Do social classes owe anything to each other? Essay

Submitted By alinitamaria95
Words: 1551
Pages: 7
Open Document
Do social classes really owe each other anything? From early Democracies like Sparta it was quite clear that inequality was a huge issue for many. This is because humans are simply flawed, and greedy. They cannot handle when someone has more than them, some humans even believe that everyone should be equal. In a capitalist economy like the one in the United Sates this idea of equality is almost impossible, because capitalism needs a working class to do the “dirty work”. The problem with this is that inequality among classes creates factions, and conflict among people. This brings us back to the idea of how to lower tension between the social classes, and the fact that maybe social classes do owe each other something. Andrew Carnegie presents in the “Gospel of Wealth” some very good ideas of how this moral responsibility could be enforced, and even why it is that the rich have this responsibility over the poor.
Going back to the example of Sparta, which was a classical democracy. From the very beginning it was very clear in this society that equality is very important. For Lycurgus this meant that no one was above any other person in the land, the women were respected, and in his eyes this form of equality created virtuous people. Regardless of this form of extreme complete equality, where there was no exaggerated luxury, Lycurgus set the right path for future ideas. When one thinks about it, even though a lot of the people in Sparta didn’t like the idea of not being able to be as rich as they wanted to, Lycurgus’s laws maintained a general

peace and unity in the land. Again, human nature is very flawed, and it is normal for human beings to want more and more.
Now in capitalism some are at an advantage, and many are at a disadvantage. This difference between people is what Madison argued caused factions. Of coarse factions will always be present because people will always disagree, but for the purpose of this paper social classes seem like a faction of there own. In which the rich have their priorities, the poor have their worries, and the working class has their struggles. These separate groups of individuals are all more or less driven by the same passions. As Madison stated a way of fitting factions was by eliminating the causes and controlling it’s effects. Although when one thinks about it, the tension between these social classes is because of the inequality that exists within them. It is obvious that you cannot destroy the liberty of the rich simply because they were fortunate enough to be wealthy, like Madison mentions this would be going against all democratic claims. The problem continues as to how we can create a society that will be better “oiled” and more understanding of each other.
The different classes or factions as referred to above must first understand that capitalism needs competitive markets where different classes will compete for the resources available. If capitalism doesn’t have these then it simply will not function. It is true people don’t tolerate the idea that one man is better than another, but they still fully understand that this is still very possible, this meaning that all men are not created equal. In order for the social classes to respect each other more, capitalism would need to rebel from the negative connotation that Karl Marx gave it. He described capitalism as “a socio-economic system…that uses exploitation of the labor force” this simply means that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. In fact Henry George even said, “As wealth increases, so does poverty.” Even though it is true that one has the responsibility to take care of one self, there should be some sort of moral duty and moral responsibilities that the classes owe to each other. We will get as close to a perfect society as soon as the community is able to respect one another, show compassion, and even appreciation.
Continuing with the idea of moral responsibility and the classes owing each other
Show More

Related Documents: Do social classes owe anything to each other? Essay

Student High School Essay

Seawell (ORIGINAL) It has often been pointed out that women could not, with justice, ask to legislate upon matters of war and peace, as no woman can do military duty; but this point may be extended much further. No woman can have any practical knowledge of shipping and navigation, of the work of trainmen on railways, of mining, or of many other subjects of the highest importance. Their legislation, therefore, would not probably be intelligent, and the laws they devised for the betterment of sailors…

Words 919 - Pages 4

japans sports Essay

kept the country economy grow and faster then anything iv ever seen. Deng was a great leader for China it was it need. Many saw that he was doing more capitalism idea more and more. It looked as he was going for freedom where anyone could get rich. My workers started to rebel and wanted to go to the Square to see if the Freedom could be reached. I told my workers to get back to work this idea of freedom was silly and cant happen. I agree with the social class that have been coming out. More people…

Words 2005 - Pages 9

Sociology: Sociology and Middle Class Essay

“Educational success and failure are about the social class and gender of pupils/students than anything else”. Critically discuss this statement. In today’s society educational success and failure vary dependent on different social groups, for example, social class and gender reflect different levels of educational attainment. Research shows that children of parents in higher social classes are more likely to achieve high grades in key stage tests and at GCSE. Indeed sixteen year olds whose…

Words 2368 - Pages 10

Theories Of The World-Systematic Perspectives In Identifying Patterns Of How Things Work

identifying patterns of how things work. Theories build upon one another. Interpretive frameworks intended to impose order on a phenomena. Theory and research go hand in hand. Social theory is unusual because it’s not obvious but once pointed out it’s blatant. We view things as second nature. The theorists wrote about the social world that envelops us and frames various beliefs and behaviors. “The discovery of society.” There is a coherence and order in the way society works that matters. September…

Words 7937 - Pages 32

French Revolution and Napoleonic Era Essay

Revolution and the Napoleonic Era Origins of the French Revolution Historians of the French Revolution have sought to explain its origins by examining the social, political, and cultural landscape of the eighteenth century. Among the factors leading up to the outbreak of Revolution in 1789, scholars have emphasized divisions in the social order, the spread of Enlightenment ideas that emphasized liberty and equality, and the economic crises that occurred late in the century. The traditional three…

Words 8219 - Pages 33

Essay about Student Hand Book

LS Education Group and wish you every success with in your studies. I hope that you will find your classes interesting and rewarding. I can assure you that we will strive to provide you with the highest possible standard of tuition, support and advice. This is our commitment to you. In return, I hope that you will strive to achieve and maintain a high standard of performance by attending your classes, contributing in lessons and producing work of good quality according to the brief. All of your modules’…

Words 9960 - Pages 40

Essay On Corporate Governance

Forces and Exchanges 6. Role of Other /Stakeholders (Unions, Banks) Board of Directors- Size: Determined by charter and bylaws Average for publicly-held, large firm is 11 directors Average for small/medium private firms is 7-8 directors Board of Directors- Members: Inside directors: Officers or executives employed by the board’s corporation “Management directors”- CEO, CFO, etc. Usually 3 inside directors Outside directors: Individuals or Executives from other firms who are not employees…

Words 4799 - Pages 20

Politics: Human Rights and States Essay

this in Europe are Catalonia and the Bask countries. South Sudan was created due to internal conflict in Sudan. Lots of oil sources in the south. Here is an example where a new country has been created through intervention from the UN but also by other countries to create a peace agreement leading to a division of Sudan. There is still a conflict going on particularly as the oil resources straddle the boundaries between the north and south. Also tribal/ethnic differences. Due to decolonization as…

Words 7377 - Pages 30

Chapter 19 Notes Essay

AP US History Chapter 19 Notes Packingtown, Chicago, Illinois (I aimed for their hearts and hit their stomachs.) Packingtown: adjoining the Union Stockyards, center of Chicago meatpacking, and full of the odor of the industry. The various ethnic groups here—Irish, Germans, Bohemians, Poles, Lithuanians, and Slovaks—rarely intermixed (despite being nearly all Roman Catholic), except in the saloon; saloons hosted weddings and dances, providing meeting places for trade unions and fraternities, and…

Words 5288 - Pages 22

Essay on Hershey Food Corporation

firm-valuation aspects, however, many of the video supplements can be skipped, allowing the case to be taught effectively in a single 80-minute period. This note provides outlines for both a one-day and a two-day format, together with study questions for each. See Exhibit TN1 for a summary of the video segments suggested for both formats. The “Introduction” video segment is particularly effective when used before the students read the case. The director of the Hershey Community Archives describes…

Words 7395 - Pages 30