Social Class and Redneck Neighbor

Marketing 542 January 23, 2010 Clash of the Classes core vs. spirited Proles What was once categorized by the rich and the poor, it is undoubted that society today cannot be so slowly defined. In the words of Jennifer Steinhauer, One thing modernity brought with it was all considerates of identities, the efficiency for commonwealth to choose who you want to be, how you want to decorate yourself, what kind of life style you want. With this vast amount of identities comes the pauperisation for a more structured family line designation as well as a process for de-blurring the lines in the midst of them. time Paul Fussell has recognized nine disunitees in this country, the focus of this psychoanalysis pass on rely on two of them Middle and tall Proletarian, or High Proles. The inflictked differences between these groups will be examined and then related to the real-world cause of Redneck live. Marketing practices and how they can be applied to this situation will also be referenced. As noted, Fussel recognizes nine disciplinees and has them separated into three fractions amply brow, middle brow, and low brow. At the top of the heights brow division lays Middle screen and then High Proles just below it.While the two classes may be adjacent to one another, the fact that Middle is just one class away from the high brows says enough for them to hurt a completely different set of distinguishable attri s carcees. It is this so close, but not close enough mentality of the Middle class that explains their desires and decl are of mind. According to Fussel, the Middle class is the most insecure class and a great deal obsessed with doing the right thing. Not only do they try to prevail up with the high brows in what they annihilate, but also by how they contract it.Thorstein Veblen says it best with Closely related to the requirement that the gentleman essential consume freely and of the right kind of goods, there is the requirement that he mus t bang how to consume them in a seemly manner. The Middle class is constantly worried about their own style and associate themselves (sometimes imaginably so) with coin, fountain and taste. Conversely, High Proles are not consumed with worry about choosing the correct situation emblems, these people can be remarkably relaxed and unself-conscious.They can do, say, wear, and pick up alike pretty much anything they want without undue feelings of shame, which belong to their betters, the middle class (Fussell, pg. 46). It reckons as though the Middle class works very enceinte to hide the fact that they arent in the high brow segment while High Proles are proud to be who they are and preceptort care what others think. The middle class is petrified of falling down in ranking and the High Proles arent really striving to get ahead. It is this watch contrast between the classes that makes the Redneck Neighbor story so applicable and support the findings of various researchers.Ba sed on the above information, it is clear that the fountain of the website is a member of the Middle class while the neighbor, or illusion Doe 8 (JD8), is a High Prole. Coinciding with their obsession to look the part and not fall down in class, it makes sense that the causality is terrified of being associated with his lower classed neighbor. He makes complaints to the police on many occasions, tells his friends every single detail of his neighbors existence to the taper where he feels the need to start his own website documenting it for the whole world to see.This is his exploit to save face and let everyone know that he disagrees with the manner of usage by his neighbor. This supports Veblens quote Since the consumption of these more excellent goods is an picture of wealth, it becomes honorific and conversely, the failure to consume in due quantity and character reference becomes a mark of inferiority and demerit. While talking to the constructor, the author quotes th e builder starts referring to the neighbor in a less-than-amicable fashion someone else on my billet Perhaps he feels a bit guilty for his privacy assail actions but is able to justify himself by hearing someone with the kindred demeanor. One of the biggest mistakes the author makes is associating JD8s social class with money and the car he drives. As Fussel points out, Its not riches alone that defines these classes (pg. 27). And we know from Steinhauers example of entry level luxury cars that in these days, the kind of car you drive cannot be directly related to your worth or class. Additionally, Veblens idea of consumption in the city versus country comes into play.Since the residents are in the suburbs (or country), it is pretty much known throughout the town the determine of each home/family. This fear is expressed by the author when he says, I can see the property value falling meteoric than his postbox post. Even with all of the accused faux pas, it does not appear th at JD8 is intentionally trying to provoke others. Contrary to the previous statement of High Proles not trying to get ahead, it does appear that the neighbor is making an begin to update his property with the common items found in the neighborhood mailbox post, fish pond, herb garden and flagpole.But going back to the research findings of Fussell and Veblen, it is not the fact that he is trying to install these items but that he is doing them in the wrong way. And coinciding with the attributes of a High Prole, JD8 is not penitent and obviously doesnt care what others think. An interesting aspect of the Redneck Neighbor case was the small hints that the author was a bit of a banger himself.Calling the basketball hoop a basketball goal, intercourse the police officer the next time we have a line some damn body is going to jail, and feeling the need to clarify what livestock is, gave the impression he was not as high class as he hoped to portray himself. What does all of this me an for marketers? It kernel that it is getting harder to categorize customer segments in which to market. As you can see from Redneck Neighbor, todays consumers have unpredictable buying patterns. JD8 spends money on a luxury brand car, but not on household items. This somewhat new phenomenon is not unique to JD8.Many people splurge on higher end items like Godiva, BMW, and Whole Foods that still go to Costco for their day-to-day needs. According to Steinhauer, Where once they pitched advertisements in the main to a core group of customers, now they are increasingly fine-tuning their efforts, trying to identify potential customers by interests and tastes as well as income level. creator Douglas Holt believes that the best way to capture consumers is to create stories that affect how they think about themselves in the world. This technique could be very beneficial for Middle class customers since marketers could play up on the idea of high brow society.With High Proles, marketer s could take advantage of their independent mindset and pride in their publicize campaigns. Hardly anyone can argue that the classification of consumers has become more awkward over the years and the population as a whole is harder to reach. Marketers constantly need to think of new ways to get their message crossways and have it register within consumer minds. It is unclear what the future holds for marketers, but it is an provoke challenge to move away from the old teachings and tailor them to the constantly strike classes of our time. Word Count 1,277