Classism And The Existential Malaise Of The Upper Middle Class

The author uses this theme to examine the inconsistencies, insecurities, and preoccupations, of upper middle class intellectuals, and the condescension with which they often treat those they perceive as belonging to a different class. “Gender Studies” offers the most overt representation of this theme, as Nell, a college professor, is barely able to restrain her sneering attitude towards Luke, the hotel shuttle van driver. Nell tries to pass off her disdain for Luke as a matter of politics, since he mentions his approval of Donald Trump as soon as they meet, but this is not the whole story. When she has a drink with Luke at the hotel bar, she describes their conversation as an “anthropological experience” (11). The use of this word indicates that Nell views Luke as someone vastly different from her (because he is working...