Class Distinctions
The divisions among classes in the 18th Century varied by the person describing the classes. An interesting description is that by Daniel Defoe (Quoted from Porter, English Society, pp. 67-8).
1. The great, who live profusely 2. The rich, who live plentifully 3. The middle sort, who live well 4. The working trades, who labour hard, but feel no want 5. The country people, farmers, etc. who fare indifferently 6. The poor, who fare hard 7. The miserable, that really pinch and suffer want |
There were very few people in the highest class, the nobility. There were many more people in each of the lower classes such that the majority of the population was in the lower classes. The upper-class women on which we have focused would primarily have been of the middle and high class in this description (Leppert, 9).
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