ABSTRACT
In a brief thirty years, Singapore has been transformed from a society that was relatively, homogeneously poor-unemployed or underemployed, undernourished and inadequately housed-to one where social stratification by income is increasingly apparent even to untrained eyes. This successful economic transformation is by now a well-told tale, heavy with its interpretations and controversies (see Rodan 1989; Drysdale 1985; Tremewan 1994; Chua 1995). Success itself has become a metaphor for Singapore.
