Great post c8it! I think you summarised your first two days of reading very well. As a History enthusiast, I can definitely relate to the quote:

"When the aristocracy catches a cold, as it is said, the working class dies of pneumonia."

Whilst it was obvious back then, unfortunately we are still seeing examples of where the working class dies both metaphorically and literally when the new form of 'artistocracy' in modern society takes a wrong turn or decides to create conflict.