Synopses & Reviews
In andlt;Iandgt;Classandlt;/Iandgt; Paul Fussell explodes the sacred American myth of social equality with eagle-eyed irreverence and iconoclastic wit. This bestselling, superbly researched, exquisitely observed guide to the signs, symbols, and customs of the American class system is always outrageously on the mark as Fussell shows us how our status is revealed by everything we do, say, and own. He describes the houses, objects, artifacts, speech, clothing styles, and intellectual proclivities of American classes from the top to the bottom and everybody -- you'll surely recognize yourself -- in between. andlt;Iandgt;Classandlt;/Iandgt; is guaranteed to amuse and infuriate, whether your class is so high it's out of sight (literally) or you are, alas, a sinking victim of prole drift.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Chicago Sun-Timesandlt;/iandgt; Highly amusing....a witty, persnickety, and illuminating book....fussell hits the mark.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;The Washington Postandlt;/Iandgt; Move over, William Buckley. Stand back, Gore Vidal. And run for cover, Uncle Sam: Paul Fussell, the nation's newest world-class curmudgeon, is taking aim at The American Experiment.
Review
Wilfrid Sheed andlt;Iandgt;The Atlanticandlt;/Iandgt; A fine prickly pear of a book....Anyone who reads it will automatically move up a class.
Review
Alison Lurie andlt;Iandgt;The New York Times Book Reviewandlt;/Iandgt; A shrewd and entertaining commentary on American mores today. Frighteningly acute.
Synopsis
In Class Paul Fussell explodes the sacred American myth of social equality with eagle-eyed irreverence and iconoclastic wit. This bestselling, superbly researched, exquisitely observed guide to the signs, symbols, and customs of the American class system is always outrageously on the mark as Fussell shows us how our status is revealed by everything we do, say, and own. He describes the houses, objects, artifacts, speech, clothing styles, and intellectual proclivities of American classes from the top to the bottom and everybody -- you'll surely recognize yourself -- in between. Class is guaranteed to amuse and infuriate, whether your class is so high it's out of sight (literally) or you are, alas, a sinking victim of prole drift.
Synopsis
The bestselling, comprehensive, and carefully researched guide to the ins-and-outs of the American class system with a detailed look at the defining factors of each group, from customs to fashion to housing.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Based on careful research and told with grace and wit, Paul Fessell shows how everything people within American society do, say, and own reflects their social status. Detailing the lifestyles of each class, from the way they dress and where they live to their education and hobbies, andlt;I andgt;Classandlt;/Iandgt; is sure to entertain, enlighten, and occasionally enrage readers as they identify their own place in society and see how the other half lives.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Paul Fussell,andlt;/Bandgt; critic, essayist, and cultural commentator, has recently won the H. L. Mencken Award of the Free Press Association. Among his books are andlt;iandgt;The Great War and Modem Memory,andlt;/iandgt; which in 1976 won both the National Book Critics Circle Award and the National Book Award; andlt;iandgt;Abroad: British Literary Traveling Between the Wars; Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War;andlt;/iandgt; and, most recently, andlt;iandgt;BAD or, The Dumbing of America.andlt;/iandgt; His essays have been collected in andlt;iandgt;The Boy Scout Handbook and Other Observationsandlt;/iandgt; and andlt;iandgt;Thank God for the Atom Bomb and Other Essays.andlt;/iandgt; He lives in Philadelphia, where he teaches English at the University of Pennsylvania.
Table of Contents
andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Contentsandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;I A Touchy Subjectandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;II An Anatomy of the Classesandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;III Appearance Countsandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;IV About the Houseandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;V Consumption, Recreation, andlt;Iandgt;Bibelotsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;VI The Life of the Mindandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;VII "Speak, That I May See Thee"andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;VIII Climbing and Sinking, and Prole Driftandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;IX The X Way Outandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Appendix: Exercises, and the Mail Bag