The Undeserving and Deserving Poor Structure

Throughout history, a divide has always existed between the rich and poor in society. However, during the Industrial Revolution in Victorian England, this rift reached its peak. The working class labored for long hours and received miniscule wages, whereas the bourgeoisie grew abundantly wealthy through the labor of the working class. Published in 1848 and 1854 respectively, Karl Marx’s The Communist Manifesto and Charles Dickens’ Hard Times both comment on these troubles. While Hard Times is a novel which tells a story and The Communist Manifesto is a short publication which tries to bring about social change, both writings offer a sharp critique of the class antagonism brought about by capitalism at the height of the Industrial

|class and the upper class. The inequality of class causes poverty as individuals are limited to wealth, resources and opportunities |

In the UK, particularly in England and Wales, children’s life chances are determined by the economic status of the families into which they are a part of. Children from poor households are more likely to suffer the consequences of their families’ condition. They will have to endure the stigma of poverty in a profoundly lopsided society where the socioeconomic standing of individuals is determined by their capacity to buy. These poor children also have less access to quality educational opportunities (Welbourne, 2012). Furthermore, children living in poverty at present are likely to remain poor for the rest of their lives because of intergenerational cycles of poverty

The Marxist approach proves that the least deprived individuals are the ruling class and the most deprived individuals are in the working class. In the hierarchy Marxists believe that most of the deprived people shouldn’t have and education and they should be working in factories and other environments like this. Marxist know that the most deprived individuals work in poor conditions that could make them ill, people in the lower class don’t earn as much as a higher class would. This is because they are in the lower class and they live and work in poor conditions so they don’t need to earn as much.

The society is in such a way that it falls into categories of people who belong to different social classes and this creates a difference in the way individuals lead their lifestyle, and in the way individuals interact with each other. The working poor refer to a social group which develops as a result of the social inequalities which exist in the society. The population comprises of individuals who put a lot of effort in their activities but still fail to witness growth and development in their socio-economic being. It is normally wrong to categorize such persons as being lazy, and instead, one may argue that nature dictates the fate of these beings.

Charles Murray (1990) had developed a theory called the ‘underclass’, this theory categorises those living in poverty and defines them as non-working, inadequate and dangerous to society. Such writings have been an influence on the right realists and have a need to reinforce personal responsibility for an individual’s behaviour. Murray goes on to discuss two different types of underclass, firstly, the poor. These are people that only have low income but maintain their morals and standards and secondly, there are those with low income and their morals and standards match that. Those households with low standards are stereotyped as untidy and contain drunken and disorderly behaviour. He claims the men cannot keep jobs and the children are ill-educated resulting in antisocial behaviour and juvenile delinquency. This theory talks about a ‘fear of crime’ that would be instilled into communities by the underclass because the underclass is a classic example of the habitual criminal.

Marx (1959) divides class structure into three categories, these being the ‘worker, the capitalist and the rentier’. With each category living in similar milieu; sending their children to similar schools, they are therefore taking ownership of their class; therefore, Marx suggests movement between classes is difficult. Marx (1959: p16).

There is no agreement or consensus reached on the proper definition of the term underclass. Furthermore, most researches have not determined the size of the underclass population, much less, on how the underclass population has changed over time. Most people assume that the term underclass implies a group of people who live in isolation, or are isolated from the rest of the society. Secondly, these kinds of persons (underclass) have low paying jobs and are not economically relevant, therefore, living in poverty conditions. Thirdly, these individuals (underclass) are characterised by social nonconformity, which has increased because of outmigration of the middle class people, who served as their mentors. There have been issues with the clear description of the underclass, as research done on the underclass comprises all individuals living in poverty or residing in poverty areas. Arguably, not all people living within a poverty residence are poor (Belina 20).

An underclass does not exist in the United States. It is a function of conservative’s imaginations. The relevance of their creating of an underclass serves one large purpose and that is to be an emotional ploy to keep people politically occupied with small issues. This allows corporations to ensure that their competition will be busy fighting other battles while they continue to push policy and laws that will represent the interests of the country’s wealthiest and most powerful. A distraction is necessary because if people knew their rights and wages were threatened chaos would erupt upon large corporations. The facts are that there is no underclass, this myth is being used to politically divide the working class, for the purpose of weakening the advancement of working class interests.

The term ‘social problem’ refers to certain problems that are socially recognised by society and are felt to threaten certain values cherished by the public. This essay will investigate the different types of poverty that occur in the U.K and will explore the sociological arguments as to how poverty links with social problems such as social exclusion, gender discrimination in the work place, lone-parenting and disability and look at how these problems are perceived in today’s society.

For Gans (1991), the term “underclass” contains little intellectual substance. The term itself can hardly be agreed upon by anyone in the media or by social scientists. Naturally, the term is also used often for homeless people and all people living in poverty. It is ultimately a value-laden and pejorative buzzword for the “undeserving poor”. The meaning behind the term “underclass” has shifted over the years to refer to different things and ideas. For example, we have the term being used in the 1960’s to refer to an almost genetic “paradigm” under the term “culture of poverty,” first coined by Oscar Lewis, where the term covers a generational form of poverty that is passed on to the children of poor parents. Gans is adamant in denying this

Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto says that the “upper class” of capitalism basically exists exploit the working, lower class to their own benefit and profit. This characterization is seen as grossly unfair and, ultimately, just a step or progression of a society towards the ideal, socialism/communism.

With Jobless growth, there is no benefit to the community, and when combined with Ruthless growth, the richer areas will benefit while economic gaps are fueled. These issues have been embedded in society for decades, especially The Great Depression. Due to not meeting standards, there are stereotypes that arise within the systems, such as the idea that if there are no benefits or outlooks, then the citizens are perpetually stuck, floating throughout the middle and lower classes. It is clear that not everyone can have similar opportunities; however, issues with poverty can be helped and prevented. Petrovec also argues, “The term “underclass” is used to characterize a segment of society that is viewed as permanently excluded from social mobility and economic integration” (388). Poverty affects the spread of knowledge on issues embedded in societies such as modern-day genocide and low crime control within the public and

Karl Marx has said “The history of all previous societies has been the history of class struggles”. Unfortunately, class struggle is still an issue. Until now! Till now, there has been injustice to the poor in every corner of the world. The poor don’t have equal rights as the rich and wealthy do. Labourers are always labouring. Not even one rich notices that, even the whole world pretends not to know. Why so cruel? Where is the free people, a real republic, a civilized nation on this earth? This western society have always been involved of masters and slaves, and the slaves have always been and are today, the

All human societies have been class based in some way, shape or form and, interpreting this in the most basic way, it can be said that in every known human society there has been a fundamental division between two broad social groups, the buorgeoisie that own and control the means of production, and the proletariat who own nothing but their ability to sell their labour power (that is, their ability to work) in return for wages. The anger and dissent over the differences in social classes has never wavered