In most of the world, "middle class" means that you have a cushy job and don't have to do any housework-- a maid is assumed. It also means that you have enough

In most of the world, "middle class" means that you have a cushy job and don't have to do any housework-- a maid is assumed. It also means that you have enough financial security that, while you may have to work, you can work and move from one industry to another pretty much at your leisure. Being "middle class" is better in the Third World, but the comparison isn't fair because only 1-5% is called middle class over there, while 50% are considered middle class here. So that's actually a comparison of what we would consider upper-middle class in their societies against the upper working class in ours. No one who has to put off a vacation because he only gets 2 weeks annually would be considered middle class, except in the US, where we indulge in the fictional equation of "median" with "middle class". What you're talking about (I think) is the fact that a lot of people come to America expecting to be middle class, which implies a certain level of comfort. When they join the upper tier of the working class that is called "middle class" here, they're upset because of their dashed expectations. Being poor in America sucks but it kicks the pants off being poor in the Third World, at least in material terms. However, the poor in the US are almost always miserable (due to lack of advancement, a culture that equates poverty with failure, and boredom) whereas the poor in the Third World are not always miserable.