Thread by @robkhenderson

The Kim family in Parasite was not poor, but failed middle class. The dad lost $ starting businesses. Son and daughter took uni exam multiple times. It's why they did a bad job folding pizza boxes. Working class would do it fine. Bitter middle class think they're too good for it

https://twitter.com/waldmenschen/status/1453935781970468864

This is also why critics adored Parasite. It allowed them to identify with resentful middle class people down on their luck (one of the greatest fears of affluent people; downward mobility) under the guise of feeling sympathy for the poor

My thoughts about Parasite with @RichardHanania here:

I also describe why the Park family are not truly members of the upper class. They are economically successful. But they are not cultured elites.

You can see this by how well the Kim daughter was able to BS her credentials and knowledge of art to the Park family. The Park mother nods along. But she obviously knows nothing about art. She's a philistine; she has the appearance of class but is culturally unsophisticated

That nice house is also an indicator that the family is nouveau riche.

The Kims are middle-class people who slipped down the economic ladder. The Parks are middle-class people who ascended up the economic ladder.

Parasite is not about entrenched class divisions. It’s not about a poor family and a rich family.

It’s about a downwardly mobile middle class family and an upwardly mobile one

Which is why resentment builds and explodes into violence. Envy is reserved for those who are similar to ourselves. Poor people do not envy the rich. Who envies the rich? Middle & upper middle class people. This is why critics identified with the Kims

https://twitter.com/robkhenderson/status/1366871487060320257?s=20

If you’re interested in human nature, check out my newsletter

Sign up here: eepurl.com/gNOyq5

-Social class and luxury beliefs
-Status anxiety and malicious envy
-Much more I can't post about on Twitter