Social Class System During The Elizabethan Era

The meaning of colors and materials were the main rules set by the Sumptuary laws. Elizabethan England was divided into three social classes. The upper class included the monarch, nobility,

Imagine being born into the Elizabethan Era where your social class is already determined for you and you cannot switch classes ever. This is the case during the Shakespearean era. There were six total social classes of Elizabethan England. The social class system listed in order from highest to lowest is; Monarch, Nobility, Gentry, Merchants, Yeomanry, and Laborers. Depending on which class you were in this would affect your living conditions, authority, wealth, work, lifestyle and religion. There were also many cultural differences among the social classes during Elizabethan times.

The upper, middle, and lower class. The upper class streamed from the aristocrats of earlier time periods. The middle and lower classes were the working classes. The middle class however had jobs with better pay, a better standard of living ,and better sanitation then the lower class but still had struggles with day to day necessities. The lower class were very poor and had difficult lives. Many children worked in the lower class. This relates to A Brave New World as the lower classes were not focused on in society very often, and had difficult jobs and less access to resources from their conception, this caused the lower classes to in general have low

In Shakespeare's time, the English lived with a strong sense of social class -- of belonging to a particular group because of occupation, wealth, and ancestry. Elizabethan Society had a very strict social code at the time that Shakespeare was writing his plays. Social class could determine all sorts of things, from what a person could wear to where he could live to what jobs his children could get. Some families moved from one class to another, but most people were born into a particular class and stayed there. There was a chance of being granted a title by the crown. This was uncommon at the time and a relatively new thing for Europe where ancestry always defined nobility.

The concept of social class has been around for ages and is still a part of today’s society. Social class is not only based on the individual’s wealth but also on their social standing such as; monarchs, priests, nobles, merchants, and peasant class. The peasant class was practically ignored, which means that the higher classes would only pay attention to each other. This can be the case in society today, there are some people who feel that their career makes them higher than a janitor. Even though humans have been around for centuries, social class is still a big issue.

In the English colonies there were six social classes. From the richest to the poorest, these were the gentry, the middle Class, poor whites, indentured servants, free africans and slaves. The people that made up these classes ranged from the most powerful to those with the least amount of rights, if any.

The upper class includes kings, royals, officials, and high priest. The middle class included lesser priest, artisans, scribes, and merchants. Most people were either peasant farmers or slaves. The role of women changed over time. The women were high ranked, but their rights were never equal to men.

Lower Class The way of living for the poor was a sea of despair in the Elizabethan Era. The lower class lived in damp, dark, overcrowded rooms (Toht 44). In these types of huts, there was barely enough room for a family to live in; hence it was over-packed already. There was certainly no room for anything extra, such as a large kitchen table.

The Elizabethan times had special social norms that are considered traditional or biased today. Special characteristics of the Elizabethan time are shown in Twelfth Night– a play written by William Shakespeare, about the story of Viola, a female who disguises herself as a male, Cesario, to work for Olivia's noble household, and their complex love story. With a setting of 1600s, England, during the Elizabethan era, social norms and characteristics of that time contribute to the humorous series in the piece, making it appealing to both contemporary audiences and audiences in Shakespeare’s time. This essay discusses the changes in social norms through the dimensions of gender, marriage, law, custom, and elements of the Elizabethan era and the modern world. 12:10 Norms and expectations of different gender’s roles in the Elizabethan era were based on the patriarchal society.

In the late sixteenth century, the people of England lived under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Society was divided into six strict social classes: Monarch, Nobility, Gentry, Merchants, Yeomanry, and Laborers. The Elizabethans believed that God placed all of creation in a universal hierarchy ranked by their importance and spiritual nature called the Chain of Being. God would decide where people belonged in their social class by their wealth, employment, education, and ancestry. Social hierarchies had strict rules of which everyone had to follow. People of higher class social status were fortunate enough to have more opportunities to show off their luxuries in society, while people of lower social class did not have the same opportunities.

During this time the social class depended on how much land you owned. Royalty in your Kings and Queens was part of the upper class; the noble lords and vassals followed the

Over the years, society has created and recreated different ideas of what is considered socially acceptable and what customs to follow on a daily basis. These ideas are constantly changing and renewing themselves, making even last year’s behavioral habits seem crude. For instance, life in Elizabethan England contrasted with how life is now because people acted differently, dressed differently, spoke differently, and in a general, broader sense, they lived differently. Because people grow and change and learn from their previous mistakes, Elizabethan customs are practically obsolete due to their lack of effectiveness or rather the lack of need for them to continue.

Social class distinction remains a common theme throughout Shakespeare's plays. Shakespearean era society possessed a structured hierarchy of social class, based largely on wealth and nobility. This system influenced social interactions among the population and often guided marriage arrangements. Shakespeare’s commentary on social class, in his comedy Twelfth Night, exposes the divide humorously, by displaying ironic interactions between varying social classes. Twelfth Night places a variety of characters from different social classes in close quarters, causing inevitable conflict among classes.

Social classes play a major role in society and shape the roles of the people. Since the Elizabethan period began, the social classes were well structured with many influences, such as prestige or wealth. Many citizens found ways to elevate their status and become more successful citizens in the public. The social class structure in the Elizabethan Era was thought to be strict and very well organized, yet still had many opportunities and flaws which lead to changes in citizens’ lives.

In the book Star of the Sea, written by author Joseph O’Connor, he states “They had far more in common than either realised. One was born Catholic, the other Protestant. One was born Irish, the other British. But neither was the greatest difference between them. One was born rich and the other poor.” O’Connor summarises the idea of social class that has been a recurring idea since the dawn of time. Social classes is basically the division of society that is based on social and economic status. The people who were at the top of the social classes were thought to be the prestigious and most worthy people and the further you go down the chain the more common people you began to see. Many people demonstrate the social class system in literature. Shakespeare, especially, offers a challenge to what everyone thought they knew of the social class system.