What is evident is that the plight of the lower class members of the society makes it impossible for them to compete against the higher class, since the latter has the money, time, and opportunity to maintain the lifestyle of attending formal schooling at private and acclaimed universities in the country.
Although religion is said to encompass social boundaries determined by human society, social class ultimately determines an individual's affiliation to a religious institution. As discussed in the text, Episcopalians, Baptists, and Methodists cater to various social classes in the society: the middle- to -upper classes, lower classes, and heavily on the middle class, respectively. Attaining salvation from one's sins, an important teaching of Catholicism, also favors those who are able to provide more indulgences (in the form of monetary or financial donations) than those who are barely able to 'donate' for the Church. In these examples, social stratification is demonstrated even in matters of faith, wherein one's faithfulness is determined by knowing the financial capabilities of the individual.
Political participation is also one manifestation of how social class influences the ability of an individual to involve himself/herself with political issues and matters that concern society. Public opinion is mostly generated from the opinion of the privileged few, while the underprivileged majority remains 'silent' because they are not given means or ways to voice out what they have to say about an issue. Furthermore, exercising one's right to vote is curtailed when the lower class are forced to vote for a candidate that will help them with their financial needs, at the expense of their personal choice or freedom to choose the candidate whom they believe should...
Thus, political participation becomes an opportunity for the government and politicians to malign the lower classes by providing them with their basic needs in exchange for their vote and/or support.
Lastly, provision of services for the physical and mental health becomes a privilege for the lower class instead of being one of the basic commodities that society must provide for its members. The lack of money to pay for hospitalization of a physically- or mentally-ill individual leads to his/her rejection from the health institution, depriving him/her of the services that s/he deserved to have, whether or not s/he has the money to provide for it. The government, during this event, should assume the role of ensuring that despite financial difficulties, a person is not deprived of his/her right to obtain health services in order to live a healthy life. However, the unfortunate reality shows that this ideal is far from being realized, since only those who can afford to obtain health services enjoy a healthy and longer life, to the detriment of the lower class, who struggles against illness without the proper means to curb it.
These enumeration, discussion, and analyses of the determinants that are affected and influenced by social class bring to light the issue of how society's treatment of certain people changes when they are labeled to belong to a particular class. The existence of social classes in the society should be viewed as an avenue for further improvement of the dysfunctions of the society, and must not be taken as an excuse to justify or explain the perpetuation oppression against underprivileged individuals by those who are rich and powerful enough to control society's institutions and manipulate its primary structures.
