Privilege vs. Underprivileged: Important Things in Life

896 Words2 Pages

Money can give people a lot opportunities and privilege. Financially privileged people have no trouble getting materialistic things such as big houses, expensive cars, and jewelry. Being privileged can also provide better scholastic education as well as respect. On the other hand, a lack of money, as a person might guess, limits opportunity and lower a person’s status on the privilege pole. In order for an underprivileged person to have all of those things, they have to work hard to get to get the luxuries of nice houses, cars, and jewelry. As far as education goes, the underprivileged might not go to the best schools but they get an education that will prove to be more valuable in life; they learn to earn respect, appreciate what they have and how to survive with just the necessities and what’s really important in life. So when a person looks at each group and tries to decided with one gets the most out of life, they will see that underprivileged individuals get so much more out of life than a person who came up in affluence and privilege. People receive respect whether they are privileged or underprivileged; the difference is individuals that are privileged often aren’t receiving genuine respect. People treat privileged individuals with respect because the money says, “I’m better than you”. The money equals power or shows a higher status/position in life and people treat elitist as so with no questions asked. These “special” individuals also have a tendency to show little, if any respect for others, especially when the others look of little importance. It seem that the entitled ones don’t understand that respect should be given in order for it to be received. In actually, people don’t respect the affluent because tha... ... middle of paper ... ...kids are in bed at a certain time. In spite of the privileged getting anything money can buy, an underprivileged person gets the important things money cant buy. Many people have heard the expression “if you give a man a fish you can feed them a day, if you teach a man to fish you can feed them a lifetime.” Well I believe privileged people are given fish and the underprivileged taught to fish. Works Cited Blakeley, Kiri. “The World’s Top-Earning Supermodels.” Fobes.com. 16 July 2007. Web. 28 July 2010. http://www.forbes.com/2007/07/19/models-media-bundchen-biz-media-cz_kb_0716topmodels.html Deane, Michael “From Poverty To Power: Celebrities Who Started With Nothing.” Financial edge by Investopedia.com. 25 March 2010. Web. 29 July 2010. http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0310/From-Poverty-To-Power-Celebrities-Who-Started-With-Nothing.aspx

Show More
Related

  • Class In America By Gregory Mantsios Summary

    910 Words  | 2 Pages

    If one is deemed rich, they are usually labeled as a snob or arrogant. Not every rich person is mean, selfish or cruel; it’s just the way they are portrayed nowadays. Just because one is rich does not mean that one does not care for

    Read More

  • Sociology Monopoly In Sociology

    708 Words  | 2 Pages

    Those who are rich are happier and feel superior. Those who have less money get discouraged and unhappy. In ways as the game continues, players emotions mirror real life. Those in the upper class have a lot of money and an easier time full of joy. Those in the middle class will own a little property but they won't ever earn enough to move up in social status. Those in poverty sink lower and lower into debt and struggle to stay afloat.

    Read More

  • Poverty And Social Class In Loewen And Hooks

    779 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hooks says, “It is better to be poor than to allow another person to assert power over you in ways that are dehumanizing and cruel” (435). Weather poor or rich everyone deserves and opportunity to be successful in life and shouldn’t be stereotyped. Everyone deserves the chance to be successful in life and have the same equal opportunities. Poverty is everywhere in this world some worse than others. Living in poverty once in life it can actually be a learning experience. To see and experience the struggle gives them not only a better understanding but appreciate what they have.

    Read More

  • Privilege Case Study

    975 Words  | 2 Pages

    Privilege is a type of right or advantage available to a particular group of people over others. Privilege can be earned and given. For example, white people have the privilege of not having others judge them negatively because of their skin tone. I personally do not believe it is absolutely necessary to have privileged allies standing up for others without privilege.

    Read More

  • Barbara W. Tuchman's 'Persumption Of Consumption'

    1094 Words  | 3 Pages

    Not all people can be rich. According to the article “The Treadmill of Consumption”, Robert says that “Life is a game. Money is how we keep score”. That is what some people think about real life, and that is wrong, because real life isn’t a game. It is a world where you need to work and earn your money to buy things you need. Not everyone can have a big house and many cars. Everyone is different and have different jobs and salaries. Somebody is born rich, and they easily get money from their parents, but others work hard to get the place where they are now and the money that they are earning. People never know who works hard and get it easy, but in any way they want to be like them. Moreover, people forget what they have, and they just want more. In the article “All That Glitters Is Not Gold”, it says that everyone should be equal. It is true that being equal would be an easy solution for people. Most of the people earn enough money to live good and simple lives, but that is not enough for them. They look at rich people and forget about themselves. Maybe, the money that they have is plenty for them, and they don’t need to be

    Read More

  • Privilege, Power, and Difference

    2519 Words  | 6 Pages

    In the beginning of the year I entered this class with a very sheltered and ignorant view of current and past events. Through time and sociological evolution I have begun to see things in a different light. The development of my ability, to look at something or some kind of situation, lets me use the sociological terms in such a manner to relate them to micro and macro problems in society. This started with the assigned readings of the class; the aim was to decipher the messages the authors were presenting. The goal was then to dig deeper and use my experiences to help myself understand the concepts throughout the course. "The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited." Plutarch (46-120 CE--common era) I was no longer supposed to retain knowledge on a factual basis but to observe the problems and challenge my own thoughts, values, and beliefs. Challenging these aspects lights the fire that creates the ability to use working sociological terms in my analyses. Through my analyses of the authors in the course I developed questions about the particular readings that we were assigned. The questions I present from these authors are on the basis of learning and seeing the macro picture from micro events. The authors that we read from were: Allan G. Johnson, James W. Loewen, Jonathan Kozol, David Nibert, Arnold Arluke, Clinton R. Sanders, and Elie Wiesel. From each one of these authors we are able to relate a theme of sociology to what is happening in their books, which results in the discussion questions.

    Read More

  • Essay On Privilege In America

    615 Words  | 2 Pages

    As a member of the dominant race in America, I know that I possess certain unearned privileges that allow me to be more successful overall. I was raised with the mindset that racism doesn't affect me because I am white. The U.S. education system taught me about my racial and ethnic history, but it is likely that my classmates of different races could not say the same. I learned about racism in school but not to view whites as privileged or degrading towards subordinate groups. My group was never seen at fault for oppression or took any responsibility for it. Myself, nor my peers, were ever seen or viewed as unfairly advantaged or privileged. I grew up under the impression that any person could achieve what they wanted if they simply worked hard

    Read More

  • Analysis of Economic Inequality In "Ill Fares The Land" and "Justice"

    1130 Words  | 3 Pages

    Economic inequality is ingrained in our society. Because of this fact, many would argue that “that’s just how it is,” but in reality this is not how a community is suppose to function. As Michael Sandel writes in his book Justice, “As inequality deepens, rich and poor live increasingly separate lives.” Sandel makes an excellent point. As economic divisions, such as the ones present in the United States, worsen, the classes diverge on every level. Wealthy people attend different schools, purchase luxury cars, and live in gated communities. Meanwhile, the poor live in squalor, use public transportation, and attend failing schools. Aside from the lack of a quality education making it harder to escape poverty, the poor are from birth at a disadvantage to those on the other side of the economic scale. The United States is not a land of guaranteed equality of result, that is...

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby and Today

    1573 Words  | 4 Pages

    Society today is split in many different ways: the smart and the dumb, the pretty and the ugly, the popular and the awkward, and of course the rich and the poor. This key difference has led to many areas of conflict among the population. The rich and the poor often have different views on issues, and have different problems within their lives. Moral decay and materialism are two issues prevalent among the wealthy, while things such as socio-economic class conflict and the American dream may be more important to those without money. Ethics and responsibilities are an area of thought for both classes, with noblesse oblige leaning more towards the wealthy.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Low Class In America By Gregory Mantsios

    955 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... that they affect one another. A person who lives by a lower income will not have that mines and chances of become wealthy. A person in the other spectrum, which is born into a higher class, will most likely stay wealth. This leads to an endless cycle of generations staying within the working class realm. The likely hood of a person moving up a class is rare but it does exist. People need to be pushed and have a drive to keep going and to keep trying. That is why we are told we have an equal chance in life so we can all strive for better even though in reality we do not all have an equal chance. But nonetheless people should try to become successful even if they never make it in life because a life without purpose, goals, or ambitions is a meaningless life. As humans we need a reason to live, another day for people to take advantage and make the best of it.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Class

    1222 Words  | 3 Pages

    Class affects the experiences around us-how we grow up, the people we associate with, the schools we attend, our health, and our opportunities in life. Those who grow up in the upper class have the opportunity to attend the best schools, have plenty of food to eat, associate with what society deems the “best” people. The underclass, or the poor, often have a poor education, are on welfare, and are deemed the undesirables of society.

    Read More

  • The Meaning of Respect

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    In conclusion respect is wrapped around our day to day lives. A famous philosopher once said “Respect is showing acknowledgement for some ones superiority in a certain field.” You can’t buy, demand, or force people to respect you but you can respect others in order for them to respect you. What people do not understand is that if we use common sense we would be respecting ourselves, respecting others, and respecting property all the time. Respecting yourself, others, and property might not be easy to do but it does have great rewards if you just do it.

    Read More

  • Sociology: Privilege

    1154 Words  | 3 Pages

    1. (a) Privilege is defined as a favor or right granted to some people, but not to everyone.

    Read More

  • Essay On Income Inequality

    1524 Words  | 4 Pages

    Income inequality continues to increase in today’s world, especially in the United States. Income inequality means the unequal distribution between individuals’ assets, wealth, or income. In the Twilight of the Elites, Christopher Hayes, a liberal journalist, states the inequality gap between the rich and the poor are increasing widening, and there need to have things done - tax the rich, provide better education - in order to shortening the inequality gap. America is a meritocratic country, which means that everybody has equal opportunity to be successful regardless of their class privileges or wealth. However, equality of opportunity does not equal equality of outcomes. People are having more opportunities to find a better job, but their incomes are a lot less compared to the top ten percent rich people. In this way, the poor people will never climb up the ladder to high status and become millionaires. Therefore, the government needs to increase all the tax rates on rich people in order to reduce income inequality.

    Read More

  • Advantages And Disadvantages Of The American Dream

    914 Words  | 2 Pages

    Money is an essential part of life where every people can satisfy whatever they need and every person in America has a chance to find a job. However, some of the people in the country wanted to go on with their life freely by being a part of a welfare. Furthermore, distribution of wealth is a huge demand of every citizen. Everyone today is trying to look down for every people in the lower class, as they did not give any benefit to the country, waiting for the benefits that they will receive from the government. For instance, when most lower class people have gone through a financial crisis due to overspending, insufficient fund or pay for their work to support themselves and/or their family. The example shows that lower class people made the economy of the country unstable, however, the middle class and the higher class is at fault as well. Furthermore, even though the benefit of that the lower class received is from the middle class, the middle class as well benefits from the higher class. To sum up, every class is at fault towards giving the country’s economy a positive

    Read More

More about Privilege vs. Underprivileged: Important Things in Life

Open Document