Many times throughout centuries and generations the definitions of words change
mildly and sometimes they even change drastically. The original definition of
the word "class", as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, is " Each of the
six divisions or orders of the Roman people in the constitution
ascribed to Servius Tullius. When the word was first used, in the year 1656,
the classes were divided by the weight of the individuals. In 1859 the
definition of the word "class" started to change when it was used to describe a
man named De Quincey. He was placed in a "class" because of his income.
Generally, this is how we use the word in the world today, but people also use
the word to describe a person's behavior, age, rank in an occupation, religion,
and ancestry. As a result of these rankings, people develop opinions of members
in these groups as being "better" than others. Today, although it may be hard
to identify, when we separate individuals into each class, we are still using
weight as a key factor.
When the word was first used, The reason people were
separated into different classes may have been the mere fact that these classes
were used for fighting purposes. This would mean that those in the first class
could fight larger people because they were the heavier and stronger than those
in the lower classes. This separation would benefit those who were fighting.
Class may now be used to differentiate people for the wrong reasons. We have
taken the word class to place people on a
class ladder which is upper, middle, and lower. People are usually not willing
to categorize themselves in the low class because it makes them feel inferior
to others. Those with a large amount of money are considered to be in a high
class. Who is to say that these people are any better than those who are in a
low class. Just because someone has a lot of money, it does not mean that they
are higher than anyone else.
For each of these three classes we have a stereotypical view about how the
people in each group should look. This is where weight comes in to place.
Because the upper class has a lot of money, we tend to feel that they should be
able to control their weight. They have enough money to join the gym or other
exercise programs. They could even purchase a gym set if they wished to do so.
They can buy all the right kinds of foods for a healthy diet. When we look at
high class individuals through this perspective we expect to see thin and good-
looking
individuals.
Often we are disappointed when we see people who are living in the upper class.
Many times they are more over weight than those in the lower classes. Because
they have a lot of money, if they chose to do so, they can afford to go out to
eat every night. This is not always the best way to keep a nice figure.
Although they have enough money to join a gym, or maybe even buy a gym set,
some choose to spend their money on things that they would rather have like a
new car, new clothes, or even something new for their house. Sometimes we do
not realize that many of these people are constantly working to earn all
of the money they have. They may not wish to spend any free time they have
working out. Weight may be important to them, but family, friends and
relaxation are probably more important.
When it comes to weight, society tends to give middle class a little more
slack, but we still expect them to have a fairly descent figure. Although they
do not have as much money as the high class does, most of the time they have
enough money to join a gym or buy some type of exercise equipment. These people can choose to
eat healthy because they have enough money to buy the kinds of foods they
choose. Because these individuals can choose to eat unhealthy, we may be
disappointed in their bodily figures also, but we do not expect this class if
individuals to have as nice of a figure as the high class individuals.
When we refer to the low class individuals we do not speak very highly. We do
not expect much from this group of people. We believe that these people are
doing there best to survive. We assume that these people can not afford to join
a gym, or buy any type of exercise equipment. We also think that these
individuals are eating whatever foods they can get their hands on. Because we
do not expect anything from these people, usually we are not disappointed if
they are over weight.
Many times the low class individuals have a nicer figure than the high class
individuals. Because they do not have the money to spend on extra curricular
activities, they may spend their time walking, running or cycling through
beautiful parks or through their neighborhood. They may even use there
bicycle
as a form of transportation if a car can not be afforded. All of these things
would help these low class individuals to keep a nice bodily figure.
Often, we tend to ignore the good qualities about those people who are
classified under the lower class. Most of the time we do not do this purposely,
but we have grown up in a world that is very stereotypical. Since we have been
living like this all of our lives, this type of behavior comes natural
Although it is hard to see the connections between the original meaning of the
word class and the way we use the word today, their is still some connection.
Weight has always been a key factor when determining the class of an
individual. It
may have started out being used for fighting purposes, but we>
are now using weight to class individuals in a different way. As we grow, our
society influences us to categorize people through their different
characteristics. Since we are influenced
at a young age it is often hard to chancre our behaviors. We may not realize
that we are doing such a thing, but we do this sort of thing every day. If we
work at changing our opinions
about others we can make this world a better place. We have made some changes
in the use of the "class", but there is still a connection between the original
definition and they way we use the word in our world today.