Wendell Berry's Another Turn of the Crank Essay

In the book Freakonomics, written by economist Steven D. Levitt and journalist Stephen J. Dubne, the authors go through different parts of modern life to show how economics describes why people act a certain way as well as the way specific outcomes occur. They look into different aspects of society and view them with different perspectives. With the use of specific data and the fundamentals of economics, the very obscure comparisons and the different chapters in the book show correlation between economics and human nature. The main point of this book is to explain a few fundamental ideas through the answers of strange questions and how they play a major role in society.

Attaching great importance to individuality is the third characteristic of market society. For people living in market society, economic advantages are superior to other advantages; the first thing to protect is their individual wealth. This ideological change results from the material condition in market society that people all become single individuals in the factories producing goods for making more money for themselves. In this case, the economic relations rule the social relations (Rinehart 71). Under the structure of the previous social organization, however, “man’s economy... is submerged in his social relationships” (Polanyi 46). People were always concerned about their social relations within their communities (Polanyi 46). They acted so as to maintain their social values (Polanyi 46). The reason for this when it comes to the case of tribal society is that there is no need for people to care much about “individual’s economic interest” because working for the communities enables

Farming and the Global Economy is the first chapter of the book. He starts with the history of farmers during WWII. The farmers were quickly becoming a minority because the nation was not supportive

As the nation industrialized, farmer’s work became overshadowed by the newly industrialized economy. Farmers believed they should receive enough money to produce crops and provide for their family (Study.com). Monopolies threatened farmers abilities to get their

Furthermore, the logos used in The Agrarian Standard is not as credible as it could be, but nonetheless effective. Although sources are lacking, Berry presents information in a precise way. Logos is notably abundant in the introduction of the essay on the first page. Examples of information presented

To continue, agriculture and farming is essensial because we need food to survive and it helps with a regions economic growth. This human activity however, is creating

Wendell Berry is a well known author of over 40 books of poetry, fiction, and essays. As a young man he spent time in California, Europe, and New York City, before returning back to his hometown in Kentucky. After many years of teaching at the University of Kentucky, Berry switched gears and decided to pursue his love for farming.

In reading Warren’s Great Change in American Communities, the clear message was that there are many changes in the past few decades that are overall affecting the structure of the rural community, but also how it functions as a whole. In addition, we have moved from decisions being made on a local community level, to being made by those outside of the community. I think the largest and most important change that came to rural America was the division of labor. What Warren points out is we go from a community based on categorical groups of people that are overall the same kind of people, to that of corporate groups. It is this, Warren says, that causes individuals to lose a sense of belonging in their community because they begin to not know

(167). Heavy taxes on agriculture leads to low productivity and low output (Dennis). New technology is not as efficient: “The heavy harvesting equipment that now does the work of the harvesting has left larger amounts of grain in the field…” (Holthaus 135). Holthaus describes the loss of access to the markets as a result of more contacting and the “growing influence of transnational megacorporations.” Farmers are no longer in control of agriculture; they have little say in what crops to grow and have to listen to the contracted company. Farmers no longer farm for the market, they farm to be able to pay the bank or to meet a contract with a company (167). When farmers decide to contract, they become another worker in the industrial system of agriculture. Farmers lose their markets, which are taken over by large corporations; and lose a percentage of their profit (Holthaus 150). According to “American Farms Keep Growing: Size, Productivity, and Policy,” about 30% of American farms have any significant farm production. 6 percent of all farms account for three-fourths of US farm output.The loss of political power and influence is due to less farmers and their families living on the land, aswell as, less people living in rural communities, which means that they have less authority and voting powers (167). The health of

Market society has faded the lines of the borders by putting a price on things such as reproduction, right to pollute, and elections. Right now, the use of markets are tacit because of the high inventory on everything. As a result of this, life for those with less money has become difficult while those with money don’t see the fault in the gap of income as money is able to purchase everything.

In the last part of the chapter, Berry focuses on the improvements of the economy and suggests that a community must be providing individuals with jobs in the community and provide citizens the opportunity to own a small share of the country. The government would deal with this issue by providing job opportunities but taking money away from every individual’s check in order to save it for unemployment and social security. The government gives every person the opportunity to build their own empire and have whatever quantity of money one desires. The United States government gives every person the freedom to purchase a car, house as long as one gives the appropriate monthly payments and one is able to afford it. Citizens living under the United States government have rights and freedoms and no government officials has the right to control what the citizens are or should be able to earn from their personal salary. This is a privilege of living in a country that gives every citizen the rights and freedoms without the government getting involved.

Martin, M. J., & Kitchel, T. (2013). Agrarianism: An ideology of the national FFA organization. Journal of Agricultural Education, 54(3), 28. doi:10.5032/jae.2013.03028

As read in the article “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race”, Diamond claims that the hunter-gatherers life was not all uncultivated and tedious. “…great paintings and sculptures were already being produced by hunter-gatherers 15,000 years ago, and were still being produced as recently as the last century by such hunter-gatherers as some Eskimos and the Indians of the Pacific Northwest” (Diamond, 4-5). According to Diamond, hunter-gatherers would work a good deal during each week (12-19 hours depending on the tribe), sleep a good deal, and provide themselves with different hobbies as they wanted to do so. Why have to try and grow food and risk famine, when our nature provides it free of charge? In the mind of a hunter-gatherer, It is best to work a small amount daily, eat daily, live healthy, and enjoy

Economics is something that most people don’t understand such as; what is so important about it? One major portion of economics is the fact that if we did not have this one word we most likely not be able to have a free market as well as prosperous nations all around the world. Yet Hernando DeSoto author of The Mystery of Capital conveys the idea that the markets in other countries around the world are different because of the system that each set country has. For example a country with a government that keeps “their peoples and nations in hopeless poverty” and nothing can help unless they change the way the run the country. Richard McGregor author of The Party: the Secret World of Chinas Communist Rulers speaks more in depth of what

A market society was created and functions through material and ideological conditions. Through the works of Polyani’s The Great Transformation and Heilbroner’s The Economic Problem characteristics of the material conditions that make up market society will be outlined as well as the differences of how they functioned in the past versus the present. Rinehart’s ideas will be used to explain the changes in material conditions. Through Bendix’s summaries from Weber’s Economic Rationality, both the material and ideological conditions will come together to help readers understand the importance and functionality of a market society throughout the years.