The Theme of Poverty

Introduction

Poverty reigns today tracing its history from long time ago even before capitalism creeped into the minds of the people. It is a neglected scourge in the society, as the governments fight other pandemics neglecting it due to its normalization. Its effects are far reaching though negligible as per the demands of the capitalist mind. However, in the pre-capitalism era, it was considered as a problem of the entire community, but this was buried since the wake of the capitalistic era. Communalism had a way of saving the poor from feeling the pinch of poverty, but this is forgotten history in the contemporary world. Due to abject poverty and lack of anything to hold on as property in the society, people are compelled to do some things for survival. Notably, some of the things done due to the forces of necessity are voluntary while others are forceful. This brings us to the manifestations of poverty in the world. For one to be said to be poor, they must exhibit some signs, either positive or negative. This paper focuses on two articles in which the manifestation of the theme of poverty in the society is vivid. In “Mr. and Mrs. Prince” the theme of poverty is dominantly unveiled by the element of slavery. Also, in Phillis Wheitley’s writings, the element of slavery is mentioned to unveil the scourge of poverty during her time. (Thesis statement)

Mr. and Mrs. Prince(Article 1)( How an extraordinary eighteenth century family moved out of slavery_Discussing poverty may not be extremely exhaustive without mentioning the dire effects it has to the society. The society in this case is represented by the poor people who feel the pain of poverty directly. Earlier, it was noted that a capitalist mind does not care about the economic welfare of the other, but self-gratification and development. In this article, there is a revelation of how poverty presents itself through the story of the young man by the name Terry. His story is significant as it brings to light the nature of poverty. It provides revelation that the state of poverty is not a constant state as it comes and goes. Also, its coming and going is uncertain to the victim it befalls. For instance, it dawned to Terry at the time when he expected the least of it. (Significance and function of theme)

Terry’s poor state and the unfolding of events due to his state brings out the real picture of the grotesque contemporary world. There is no mercy on him when he lost his job as a teacher and could, therefore, not pay his loans. A communalist community could have had options like, well wishers taking the burden of paying off his loans, but in the capitalist world, the only option was to put his land, big house, sawmill and iron works to sale. Despite that they were securities against the loan he had taken, taking the named property renders him more vulnerable and poorer.(Explanation) Poverty posits the contemporary world as a cruel world where the troubles of someone only matter to themselves, as long as the other party is comfortable and undisturbed. Poverty is presented as a cultural symbol of capitalism.(Significance) For instance, the merchant who puts Terry’s property on sale due to his loan default is a representation of what the entire world merchants do( Mr. & Mrs. Prince 66). Modern-world banks seem to have copied this culture from the 1700s merchants by auctioning peoples’ products when they can’t settle their loans. It is only the poor in the society who suffer this fate of cruelty from money lenders of all levels. It is a cruel but legal act to sell of someone’s property, and this uncovers the world’s inconsiderate culture. The theme symbolizes a culture of being inconsiderate

Comparing the time of the events in Terry’s life as in”Mr. and Mrs. Prince, there is typically no or negligible difference in how the world treats the poor.(this explains that theme does not shift with time) Poverty is not welcome by anyone, but its existence in the homes proves inevitable. The element off selling off the debtor’s property held as securities, witnessed in the 1700s, is referred to as auctioning today. A joke could be made that the only change in the two times is the naming of the cruel actions, while retaining the cruelty. So unfortunate is it that most of the people who suffered the fate of poverty together with its fruits are the African Americans. In “Mr. and Mrs. Prince” there is a vivid mention of slavery, a vice which was basically imposed to the people of color (blacks) owing to their poverty which made them vulnerable. According to research, it is only the poor African Americans that fell for the trap of slavery. This is absolute denial of someone’s freedom and equality rights. (Explains how it affects the rights of African Americans)

In “Mr. and Mrs. Prince” the writer makes a subtle choice of the word “Desperate” to deeply explain the state at which this poor Terry found himself in. Poverty had taken the best of him that he had to borrow more and more money for his survival. His desperate state also led him to selling off all his other property through any means. Despite his being desperate and poor, crying for help, only three people came in to help.(Explains the relevance of the choice of the author’s words)

In Phillis Wheatley’s (Article 2) The Collected Works of Phillis Wheatley) poverty is largely presented in the society, from the cruelty that people go through as seen in the earlier article, to slavery as seen in the writings of Phillis Wheatley. Poverty is the major contributor to the rise of slavery. An understanding of what is implied by slavery substantiates the branding of poverty as one of the propelling factors behind the rise and prosperity of slavery.(Significance and function of theme)

A mere stare at Phillis Wheatley’s narration of how comfortable she feels in the care of her master could cause oversight to the actual message she sends about the effects of poverty. She is African American, living in the home of a white master in England. Her stating that she stops seeing the white people in the light of spirits sends a signal to reckon of what must have conspired for her to develop such an impression about the white men. She states that her fear for the white men has faded away and that she looks up to them as role models, who she could emulate( Phillis 126). All her recordings point to the fact that, the initial nature of the whites’ intrusion into her life was horrific. She is basically poor owing to the fact that she is owned by a master. Simply put, she is a slave of her master who unexpectedly treats her well. (Evidence to the significance and function)

Poverty functions as an easy route to the manipulation of poor people by the rich. (Significance and function)According to research, the whites did not just entirely force the poor blacks into slavery, but they promised them pay and better lives. However, it turned out that they were just bluffing and the results of it were the opposite of their promises. People died in the slave farms due to the harsh treatment they underwent. Food was highly rationed, while work was maximized. Due to their poverty, the slaves could not travel back to their homes or fight back in resistance as they lacked equally sophisticated weapons as those of the whites. Surrender was the only fate to submit to, and the writer (Phillis) uses her obedience and submission to her survival.

In the case of Phillis Wheatley, poverty poses as a political tool, used by the government and the wealthy individuals to control the forces of labor and production. The rate of production of the slave laborers in the farms could be likened to that of the modern world machines. The governments used labor force from the slaves to maximize production. Poverty of the slaves acted as the tool of the government’s economic prosperity, thus deriving political power ultimately (Foster 761-766.

). However, in this case, the manifestation of the theme slightly changes over time. During the time of the writer, slaves were literary owned as the masters’ assets, but in the contemporary world, this is not the case.(This explains the way the theme changes or not change with time) Some sources maintain that the poverty of some nations renders them slaves of the rich and nations, though taking a different form of slavery. One incidence of slavery in the modern world is where rich nations give difficult-to pay loans to the poor nations and in turn come in to exhaust their valuable minerals like petroleum and gold as a way of paying the loan (Lipton et al., 2551-2657). This is a form of civilized slavery, though most nations deny, but just committing to sophistry. From the writer’s experience, poverty put the African Americas in bad positions where they were deprived of their freedom and equality.(Explains how African Americans were deprived of  their freedom and rights) Slavery conditions denied the people the freedom of expression. They had resentful feelings but not allowed to voice them out as they were threatened to be killed. In her writings she chooses the word” negro” (Explains the significance of choice of word) to refer to herself as an African American. This choice of the word is an emphasis of the prejudice that the blacks were facing while in the hands of the whites. No other name could suit them and “negro” meant a person of the lowest state in the community.

Poverty is a long-lived pandemic from history to date, manifesting itself in different ways such as submission to slavery as for the case of Phillis. It is used by the heartless in the community to the oppression of the poor, and just like in history, the modern world exploits the poor to their destruction.