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Underclass

In: Social Issues

Submitted By odgaard95
Words 680
Pages 3
English
Account for different attitudes expressed in the texts.
The first text is an extract from an English newspaper article from 1989. The author is Charles Murray (an American sociologist).
The author has separated the article in 3 sections: * Illegitimacy * Crime * Drop-out from the labour market.
But first he is introducing the concept underclass. That section is named “Underclass” and it is his opening to the reader. In the section he mention that the concept “Underclass” isn’t something that just happened, but something that but something that has been going on for a long time:
“During the last of the Sixties and throughout the Seventies something strange and frightening was happening among poor people in the United States”
Furthermore, Charles Murray says that illegitimacy is a big factor of the underclass community. The numbers for illegitimacy has been increased since 1979. And therefore he claims that illegitimacy is huge form factors for underclasses occur:
“A child with a mother and no father, living in a neighbourhood of mothers with no fathers, learns from what he sees”
In addition, the author also sees crime for the next place to look for an underclass. He predicts that in a few years England will become a more dangerous place to live in. He mentions that the violence not will occur everywhere, but in particular neighbourhoods will the concept underclass occur.
His third and last reason why the underclass is occurred are, drop-out from the labour market.
He says that is important not to quit the labour market, not only to earn money, but also to socialize. The socializing part is your foundation for development, the author says.
He also mention, that young men who isn’t in the labour market and are not in families, finds another way to gain respect or to show other people that they are men, often by making

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