
Micro sociologists also known as post modernists such as Malcolm waters and Pakulski believe that social class cannot be measured/determined and are dead. This is due to the fact that factors such as social connection, patterns of consumption and other trends are removing class structures in the society.
According to Malcolm Waters lifestyle is not constant and therefore class cannot possibly be measured using this means; in some situations one may decide to adopt an exquisite lifestyle or may adopt a low level