As an international student I was interesting in the reading of Benjamin Franklin's pamphlet, which was addressed for people in Europe to clarify the endless rumors and cliche about America being the land of dreams and fantasy. He addresses such an idea in his writing “Information to Those Who Would Remove to America” as part of his explanation of American culture and society to a European audience. I really like this quote and I think, he stated the "ugly truth": "The Truth is, that though there are in that Country few People so miserable as the Poor of Europe, there are also very few that in Europe would be called rich; it is rather a general happy Mediocrity that prevails."
He thought that the European society has social classes and cultural distinctions for its citizens compare to America and there is no such thing as upper and middle class.
Is there any difference between Europe and America in nowadays, thinking about social classes and statuses?
I definitely think there are still social classes in both America and Europe, maybe just not officially titled. Here in Richmond (as in many cities), you can be in a very wealthy neighborhood and five minutes later, a "bad" one. And the difference between the residents of these places affects how they are treated and stereotyped.
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