You're right, the underclass isn't outside the system. And now that I've thought about it some more, the Winchesters aren't really underclass. They're... well, hunter class, I guess. Which is difficult to place in societal hierarchy, because society doesn't know it exists.
I mean, in economic terms, Sam and Dean are homeless guys surviving on petty crime, but I don't think it puts them in a different class than the Harvelles, who owned a bar, or Steve Windell, who had a huge house with an expensive electronic security system. In terms of outward presentation, they're working class, and that's how most people they meet respond to them, but one of the central themes of the show is that the people they meet don't know the truth. In terms of self-definition... well, Dean seems to think of himself as working class, but I don't think Sam does. (Then again, who know what the hell Sam is thinking 90% of the time?)
The show's writers seem to view the Winchesters (and hunters in general) as working class, which I guess is the primary consideration when considering your question of "How are the authors' class assumptions shaping characterization and plot, in both the canon and the fic?" But, as often happens, the actual story come out a lot more complicated than what the writers originally meant.
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I mean, in economic terms, Sam and Dean are homeless guys surviving on petty crime, but I don't think it puts them in a different class than the Harvelles, who owned a bar, or Steve Windell, who had a huge house with an expensive electronic security system. In terms of outward presentation, they're working class, and that's how most people they meet respond to them, but one of the central themes of the show is that the people they meet don't know the truth. In terms of self-definition... well, Dean seems to think of himself as working class, but I don't think Sam does. (Then again, who know what the hell Sam is thinking 90% of the time?)
The show's writers seem to view the Winchesters (and hunters in general) as working class, which I guess is the primary consideration when considering your question of "How are the authors' class assumptions shaping characterization and plot, in both the canon and the fic?" But, as often happens, the actual story come out a lot more complicated than what the writers originally meant.