C. Wright Mills

The Power Elite

1. IDEA 1

   A small elite runs America

   Mills, a sociologist, argues that in the United States after the Second World War, real power was concentrated in a small group he calls the power elite. Its members led the largest corporations, the military and the federal government.

2. IDEA 2

   Big companies hold great power

   Mills describes the corporate rich, the leaders of huge companies whose decisions affect millions. Wealth, in his view, had become concentrated in these institutions. In his view, their choices shape jobs, prices and national life far beyond their own firms.

3. IDEA 3

   The military gained influence

   Mills argues that the Cold War gave military leaders unprecedented influence over national policy. Military thinking spread into government and business. In his view, this tied national decisions closely to questions of defence and security.

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