Representation of Class and Status: Middle Class

(Outnumbered) 450 words

 

'Outnumbered' is a British TV show which displays the stereotypical middle class family, living in modern day society. The family is made up of two working parents and three children. In series one, the children are still young, ranging from the ages of four to eleven, illustrating the typical middle class family set-up.

Immediately we are told that they are a middle class family by the establishing shot at the beginning of each episode. It shows an end-terraced house which could easily be three stories high, straight way indicating that the family are not extremely wealthy, but are definitely not poor either; they are a typical middle class family.

One common connotation of having three young children is that the parents tend to get stressed out, especially during the school morning routine. The mother is fumbling through a bowl in the kitchen in an attempt to find her car keys in a hurry. This is shown to the audience through a close up shot to pin-point how desperate she is to locate the keys and emphasises the stress that typical parents feel on a school morning. Furthermore, the camera tracks the mother as she hurries around the house makes it clear how chaotic the morning routine can be. The chaos is also emphasised through the ambient (background) sound. While the parents are downstairs doing one thing, we can hear the youngest children arguing and shouting from another room. As well as this, the family have a radio playing music in the background, which adds unnecessary noise to their morning. The diegetic music makes it even more stressful for the family as they are struggling to hear each other from separate rooms. As middle class is seen as the "normal" family set up, this is displaying what the stereotypical school morning is like the majority of families.

The character's costumes also illustrate their class and status. The father is in suit trousers and a shirt, and later on in the episode puts on a blazer. This indicates he is most probably in a white-collar job, such as an office job or in teaching, suggesting he is quite well paid. The mother is dressed in smart-casual clothing; an ordinary t-shirt with a cardigan. This suggests that perhaps she works from home as she does not seem to be dressed specifically for a particular occupation. 

Finally, the continuity editing and the use of straight cuts helps to create a sense of time moving forward, allowing the audience to get a feel for what the typical middle class family morning routine is like. As well as this, it creates a sense of realism, emphasising the reality of the events of the middle class.