--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Actual class struggles apart, one of the…" description: "\"“Actual class struggles apart, one of the aesthetic ways you could prove that there was a class system in America was by cogitating on the word, or acr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be0/christopher-hitchens-117_class_actual-class-struggles-apart-one-of-the_230068.jpg" --- # Actual class struggles apart, one of the aesthetic ways… ![“Actual class struggles apart, one of the aesthetic ways you could prove that there was a class system in America was by cogitating on the word, or acronym, 'WASP.' First minted by E. Digby Baltzell in his book The Protestant Establishment , the term stood for 'White Anglo-Saxon Protestant.' Except…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be0/christopher-hitchens-117_class_actual-class-struggles-apart-one-of-the_230068.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be0/christopher-hitchens-117_class_actual-class-struggles-apart-one-of-the_230068.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be0/christopher-hitchens-117_class_actual-class-struggles-apart-one-of-the_230068.jpg) > ““Actual class struggles apart, one of the aesthetic ways you could prove that there was a class system in America was by cogitating on the word, or acronym, 'WASP.' First minted by E. Digby Baltzell in his book The Protestant Establishment , the term stood for 'White Anglo-Saxon Protestant.' Except that, as I never grew tired of pointing out, the 'W' was something of a redundancy (there being by definition no BASPs or JASPs for anyone to be confused with, or confused about). 'ASP,' on the other hand, lacked some of the all-important tone. There being so relatively few Anglo-Saxon Catholics in the United States, the 'S' \[ sic \] was arguably surplus to requirements as well. But then the acronym AS would scarcely do, either. And it would raise an additional difficulty. If 'Anglo-Saxon' descent was the qualifying thing, which surely it was, then why were George Wallace and Jerry Falwell not WASPs? After all, they were not merely white and Anglo-Saxon and Protestant, but very emphatic about all three things. Whereas a man like William F. Buckley , say, despite being a white Irish Catholic, radiated the very sort of demeanor for which the word WASP had been coined to begin with. So, for the matter of that, did the dapper gentleman from Richmond, Virginia, Tom Wolfe . Could it be, then, that WASP was really a term of class rather than ethnicity? Q.E.D.”” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Analyzes the term WASP, arguing it denotes class rather than ethnicity, exposing its inconsistencies. **In simple terms:** WASP reflects class status more than race. Key Takeaway Recognize class symbols beyond superficial labels. Themes class identity terminology American society Mood analytical critical Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - academic discussions - political commentary - media critique - education curricula Key Concepts sociology historical analysis social stratification Questions to Reflect On - What other terms serve similar class‑identifying functions? - How does class intersect with race in modern America? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex social hierarchies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acronym Wasp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acronym-wasp-2330212/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Class struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class-struggle/) [Ethnicity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethnicity/) [George w](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/george-w/) [George wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/george-wallace/) [Irish catholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irish-catholic/) [Three things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three-things/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Wasp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasp/) [Wasp Coined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasp-coined-2330211/) [Wasps Merely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasps-merely-2330214/) [Word Wasp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/word-wasp-2330213/) ## Related quotes > [“George Bush is a WASP. 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There being so relatively few Anglo-Saxon Catholics in the United States, the 'S' [ sic ] was arguably surplus to requirements as well. But then the acronym AS would scarcely do, either. And it would raise an additional difficulty. If 'Anglo-Saxon' descent was the qualifying thing, which surely it was, then why were George Wallace and Jerry Falwell not WASPs? After all, they were not merely white and Anglo-Saxon and Protestant, but very emphatic about all three things. Whereas a man like William F. Buckley , say, despite being a white Irish Catholic, radiated the very sort of demeanor for which the word WASP had been coined to begin with. So, for the matter of that, did the dapper gentleman from Richmond, Virginia, Tom Wolfe . Could it be, then, that WASP was really a term of class rather than ethnicity? 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