Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
...and what social class would they be considered?
Luis, 40, and Fabiana, 38, are a married couple and parents of Wilson, 14, and Leticia, 12. They live in an approximately 1100 square foot (100 square meter) four-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment in a newer development in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. Luis is a business consultant; Fabiana, a saleswoman for a wireless communications firm. Both have approximately 16 years of schooling. Wilson and Leticia are both enrolled in a private school. Luis is bilingual in Portuguese and Spanish and often travels to Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia on business. Fabiana speaks a little bit of English, but is not fluent in the language. Wilson is the most fluent in English, in addition to speaking passable Spanish and French. Leticia almost failed her first French class, although she is improving her English with English-speaking songs from artists like Nicki Minaj, LMFAO, Lil' Wayne, and Katy Perry.
Fabiana takes the family's '05 Fiat Idea minivan to work and to drop off the kids at school, while Luis takes a bus or radio taxi. The family employs part-time, regular domestic help to clean, do laundry, and sometimes cook. They own a microwave, stove, refrigerator, toaster, two televisions (a 42" and a 25", which is Wilson's room), a Playstation 2 gaming system with a dance pad, and a desktop computer as well as two laptops which Fabiana and Luis use for work. Leticia plays the saxophone, while Wilson spends most of his time not occupied by his studies playing Dance Dance Revolution, and has won a couple of tournaments. They buy most of their groceries from Carrefour but also often send the domestic worker to the market to buy fresh vegetables, fruits, eggs, and meat. Luis has a Blackberry and all the rest of the family has their own cell phones. They also have a household phone.
Luis owns a small vacation cabin about 80 kilometers away from the home on the beach, which the family retreats to whenever they get a chance. He also has inherited a small parcel of land up north, on which he collects a lease annually from sharecroppers. The family has also vacationed in Iguazu Falls and Rio de Janeiro.
Luis's primary hobby is operating his small amateur radio station at his vacation home, while Fabiana enjoys fashion and dressing up for social events. Leticia takes in her wake, and Wilson, as previously mentioned, enjoys his DDR.
...and what social class would they be considered?
Luis, 40, and Fabiana, 38, are a married couple and parents of Wilson, 14, and Leticia, 12. They live in an approximately 1100 square foot (100 square meter) four-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment in a newer development in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. Luis is a business consultant; Fabiana, a saleswoman for a wireless communications firm. Both have approximately 16 years of schooling. Wilson and Leticia are both enrolled in a private school. Luis is bilingual in Portuguese and Spanish and often travels to Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia on business. Fabiana speaks a little bit of English, but is not fluent in the language. Wilson is the most fluent in English, in addition to speaking passable Spanish and French. Leticia almost failed her first French class, although she is improving her English with English-speaking songs from artists like Nicki Minaj, LMFAO, Lil' Wayne, and Katy Perry.
Fabiana takes the family's '05 Fiat Idea minivan to work and to drop off the kids at school, while Luis takes a bus or radio taxi. The family employs part-time, regular domestic help to clean, do laundry, and sometimes cook. They own a microwave, stove, refrigerator, toaster, two televisions (a 42" and a 25", which is Wilson's room), a Playstation 2 gaming system with a dance pad, and a desktop computer as well as two laptops which Fabiana and Luis use for work. Leticia plays the saxophone, while Wilson spends most of his time not occupied by his studies playing Dance Dance Revolution, and has won a couple of tournaments. They buy most of their groceries from Carrefour but also often send the domestic worker to the market to buy fresh vegetables, fruits, eggs, and meat. Luis has a Blackberry and all the rest of the family has their own cell phones. They also have a household phone.
Luis owns a small vacation cabin about 80 kilometers away from the home on the beach, which the family retreats to whenever they get a chance. He also has inherited a small parcel of land up north, on which he collects a lease annually from sharecroppers. The family has also vacationed in Iguazu Falls and Rio de Janeiro.
Luis's primary hobby is operating his small amateur radio station at his vacation home, while Fabiana enjoys fashion and dressing up for social events. Leticia takes in her wake, and Wilson, as previously mentioned, enjoys his DDR.
It is definitely a realistic Brazilian family, but not typical.
They are a part of the super-upper-middle-class.
You also have to take into account which part of the country where the family lives. This family lives in the South, which has traditionally been more egalitarian--with a broader middle class.
Yes, it is realistic......I personally know a few people with most of this characteristics.....they're upper middle class I'd say. As aries pointed out, in the south and southeast you have more chances of seeing this scenario because it is the wealthiest parts of the country.
Almost all homes in Brazil have at least two bathrooms, even in the favelas.
That detail aside, that is a typical middle class family of Brazil, not very different of the family I grew up.
They represent the 20% of the population that is bellow the top 10% and above the lower 70%
Only people who have NEVER set a foot in Brazil can say they are "the top 5%" or the "super-upper-middle-class".
Um, Senhor Mala--
I am very familiar with "O Brasil."
You seemed to overlook some important details:
-owning a vacation cabin on the beach
-inheriting land where he/they collect lease payments from sharecroppers
I don't know what kind of "Fantasia Brasil" you're familiar with, but those characteristics would put a family in the top echelons even in the United States!
It is common for Brazilians in the upper-middle/upper classes to overstate the amount of people in the Brazilian upper-middle/upper class.
Statements like,
"No one goes there..."
"Everybody has that..."
-owning a vacation cabin on the beach
-inheriting land where he/they collect lease payments from sharecroppers
I don't know what kind of "Fantasia Brasil" you're familiar with, but those characteristics would put a family in the top echelons even in the United States!
It is common for Brazilians in the upper-middle/upper classes to overstate the amount of people in the Brazilian upper-middle/upper class.
Statements like,
"No one goes there..."
"Everybody has that..."
Sorry man, but here in Fortaleza, where I live, I guess that for every 8 families, at least one have a "casa de praia" (beach house) in one of the beachs in the East Coast or the West Coast of the state of Ceara. Not necessarily a big house, I'm including small apartments in the beach of IcaraÃ, in Caucaia, in this statistic.
There is really nothing very special about that family from Porto Alegre. I mean... Their kids have a Playstation 2! Come on! Any home in any favela has a Playstation 2! I know people in favelas who have XBox. And what about having just two televisions, and just one of them being over 40 inches in size? Give me a break! 42 inch TV's are easy to find in favelas! Middle class families in Brazil have at least two TV's over 40 inches in size...
You are familiar with Brazil? Great. But I have lived in Brazil for my entire life, more than 3 decades, and I still live here.
I was born in Brazil, raised in the USA and Aries is absolutely correct. Brazilians have a tendency to always overstate, exaggerate and most importantly, to live in denial- try having a conversation with an average Brazilian about the current situation of the country- everything is always great and perfect and if you criticize Brazil, they get very defensive.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
