Teeth and Social Mobility
No other body part highlights the unbridgeable schism between the haves and have nots in western society.
It is said that having good teeth can make the difference between being employed and unemployed.
For several organizations on both sides of the Atlantic, it is one of those unspoken, unwritten rules which shapes to a large degree the sort of people who get the high profile gigs and the jobs which require lots of face to face communication.
The Hollywood jokes about people having “British teeth” is somewhat redundant in places like Canary Wharf and the City of London, where the biggest financial establishments are situated. This is simply due to the fact that employees earn far above the national average wage and are able to afford the most expensive dental treatments.
But for others down the food chain, the issue of having and retaining their gnashers (Britishism for teeth)is simply no laughing matter at all.
In Britain, the asking price of having a root canal on the National Health Service can cost up to 300 pounds. This inordinately expensive cost is compounded by the length of time involved in waiting to see the dentist, not least because of the number of dentists available to the British people in disparate parts of the country.