Social Classes In Elizabethan England

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The modern ideas surrounding England are nothing like the countries past. Even though Dr. Who and Sherlock Holms are fascinating portals, the Elizabethan Era was hard to be a part of. The Elizabethan Era began in 1558 when Queen Elizabeth I began her rule, and it ended after her death in 1603. Life in England during this time may have been easy for the higher-ranking classes, but for the lower class it was difficult. The main differences between the classes were in education, art, and everyday life.
Education was very important during the Elizabethan Era. During this time, boys from the age of five to seven were sent to “petty schools”. These schools required a small fee so that young women in the town could teach children (Mahabal “Education”). …show more content…

A person’s life depended on their ranking. The classes were monarchy, which is the highest, nobility, gentry, merchants, and laborers. These five social classes were said to be determined by God (Mahabal “Daily Life”). Which means that if you defied it, you would be harshly punished. These classes were unfair. This is because people usually did not have a chance to move up the ladder into a higher class. Depending on an individual’s class, it also determined what a person could wear. Parliament told each class what types of fabric, jewelry, and even what hats they could wear (Mahabal “Daily Life”). The people during this period had no self-expression like people do today. Sadly, this means that the classes above them regularly looked down upon the people below them. Due to low sanitary conditions in the cities, sickness and diseases became a big problem (Mahabal “Daily Life”). Higher-class citizens were able to receive medical treatment but most of them were very painful. While the lower class citizens had it the worst, they only had superstitious beliefs. These differences show how the upper class views the lower class. They didn’t care if they lived or died. Social ranking controlled every aspect of an individual’s life, and higher and lower ranking classes were treated complexly