status

To behave or do something in a way contrary to that which is generally accepted or expected. I love this filmmaker, his movies really challenge the status quo! It can be risky, but challenging the status quo can be a great way to get ahead in business.

Someone who uses conniving, self-serving, or manipulative tactics in order to rise to higher socioeconomic levels. The film has chosen to depict the brilliant young businesswoman as some kind of status seeker who used her friends and connections in order to advance her own career and place in society.

Something, especially that which is very expensive and flashy, that someone owns and displays as a means of showing of their wealth or success. In this part of the city, expensive sneakers and designer sweatshirts are the real status symbols. Nothing says "status symbol" like a single person buying a 25,000 square foot mansion all for themselves.

The condition or state of affairs as it already exists or operates. Despite their myriad promises, politicians are inevitably more interested in maintaining the status quo, which is more profitable for them and their corporate buddies.

The existing condition or state of affairs, as in We don't want to admit more singers to the chorus; we like the status quo. This term, Latin for "state in which," has been used in English since the early 1800s.

A position or activity that allows one's social prestige to be displayed, as in She doesn't even drive; that car of hers is purely a status symbol. [Mid-1900s]

A possession or privilege that is a mark of one’s social standing. Dating from the mid-twentieth century, this term is often used sarcastically, in effect deriding anyone who relies on status symbols for a sense of worth. The New York Times used it on September 3, 2000, in an article by Geraldine Fabrikant about lawyer Johnnie L. Cochran’s purchasing a private plane: “Mr. Cochran . . . is now hitting the major money leagues as well, and he has the status-symbol issue down pat.”

Someone who aspires to a higher socioeconomic level. Upward mobility have always been an aspect of American society, but it took sociologist Vance Packard's 1959 book The Status Seekers to give a name to people who strove to impress by acquiring and flaunting fashionable and expensive items and social cachet. Status seekers—the derogatory epithet quickly gained popularity—not only tried to keep up with the Jones, they wanted to leave the Jones behind.