In the land of the “American Dream,” it is a common belief that there is a direct relationship between hard work and success. In this ideal prototype, those who work long hours are destined for success and social climbing. In theory, you could be born “at the bottom of the food chain” and, with a little hard work, reach the social elite. As a testament to this global vision of the United States, immigrants from around the world have embarked on the journey to the “land of opportunity” in hopes of better education, jobs, government, community, and life for themselves and the generations that serve them. they will follow. All of this is based on a system of social stratification – a guide to how successful you have been in achieving the American dream. This assessment of social class is based on many components, some of which are presented to people at birth and not acquired through hard work or money. The class system at play in the United States has become extremely complex and no longer adheres to the fundamental class values ​​of our ancestors. Those seeking to rise in the American class system are often caught emulating the behaviors of the rich and famous, but this does not necessarily make them higher class. Many people think there is a checklist to fill out to move up in the class system, but being upper class means much more than simply speaking or having the right credentials. One way to look at class is with the model developed by Janny Scott and David Leonhardt in their article, “Shadowy Lines That Still Divide,” in the New York Times. They state that “[o]ne way to think about a person's position in society is to imagine a hand of cards. Everyone is dealt four cards, one for each suit: education, income... in the center of the card... as it always has been: being born into privilege. Works Cited Henwood, Doug. “Trash-o-nomics.” White Trash: Race and Class in America. Ed. Matt Wray and Annalee Newitz. New York, NY: Routledge, 1997. 177-91.Malone, Bill C. Don't Exceed Your Expectations: Country Music and the Southern Working Class. New York, NY: University of Illinois P, 2005. 28. People like us. Dir. Louis Alvarez and Andrew Kolker. 2001.Scott, Janny and David Leonhardt. "Dark lines that still divide." Shadow lines that still divide. May 15, 2005.The New York Times.November 13, 2008.Tse, Archie, and Ben Werschkul. "How the lesson works." Graphics: how the lesson works. May 15, 2005. The New York Times. November 13th. 2008 .