Social Class

While watching the last video in Soc, I found that one segment I could relate to very well. I grew up in Bloomington, Illinois. I lived there for about 10 years, and nearly all of my extended family members lived there as well. Now, obviously Bloomington and Lincolnshire aren't as different as the girl who grew up in a very small time and then moved to the city, but there are still connections that can be drawn. For my dad especially, I believe he feels slightly awkward when he goes to family get togethers in Bloomington. Alot of his family members hardly even ask him about his new job and his life in the suburbs of Chicago. Although he doesn't neccessarily change his personality and clothing like the woman did in the movie, but I do notice that he doesn't like to talk about his job unless he is asked about it because he feels he will get criticized for thinking he is higher than his other family members. As for me, when I visit my friends from Bloomington, there is a change that I feel. Although they are very similar to my friends, there are still social differences, and they even tell me I speak with a Chicago accent. When I was packing for a weekend visit, I wasn't sure if packing clothes that were nice brands that weren't even sold in stores in Bloomington would make it seem like I was showing off. I was nervous around them at times because I didn't want to seem like a snobby North Shore girl and I just wanted to act like the girl who lived there for 10 years. I don't really think that my family or friends from Bloomington judge who I am now that I no longer live in Bloomington, but I completely understand where the woman in the video was coming from.