The boundary problem. Towards a definition of middle class

Abstract

The declining interest in class analysis in social sciences as an approach which contributes to the understanding of social phenomena has not implied the complete extinction of class lexicon. Indeed, it is increasingly common to find debates about the middle class, not only within the academia but also at the social commentary level. Thus, the middle class is considered an expression not only of a social reality, but of a political ideal too. Even though the term middle class is frequently used, beyond sociological research, this article stresses that there has not been agreement between academics about its characteristics, and this has made difficult to draw widely accepted borders between this and other classes. This has become known as the boundary problem. The aim of this paper is to offer a comprehensive view of this problem, particularly focusing on debates about its definition, intellectual conditions of emergence, causes, and some suggested solutions.