One of the factors that create an imbalance of power within a society is a person's socioeconomic status. Often people with low socioeconomic status are undervalued in society. This imbalance can cause issues with the feelings of security and confidence. Also opportunities and choices can be limited for some people, but expanded to others. People often identify with roles of different socioeconomic status groups, based on their own socioeconomic status, and this can limit creativity and the potential of groups or individuals. If the world believes that people can go from “rags to riches” in America, then there should be an opportunity for all socioeconomic groups. Candy and Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez have jobs that are undervalued by society which results in them having less power and being stuck in dead end jobs. For example in the book Of Mice and Men, Candy is the Swamper at the farm where George and Lennie work. He has that job because of his injured hand. Candy has little influence over the actions that happen on that farm because the people don’t …show more content…
In Of Mice and Men, George and Lennie have a goal to buy a farm with the money that they have saved up, but their plans fall through when Lennie kills the wife of the boss's son. This goal is motivation for all of Lennie's actions because he repeats “I can still tend the rabbits, George”(Steinbeck 65) many times throughout the story. Junior has a similar story in the book Absolute true story of a part time Indian. When his dog is sick Junior has to kill the dog because his family doesn’t have the money to take the dog to the vet. He later says “But we reservation Indians don't get to realize our dreams. We don't get those chances. Or choices. We're just poor. That's all we are” (Alexie 2.52) about dreams. This shows even in more modern times people still need money to be able to follow their
All individuals have different paths and life goals. It is true that individuals may start out with more advantages than others, but it should not be used as a limitation to others. Mantsios lists several realities discussing the different levels of opportunity for Americans. In these realities, he describes that wealth and our economic status is important in order to reach success. In one of his realities, Mantsios discussed the privileges within inheritance laws stating: “…Americans do not have an equal opportunity to succeed, […]. Inheritance laws provide built-in privileges to the offspring of the wealthy and add to the likelihood of their economic success while handicapping the chances for everyone else” (392). It appears as if he only believes success comes out of extreme wealth, and if someone is not, they’re disadvantaged and will ultimately be less successful than others. Mantsios talks only in extremes; he discusses the very rich, the very poor and how each affects each other, while simultaneously arguing that there is little to no chance for those in the middle or lower class to grow and become successful. In contrast, Jay-Z discusses how he did not let the obstacles he faced, or his economic status limit him. He is quoted saying, “don’t let [society] diminish your accomplishment or dim your shine” (Packer 361). Here, he is taking a much more positive approach, stating that individuals should not limit their success based on their social class. Class should not be a tool used to limit individuals and their success. To say that an individual born into the upper class will just coast through life without hardship is untrue. In the same respect, to say that an individual born into lower or middle class will have no chance at success, is just as untrue. We all face different levels of hardship in life, therefore condemning an individual because they have a leg up or down in
In the novel “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck, people are portrayed to not work hard enough to achieve long-term goals or dreams that they have set for themselves. This idea is shown multiple times throughout the story. It starts with Lennie and George wanting to purchase their own farm, to do this they will need to make enough money to get the farm started. They show no effort to make progress on this dream of theirs, they spend all the money they make on women and beer. Lennie’s dream is to tend to and take care of the rabbits on the farm they hope to one day own, his problem is that he has a problem with animals. When Lennie pets an animal he usually ends up killing it, and he makes no effort to show a little more care for the poor creatures. Curley’s wife also had a dream to become a movie star but did not because she decided to marry Curley instead. People now are very similar if not different at all. Today people still of course have dreams and long term goals that they give up on or don’t want to work hard enough to achieve because they are so worried about the future that ...
Growing up in The United States, people are given this idea of an American Dream. Almost every child is raised to believe they can become and do anything they want to do, if one works hard enough. However, a majority of people believe that there is a separation of class in American society. Gregory Mantsios author of “Class in America-2009” believes that Americans do not exchange thoughts about class division, although most of people are placed in their own set cluster of wealth. Also political officials are trying to get followers by trying to try to appeal to the bulk of the population, or the middle class, in order to get more supporters. An interesting myth that Mantsios makes in his essay is how Americans don’t have equal opportunities.
Several characters in the novel Of Mice and Men are presented with additional obstacles throughout the book. Whether because of color, sex, or disabilities, John Steinbeck purposefully did this to illustrate oppression. Of Mice and Men explores the
he has. It is a dead mouse, which Lennie kept to pet with his thumb as
and has no family and the only old man on the ranch. We are told him
“As a child who had dropped in from a parallel universe of purchased educational opportunity and order, I had no idea why such difference existed, nor of its consequences” (Ford 2012). Wealth and status play a major role in power and with power comes great opportunities. For example; a family that comes from a rural or remote area, will not have the same resources as one who lives in a more suburban area, where resources are in arms reach. Someone who lives in rural areas,
Through George, Steinbeck establishes two themes of the story early: loneliness and male companionship. Later in the story, it is shown how all of the workers on the ranch besides Lennie and George travel alone. Because of this, all of the characters in the story exhibit some sort of loneliness throughout the story, and it becomes a recurring theme. All of the other workers on the ranch feel jealous of the relationship that Lennie and George have and also want that type of male companionship.
Society has never been perfect, and it never will be, however most people have certainly tried to make the world a better place. Dr. Hannon is a person who works with hoarders to help them let go of all their strange collections that do not help the hoarder in any way. However, society in the 1930s was not the same, and people were not as ready to help others as they are now. The American Society in the 1930s was intolerant to difference because people were not ready to help people who weren’t the same as them.
Human nature reveals itself in inconspicuous ways, whether good or bad. The era of the Great Depression portrayed the cruelties thousands of American citizens saw in themselves as their lives plummeted to unimaginable lows. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck tells the story of two migrant workers struggling through the effects of the worst economic panic in the history of the United States. Steinbeck’s application of foreshadowing, characterization, and symbolism offers a deeper insight into the dark side of human nature.
America has always seen as the symbolic ideal country of prosperity and equality. This is the reason why people come to America hoping to become successful, but in matter of fact we all have an equal plan field to be successful is not entirely true. For there are social boundaries that keep use limited based upon our own status. Whether we are born of a low class or of a high class the possibility of economic mobility in a sense are predetermined by two factors of social class and success together they both affecting one’s another opportunity of success. In order to achieve success, we must know that it is made up of two main concepts and they are fortune and position. But when a person is limited by their class prohibiting them to achieve success, the point of trying is meaningless. However, there is a way to break the construct that keep groups stuck in the lower-class and is through education. Education gives more opportunities for success to the individuals and since education is very important, culture and the government should focus more directly upon this to reach economic stability. Class standing directly affects economic success in America by limiting a person’s chance of success however; one can overcome by focusing more upon education and culture.
The American dream can be achieved by education, opportunity, and hard work, but is this is not a reality, but just merely a dream. Opportunity in American feels as if everyone has a fair chance of being successful. In America, it seems that the idea of everyone has a fair chance to opportunity. But this is not the case, in Gregory Mantsios essay “Class In America-2012” he talks about how there are many myths that are wide spread about the differing classes in America. Then he further goes on disproving the widely proclaim myths with stats that show in real world the gap between the wealthy one percent of the population owning 36 percent of the capital in comparison to the 99 percent of Americans in the U.S. For the purpose of this essay, the
Imagine living in a world where people are working incredibly physically demanding jobs for only 25 cents per hour. Where women are treated like objects and 60% of the workforce is unemployed. That was the setting in John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men. The two main characters are Lennie and George, and they are field workers in California. They travel together, which most men moving around for jobs didn’t do. Lennie and George were close friends and had plans to own a house and live off the land together. But in their time working they faced a lot on inequalities in society like women not being treated equally, the disabled being treated like small children, and the poor being exploited for their labor. I feel that the reader can learn a valuable lesson in this book how to not be manipulated and exploited as well as teaching that one needs to look at situations from another point of view before they act or judge.
It is a common misconception for many people that America, the land of milk and honey, is a place of great material wealth for all. In a 1959 New York Times article, it is written that, “Hopes based on this kind of reasoning are, we suspect, an illusion and an insult to [...] intelligence” (Unknown 2). John Steinbeck demonstrates a weakening economy in Of Mice and Men in Lennie and George’s inability to buy their own house, which is not an exorbitant dream, and the fact neither Candy nor Crooks can afford to leave their current, dissatisfactory situation. In the novel it is written, “‘I lost my hand right here on this ranch. That's why they give me a job swampin'. An' they give me two hunderd an' fifty dollars 'cause I los' my hand. An' I got fifty more saved up right in the bank, right now. Tha's three hunderd, and I got fifty more comin' the end a the month. Tell you what-’ He leaned forward eagerly.’S'pose I went in with you guys. Tha's three hunderd an' fifty bucks I'd put in. I ain't much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How'd that be’” (Steinbeck 29)? The only substantial money that Candy has is what he was given when he lost his hand, and he only got a job for the same reason. Jobs at that time were so sought-after that Candy had to lose his hand to get a steady one. As previously stated, an increase of the
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.