What does 'effortlessly middle class' mean?

Class has nothing to do with anything really, only in the minds of people who think it does.

When first born I slept in a washing basket later graduating to a drawer, then a small cot which I had til I was 5 ( would have had it even longer had baby sibling not needed it). Toilet down the garden, Spiders galore, no bathroom, just a cold tap in scullery, tin bath on the wall....and not a silver spoon to be seen. Definitely working class.

It's an insult - said by someone who is derisive about the social class system and who is speaking about another who values it and has internalised the supposed behaviour of the middle classes - just like Hyacinth Bucket.

Sago

My dear friend begins nearly every conversation with “ being brought up in a working class family”.
I have never understood why she needs to do this.

Could it possibly be because there is so much inverted-snobbery sneering at the middle classes, and being working class - or being perceived as such - means you are seen as ‘worthier’ and thus a nicer and more ‘real’ person?

It’s not been unknown for sundry well known figures to claim WC roots, when in fact they were no such thing.

“Effortlessly upper class” now that’s a compliment!

Obviously means different things to different people as shown by the various GN comments above. Being middle class in the USA is not the same as in the UK. And what about 'effortlessly lower middle class'? The original sentence does imply some people work at being or appearing middle class whereas others are or appear middle class without any effort and that suggests there are advantages to being or appearing middle class which is likely true but not in every case.

How is middle class defined in the USA, please?

My Australian son -in law defines himself as middle class. I wondered why as he defies my definitions

He wanders about like Andy Cap with a roll-up drooping from his mouth.... a baseball cap constantly adorns his head, indoors or out. He is a chancer, too

His voice is soft and low and I have never heard him swear. He calls the sitting room the 'lounge-room'.

That's how he is

It's totally meaningless one may as well describe someone as" stringently walking out in their onesie class" ?! See? Meaningless! Don't pay notice to buffoons living in a fifties b&w Ealing film!

widgeon3

My Australian son -in law defines himself as middle class. I wondered why as he defies my definitions

He wanders about like Andy Cap with a roll-up drooping from his mouth.... a baseball cap constantly adorns his head, indoors or out. He is a chancer, too

His voice is soft and low and I have never heard him swear. He calls the sitting room the 'lounge-room'.

That's how he is

Feel for ya!

They don't do class in USA, in fact nobody but us brooms stuck up our backsides Brits insist in trying to keep the outdated and hilariously snobbish idea alive! In USA you're either rich....or not!

silverlining48

When first born I slept in a washing basket later graduating to a drawer, then a small cot which I had til I was 5 ( would have had it even longer had baby sibling not needed it). Toilet down the garden, Spiders galore, no bathroom, just a cold tap in scullery, tin bath on the wall....and not a silver spoon to be seen. Definitely working class.

Our families have ALWAYS worked in order to accumulate wealth, therefore we're all working class! Although I used to accumulate vast amounts via my work efforts, but still working class. That goes for everyone, and if your wealth is inherited, then your ancestors were thieves! Voilà!

BRAVA!

MissAdventure

Class has nothing to do with anything really, only in the minds of people who think it does.

Would that that were true - but I think class driven connections open many doors / opportunities

Monty Don is sponger class. A twicebankrupt managed to embark his way into gardener's world despite having nil qualifications for the job whilst the wonderfully knowledgeable and highly rated Toby Buckland was shunted off to a token 3rd rate show to make way for old big head!

#Don managed to SMARM his way!!!!

‘Effortlessly’ means without trying.
I thought nobody tried to be middle-class these days, partly because as someone else said, according to John Prescott, we’re all middle class now.
In my experience, far more people put effort into proclaiming how working class they are, when according to most class definitions, they are anything but.

Mummer

It's totally meaningless one may as well describe someone as" stringently walking out in their onesie class" ?! See? Meaningless! Don't pay notice to buffoons living in a fifties b&w Ealing film!

Nobody said anyone was taking any notice of any of it. Just a topic for chat!!

I am definitely working class but very well educated. My partner's first cousin is a Marquess. His mother was 'aspirational', she would bathe and dress (long) for dinner at eight and thought me a 'common miner's daughter'. My father did work down the pit. Doing research into pneumoconiosis (black lung).
I refused to marry her son, even when pregnant. 'We've never had a bastard in the family before...'
After she died I discovered she and her mother escaped the 'poor house' in Glasgow to track down her errant father who had done a runner to South Africa.
I now refer to her (she was so rude to me and made my life a misery) as 'Gorbals Val'

In my opinion Monty Don is not a sponger. He has grafted all his life. He worked as a bin man to pay his way through university and has barely stopped working since, despite a lifelong battle with depression.

Also, I believe he when the 1989 crash meant he lost his business he avoided bankruptcy by selling everything he owned and paying his debts.

Condescending people. Snobbish, rude think they are better then you.

Liberal.

on R4 yesterday they were discussing voters, class, and political support.

It seems that 70% of the population consider themselves working class, up from around 50% in 1990.

70% must equate to most of the adult population, when you take into account children, the retired and all those who cannot work for any reason. So we are all working class now!

The liberal party is middle class. Some people who put things on here are so annoying, have no idea, I am not interested who is who just the silly comments that get me.

Mummer

They don't do class in USA, in fact nobody but us brooms stuck up our backsides Brits insist in trying to keep the outdated and hilariously snobbish idea alive! In USA you're either rich....or not!

Hmm, I don’t know why they talk of ‘trailer trash’ then.