There are two narratives of the American class structure: one of a country with boundless opportunities for upward mobility and one of a rigid class system in which the rich stay rich while the poor stay poor. Each of these narratives holds some truth, but each overlooks another. In Privilege Lost, Jessi Streib traces the lives of over 100 youth born into the upper-middle-class. Following them for over ten years as they transition from teens to young adults, Streib examines who falls from the upper-middle-class, how, and why don't they see it coming. In doing so, she reveals the patterned ways that individuals' resources and identities push them onto mobility paths--and the complicated choices youth make between staying true to themselves and staying in their class position. Engaging and eye-opening, Privilege Lost brings to life the stories of the downwardly mobile and highlights what they reveal about class, privilege, and American family life.

About the Author
Jessi Streib is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Duke University. She is the author of The Power of the Past: Understanding Cross-Class Marriages.

Reviews
... American sociology has much to learn from Streib. We best learn it before we become irrelevant. * Kevin T. Leicht, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Contemporary Sociology *
Privilege Lost is a rich portrait of white youth who were born into the upper-middle class in the late-1980s. * Natasha Quadlin, American Journal of Sociology *
This is a valuable and nuanced perspective in consideration of socioeconomic class in America. * F.E. Knowles, Valdosta State University, CHOICE *



Book Information
ISBN 9780190854058
Author Jessi Streib
Format Paperback
Page Count 192
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Dimensions(mm) 155mm * 231mm * 15mm