The Wild West. The reality of everyday social relations in gated communities in Poland

•The local context of the middle class formation in Poland is analyzed.•The everyday reality and social relations in gated communities are pictured.•The more nuanced images of internal conflicts within the estates are provided.

The crucial objective of the paper is an analysis of the gated community phenomenon in the local context of the formation of the middle class in Poland, in order to understand how these estates function, not as physical objects, but rather as socio-cultural constructs. The paper uses the local framework to describe the social reality of Polish gated communities, employing critical discourse analysis and in-depth interviews with their residents. The author, in applying the “Wild West” metaphor – used by the inhabitants themselves – focuses on picturing the everyday reality, social landscape, and social relations within the gated communities studied.