Part III: The One Percent & Part IV: Poverty and the Undercl…

This week’s topic focuses on the widening gap between the haves and the haves not. The idea of meritocracy consumes America. Meritocracy is a system in which rewards are distributed based on merit. This idea transcends race, class, and gender. Karl Marx, the economist, states that there are two classes of people: those who own the goods and production, the bourgeoisie, and those who sell that labor for wages, the proletariat. Your reading states that mobility depends on several variables, such as ethnicity, class status, gender, and location, rather than merit. The “good life” comes with a price. People chase the “good life,” yet many leave feeling less secure and satisfied.

Write a 500-600 word paper based on the selected reading for Parts III and IV. You may refer to other readings in the book. Please use your text only. This is worth 100 points. Use APA citation for your references. Your title and reference pages are not included in the word count.

Base your writing on the following questions:

• How has the culture of elites transformed over time?
• How does the cultural transformation of elite society impact the resistance of inequality?
• What obstacles make escaping poverty challenging?
• In your opinion, do poor and working-class families display different value systems than other segments of society? Why or why not?

Submit your paper in this space for grading.

Part III: The One Percent/Part IV: Poverty and the Underclass

Feb 15-22 (Paper Due Mar 01)

The Power Elite/Mills, p.79

Low-Income Urban Fathers/Edin, Nelson, Reed, p. 114

The Rise of Extreme Poverty in the United States/Shaefer and Edin, p. 126

Being Poor, Black, and American/Wilson, p. 133

Incarceration and Social Inequality/Western and Pettit,p.163