The term class refers to grouping individuals according to their socio-economic position in a given context.  Yet, as many of the readings in Beyond Borders imply, class refers to more vast and complex differences than just economic position. Historically, descriptions of class difference often implied a biological or genetic justification for class hierarchy and the impermeability of class boundaries.  Particular class positions or labels (working class, middle class, etc.) often connote ideas about culture, language, beliefs, customs, etc., as well.  Many of the readings and images explore claims or myths about classlessness or class permeability in the United States.  Some of the readings on globalization suggest that there are global class positions that are just as, or more, meaningful and relevant to people's lived experience that their nationality.

In Beyond Borders:  See John Hartigan "The Baseball Game," Jacob Riis "How the Other Half Lives," and William Greider "One World, Ready or Not."

In Beyond Borders Online:  See Web Research Activities, "Identity in Cyberspace" and "Democracy, Difference, and Globalization." [BC: Note underscored links to research page of this site.]

community  Community is a more or less immediate network of human relationships. This network is often thought of as a place where people share a common identity through their physical proximity, such as a city, town or neighborhood.  Many uses of community have this idea of a group of people living in the same locality, even if the implications of community consciousness go beyond mere geographical bonding. Community can also mean a social group having common interests and affinities—ethnic or racial, sexual preference, linguistic, religious, etc. The members of these communities may not live near each other or even all know each other.

In Beyond Borders:  See Daniel Kemmis "The Last Best Place: How Hardship and Limits Build Community"; bell hooks, "Love as the Practice of Freedom"; and Images 27a, 27b, 27c, 27d "Turning from the Millenium: Images from a Digital Exhibition about Two Communities in Los Angeles."

In Beyond Borders Online: See Web Research Activities, "The Web and a Sense of Place and Community."

<< Back to Key Words