The end of the world is no excuse for increased social mobility. It is easier for a ghost to press against the natural order of things and re-enter the world of the living than it is for a poor man to enter the ranks of the respectable in Doskvol. It is more natural for a demon to form a cult to worship it than it is for a person of merit to find recognition as new aristocracy. I suspect that is because when the supernatural flooded into the world, Doskvol’s elites were presented with fait accompli and had to adjust. They feel no such helplessness in the face of lowborn trying to make inroads into their ranks.
From “Historical Ruminations of the Fall and Subsequent Taxation,” by Aletha Sventon