Today, I have thought about socioeconomic* status.
It's fair to say, I had a reasonably sheltered life before coming to university. I won't expand on my experiences too much, but I'm pretty sure you can gather some assumptions from the way I write; what I write about. Generally, I find, people from similar backgrounds tend to seek eachother out as a state of friendship that they are comfortable and familiar with.
Since attending uni, I have been exposed to suprisingly different types of people along with the way they lived their lives before I knew them. Of the people in my house, there is a ex-comprehensive school student; an ex-grammar school student; an ex-private school student; an international student. I wonder could you place us correctly just by knowing us?
It's weird, hearing some of the school stories, things I couldn't imagine ever occuring within my educational establishment. It's such a contrast to what I'd known previously and while there's sometimes the sense of feeling like the odd one out, it is interesting to discover the difference in views and values, history and way of life. Sometimes, I find the stark differences in upbringing somewhat incredulous and while I do think it is important to have some idea of how other people live, and be able to cope effectively within different social set-ups, at the end of the day, people I prefer to associate with tend to be the people who have a similar frame of reference to myself, that is where I feel I fit in.
Finding friends you feel you fit in with isn't always easy, or immediately apparant upon first encounter. I have never made such blanket statements as "I only want to be friends with private school people" as I have heard others do, as it seems absurd to rule people out based on one factor. Indeed, like I mentioned, you can't always tell. But people do make their own assumptions, based on the way people talk or what they wear or what part of the country they come from. You can't avoid the prevalence of stereotypes, and to be fair, often they can be shown to be true in many cases.
At this point, I find myself beginning to contradict myself, which I feel is often a good place to stop as it probably means I've lost sight of the point that was being made in the first place. Anyway, if you can make any sense of a discussion in that, feel free to share your views...
On the jukebox: Billy Joel ~ Uptown Girl
*Ha, like I know what that actually means...
I think that is a universal issue that most people attending higher education encounter. I, also, tend to associate with others who share similar frames of reference to mine. Although I constantly try, I find it hard to branch out. I find friendship in those who are different, but the individuals who tend to share my values and beliefs are the ones that I hold dearest in my heart.
ReplyDeleteLooking back I think I was more
ReplyDeletesocioeconomically diverse (if that even makes sense) when I was at school. Uni has tended to narrow that gap once again, but then I suppose when you look at it and I don't mean this as derogatory in the slightest, but the very nature of University means that the majority of people attending or are able to attend are going to come from certain backgrounds.
Wow, that was rambley :oD
I was thinking about this the other day and I realised I've made more friends in year 2 and year 3 than I ever did in year 1. I suppose that might be down to the fact I've grown in confidence...
...or maybe I'm just more approachable these days :oP
xxx
University has been excellent for that. I've learned about ways of life totally different from my own and I've come to realise quite how much your upbringing affects how you see the world. I wouldn't even say that I was particularly sheltered before, but living day-in, day-out with people really brings it home.
ReplyDeleteWhat I do like is that the friends that I have made are from a complete mixture of backgrounds (as far as you will ever get a 'complete mixture' at a university like Durham), and it's different again to the complete mixture of people who I went to school with or have worked with. That probably comes from living in a city, and there is also the fact that while I have a reasonable idea of my 'socio-economic status', I can't think of many other people with a background quite like mine and as a result never quite know where I fit in. Indeed, my own perception of my background has changed since going to university!
I find it slightly difficult to place you, Flix, although I'd vote for the ex-grammar school student, probably. Possibly ex-private school. Assuming that you've only read as much of my blog as you've been commenting on (as opposed to the two plus years of background), I wonder where you'd place me? Don't feel obliged to answer that :-)
I've found it rather strange at Cambridge - lots of people with a whole different scale of money to anything I've been used to. And I'm by no means poor. Though I have to say that there are very few people with less money than me, but I suppose there wouldn't be in a place like Cambridge - which is no good at all.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I am ranting a little. Thankyou for the lovely comment, and I will write a new blog soon, honest!