The Effects Of Poverty In The Book Hillbilly Elegy

Persistence, resilience, and grit- three traits that I believe are often the most sought after by professionals all over the world. Developing these three skills can be a difficult process, however when all three are present in a person, that person can become a valuable asset for any company or business. In JD Vance’s memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, we see how he develops these important traits throughout his life. Through his struggles and victories, we the reader learn that no matter the situation you are placed in, you can succeed if you develop 3 important skills- those being persistence, resilience, and grit.

In the Rusty Belt of America there a minority group of people whose income level has surpassed the poverty line. Inside the state of Ohio lies the poorest white American which describes themselves as hillbillies as they reside in the eastern Kentucky. In his personal analysis of culture in crisis of hillbillies, J.D. Vance tries to explain, in his memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, what goes on in the lives of people as the economy goes south in a culture that is culturally deceptive, family deceptive, and in a community, whose doctrine of loyalty is heavily guarded. Like every poor Scot-Irish hillbilly in his community, Vance came from being poor, like the rest of his kind, to be a successful Law graduate from Yale Law school. As result of this transition and being the only child in his family to graduate from a highly respected intuition in the country, Vance thought out to analyze the ostensible reason of why many people are poor in his community.

To many Americans, poverty is merely a synonym for ‘not rich’. Even those who understand the definition may struggle with the concept that poverty is not a distant, foreign, concern; poverty can occur in any country, region, neighborhood, and household. In a study performed by Carroll et al, 60% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement “poor people are poor because of laziness and lack of will power (2011, p. 116). In the same questionnaire, 77% of respondents felt most poor people have the ability to escape poverty without government assistance (Carroll et al, 2011, p. 117). As above facts show, despite the widespread nature of this issue those not living in poverty often have

The memoir Hillbilly Elegy, written by J.D. Vance, is the remarkable story of a young man’s challenges of growing up in poverty. The book focuses on the difficulties that come along with living in Appalachia, and the family issues that go on as well. Living in poverty introduced Vance to a world filled with toxicity and violence. This unhealthy environment caused Vance to develop a conflict within himself, making him struggle with his self-identity. In Hillbilly Elegy, Vance uses Conflict to empathize the toxicity that surrounded his family.

Poverty, a common problem in the US and yet, something that people consistently overlook. We are often unaware of the magnitude of poverty in the U.S and sometimes even disregard it. People living in destitution are at greater risk for behavioral and mental problems. Children or Teens who live in poverty are prone to poor academic achievements, become school dropouts , or grow subject to abuse or neglect. People in poverty also occasionally show signs of anxiety and depression.

Poverty is described as when you lack freedom, choices, opportunities and affection. When we are unloved and uncared/ forgotten by other we try to do provocative acts/activities to attract others attention and for them to start caring about you. A person who has nothing to eat has a greater problem compared to someone who is forgotten/unloved by others. If you don’t have food you can’t control it. This is also why multiple organizations work and collect donations just to provide money to people who need it. Due to losing you job

The authors brings a new perspective on the ability of surviving poverty and overcoming the odds. He illustrates society’s views on people who are from the Appalachia mountain area throughout the book. By reviling his accounts and struggles, he opens the eyes of the readers who view these individuals as lazy, inbreed, rednecks, buy giving them a glimpse of his life struggles. The book, Hillbilly Elegy was a simple story of a poverty-stricken boy who grew up surrounded by negativity. The author took notice of all the people, events, failures, and his surroundings and use these to help mold him into who he is today. He would use the mentorship and observation of his grandmother and later his grandfather, who would, started as a salvage

Throughout both in-class discussions, and David Shipler’s “The Working Poor: Invisible in America” we learned being poor in America is anything but easy. Even with all of our government assistance programs such as Medicaid and Welfare, many family generation after generation seem to fall below the poverty line and create a life of struggle and long way out for their families. When Shipler is explaining different families and their lac of self control in saving the little money they do earn, it makes you question if the have the know how to get out of poverty, or even in some cases even want to due to their different spending habits than successful people, falling into credit traps, and buying the un-necessary.

People living in poverty think about what their next meal is or how they are going to feed their child. Poverty makes a person mentally stress causing them to have depression. The depression then leads to drugs or alcohol which is bringing them down. “Poor black men won't support their families, won't stick by their women -- all they think about is the street, dope and liquor, women, a piece of ass, and their cars. That's all that counts” (). Poverty impacts the individual’s health because they can’t afford the healthy food because it is expensive. The individual will purchase the white bread because it is cheaper but, they know it is not that healthy. People living in poverty might not buy that many fruits and vegetables. Not eating healthy leads to being obese or other health problems. “Poverty and illness together make people much more vulnerable and needy at all stages of their lives, and even more so in old age. Mental health is often both a cause and a consequence of poverty, compromised education, vulnerability, difficulty accessing housing, health-care and employment, and lack of access to welfare, social security, and community public

“As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it—whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash” ― Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird. The theory Bryan Stevenson has applied to the justice system is extremely useful since it sheds insight on the difficult problem of poverty and racism towards many African Americans. The justice system focuses on the people with more power. The more power you have, they more advantages you get to get away with. The Ewells may not have any social power but since their white, it gives them more capability over others. Considering racism and poverty have become a monumental issue, the chances of someone believing a black person is diminishingly low.

Growing up in poverty has a significant effect on the brain. While poverty affects many aspects of the brain processing, spending patterns are impacted which affects quality of life. Occasionally, those in poverty make it out. Despite gaining a higher socioeconomic class, quality of life can still be influenced by the impact of poverty. This is because those who grew up in poverty continue their impulsive spending habits when they move into the middle-class because poverty leaves an enduring impression on the human brain.

This review is formulated with scholarly sources and references based off of poverty in America. This disclosure is approached with a value free sociological approach, and it will give insight on the social causes of poverty and the effects it has on America. Poverty is a very controversial topic. Many will assume that people living in poverty are lazy, made bad life decisions, or that they are solely the reason for their predicament however, people living in poverty would argue that their are deeper issues for it. Poverty will be deeply explained and researched from both perspectives

One psychologist named Sigmund Freud would say that poverty is explained through the unconscious mind which is scientifically known as psychoanalytic psychology. Poverty can be explained in this perspective by saying that people who do suffer from poverty have an unconscious urge for a way of thinking about a topic. Sigmund Freud would say something like that person struggles with an unconscious thought of them possibly failing in life and be a disappointment. He would find out if that person was unconsciously struggling by having them saying random answers during his test. He even would let

Poverty can lead to serious effects. Children who grow up in poverty are likely to have frequent health problems than the children who grow in better financial circumstances. For example, infants who are born into poverty have a low birth weight, and they grow up with mental or physical disabilities. Not only are they sick, but they are most likely to die before their first birthday. Children who are raised in poverty might miss school often because of their illnesses, and they have a much higher accident rate than the other children. Nearly a billion of the world’s population can’t read nor write. Poor families experience stress much more than a normal family does. They are more likely to be exposed to negative events such as illness, job loss, death of a family member, and depression. Homelessness is another effect of poverty. Homeless children are less likely to receive proper nutrition, protection and they experience more health problems. Around 1.4 million children die each year from lack of access to safe and clean water and proper nutrition. Homeless women experience a high rate of low birth weight infants as well as miscarriages. Families who do not have homes receive much more stress than other families. They also have disruption in school, work, friendships, and family relationships. There are other effects of poverty such as drug abuse and addiction, child and woman abuse, debts pressure, and increase in crimes.

Not only does this make it incredibly difficult to break out of poverty but it also goes a long way to shaping the attitudes and values of the poor. The poor will consider the acquisition of credit as something that is impossible and will therefore have no determination to obtain it. These attitudes become engrained in a community and unfortunately goes a long way to shaping the economic outlook of a communities respected constituents.