Analysis Of Created Equal By Milton Friedman

Davis and More state that this is fair as everyone finds their place in a society which offers different levels of rewards, thus inequality is legitimate. They state that since there is value consensus on the relative merit of certain occupations and the salaries they command, inequality does not cause conflict, but is seen as legitimate by all and is an accepted part of society. Talcott Parsons agreed with this and stated that inequality is inevitable, legitimate and functional for everyone. The strength of this theory is that it allows inequality to be linked to talent which is unequally distributed.

Imagine having a handicap everywhere you go and having a friend who doesn’t have a handicap, because they’re less skilled. Does this make it seem equal?  Well, it seem like the story “Harrison Bergeron” will answer that, depending on what you think is equal.  In this case, I find that everyone was not truly equal in “Harrison Bergeron.”

The challenge to this formula is the fact that every person has a different viewpoint on the same situation or puts more emphasis on inputs and outputs that are important to themselves due to the fact, “the workplace is an important forum in which people experience the joys and miseries of fairness and unfairness in the exchange of their talents, efforts, and ideas for economic and noneconomic benefits (Carpenter, Bauer, Erodgogan & Short, 2013).” For example, well-educated individuals may look at the fact that they attended an Ivy League University and graduated with a business degree and feel as though they are entitled special treatment or pay due to their accomplishments even though their quality of work is only adequate (Pinder, 1998).

For example, in the article “Life’s Not Fair” written by Mike Myatt, he explains how “people have overcome poverty, drug addiction, incarceration, abuse, divorce, mental illness, victimization, and virtually every challenge known to man.” Regardless of the challenges people face, they had the character to choose contribution over complaint and in that, is where you get fairness. Those who may not have gone through as much and may be living a normal life, may complain about how they may have not wanted the color bike that they got. People today’s day do not realize how others may go through more traumatic periods and end up not having the most amazing life. In reality, those instances aren’t considered fairness but, it all depends on the choices

Rather, Equity, and the sense of fairness which commonly underpins motivation, is dependent on the comparison a person makes between his or her reward/investment ratio with the ratio enjoyed (or suffered) by others considered to be in a similar situation”(Balancing Employee Inputs and Outputs).

This is important because inequality causes unrest and brings about interminable turmoil which can eventually lead to a collapse of a regime or a state. If every human being is given equal opportunities then the outcome after those opportunities were presented, whether it was success of failure, fully rests upon the individual’s shoulders. In case of failure, the government or any other individual would not be held accountable.

Continuing with the idea of people believing that it is unfair how the upper class has more advantages in life, this bring us to the “meritocratic model” which is the model that “recognizes inequities and tries to correct for socioeconomic disadvantages” says Arora (Arora 87). This is the system that is related with the United States (Arora 87) and the reason that most people believe that this model is fair is because people with low incomes or with fewer benefits are offered programs such as the Headstart program and subsidized healthcare. Doing this would help out the needy and put everyone at somewhat of an equal place in life. However thinking deeply into the idea of these programs, they are not entirely fair from everyone’s point of view. For example, some people are born with something that Arora refers to as the “natural lottery” which is described as “people who are born with certain talents and attributes- for instance, oratory, musical acumen, physical beauty and health, athleticism, good memory and

Imagine a place where there are no decisions to make throughout the day. In this place, everyone’s career gets chosen for them, and their hopes, dreams, and aspirations are given to them. There are none of those difficult life decisions to make because they will be made for everybody. Now despite all these seemingly terrible things, we do get something great from all the sacrifices: equality. In this world everyone is equal; no one person smarter, more athletic, more talented, or better than any other. Everyone in this place completely equal, and all thanks to the government, the authorities, the higher-ups, “the man,” or whatever these enforcers’ wish to be called. The world of Harrison Bergeron functions like this. Now while it may seem

Social inequality is the reality of unequal chances and rewards for diverse social positions or categories

Every day people wake up, get ready for the day, and go to work or school. By the end of the day, these individuals may end up failing a test, get demoted, receive a raise in their salaries, or get selected as employee of the month. The answer to whether or not these achievements and failures are a product of these people’s merit and effort are often questioned. Looking at the American society, there are many issues that occur which keep members of society from being able to say that these achievements and failures were due to their merit and effort. The issues that are able to support this idea that American society is unfair and that an individual’s fate is not largely a product of his or her merit and effort are income trends, the gender

Bowles and Gintis also argue that in order to prevent rebellion from those disadvantaged by the inequalities of capitalism, it is necessary to produce ideologies that explain and justify inequality as fair, natural and inevitable. If people think inequality is justified then they are less likely to challenge the capitalist system. According to Bowles and Gintis, the education system plays a key role in producing such ideologies. They describe the education system as a giant ‘myth making machine’ and focus on how education promotes the ‘myth of meritocracy’. Meritocracy refers to a system where everyone has an equal opportunity to achieve, where rewards are based on ability and effort. This means that those who gain the highest rewards and status deserve it because they are the most able and hardworking. Bowles and Gintis argue that meritocracy does not actually exist. Evidence showed that the main factor determining whether or not someone has a high income is their family and class background, not their ability or educational achievement. By

What would happen to society if all individuals were equal? Not in the sense of equal rights, freedom or benefits, but equal in intelligence levels, beauty and athleticism. Well, In “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., this is how society is run. The gifted, strong and beautiful are handicapped for being one of a kind and made to “fit in” to society. With society pushing towards equality, this shows the reality of all individuals living the same lives. Vonnegut Jr. uses the Bergeron family show equality is not all it’s hyped up to be. People are unable to be creative, show their true self’s and unable to continue the growth to become a better society. Individual talent and gifts are needed because it maintains our identity, to

All men are created equal – that is, unless you subscribe to Andrew Carnegies ideas put forth in the 1889 essay “The Gospel of Wealth.” Carnegie (2010) wrote that some people are “unworthy” while others are “the highest type of man, the best and most valuable of all that humanity has yet accomplished” (p. 395). Carnegie’s (2010) belief in social Darwinism and “survival of the fittest” (p. 393) seemed to convince him that because he had achieved wealth, he was the most fit or qualified to determine the best distribution for it. However, Carnegie’s ideas on wealth distribution do not address many

In the short story's The Lottery and Harrison Berguron both have similarities about their society's equality and unfairness, however Harrison Berguron is most effective in achieving the desired outcome because the author conveys the allusion of equality, heavy limitations and similarities towards the individual.

Aristotle once said “The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal.”