The word dystopia comes from the Greek word cacotopia. Dystopia is usually used when visualizing a society that is completely the opposite of the utopian world. The conditions of the dystopia world are not that good, as they lead to demoralization of the human being. Life in the dystopia world is characterized by poverty, human suffering or misery, oppression of the people, all kinds of diseases, violence and pollution. Several societies in the world have experienced some of these characteristics. Ordinarily, the term is popularly used in literature, where it categorizes some literary works in form of tales.
The aim of theses tales is to caution against totalitarianism. This kind of literature borrows from experiences of the failure of either the states or ideologies to come up with utopias, or what is commonly referred to as good governance (New World Encyclopedia, par. 1, 2, 4).
Though some people may argue otherwise, it is evident that the current world is a dystopia as it manifests several cruel characteristics against the people. Inequality of Race and Sex One thing that characterizes the modern world today is inequality of sex and race.
In the recent years it has been reported that the wage gap between women and men has been widening, even though they dispense the same duties. This triggers questions; whether men work more than women. However, statistics show that, there is a high probability for women working part time. This differs when the comparisons of gender wage earnings are made. This is because in most cases, part time work is usually left out and more attention is given to full time work. Statistics also reveal that the gap may actually widen as the number of working hours increases.
The Essay on Beginning Your Work Time Person People
Should I do it now or wait till later? Every person has their own style or way they accomplish doing work. Many feel the need to begin working on an assignment right when they get it. While others procrastinate and do not complete the assignment until right before it is due. There are many different attitudes that one may have when dealing with work. Everyone accomplishes work in their own way. ...
Women who work for forty one to forty four hours every week tend to earn eighty four point six percent of the salary earned by men working for the same hours. Women, who work for sixty hours or more per week, earn seventy eight point three percent of the salary of men working for the same hours. This shows how inequality comes about. Therefore, the statistical results disapprove those who claim that women work less than men to earn fewer wages (Lips, par. 6).
Several studies have been done on judicial systems especially in the US in regard to sex inequalities.
The results indicate that there is discrimination in the application of capital punishment. Racism has characterized capital punishments in two ways: Those who issue these death penalties have been discovered to be mostly the white people, and those who are victims of these are black Americans. A research conducted in Philadelphia revealed that, a black defendant is four times at risk of being given a death penalty more than a white defendant. Additionally, black people are at a higher risk of being given death penalties compared to white defendants who have committed the same crime (Death Penalty Information Center, par.
1-3).
The research study went ahead to explain why this happens. According to them, it happens because most of those people who are involved in making decisions in death cases are mostly white. That is why there is so much discrimination as far as death penalties are concerned (Death Penalty Information Center, par. 4).
Class System in the USA There have emerged two major classes in the US; the working class and the capitalists’ class. The poverty that characterizes the working class has been blamed on the capitalists. Capitalism emphasizes so much on profit making and impersonality.
The Essay on Black Death Working The Land And Refused To Raise Their Wages
Page 1 In the later part of the middle ages, an epidemic was unleashed upon society. Killing almost half of the population, the black death not only changed, or ended the lives of everybody in its path, it also left a dark cloud lingering over humanity for decades after. At a time when the population of Europe was at an all time high, food was scarce. The people of Europe were not prepared to ...
This makes employers to oppress the working class in the name of ‘making profits’. The driving force behind these employers is the profit. Therefore, they ensure that they maximize it through minimizing the wages earned by the workers. This is what leads to poverty among the workers. In their efforts to make profits, capitalists have ended up reducing their work force in a bid to reduce operating costs. Consequently, the working class in the receiving end goes on wallowing in poverty. Capitalism encourages high levels of unemployment. This leads to people seeking lower level jobs.
Therefore, they are forced to take whatever little employers offer regardless of their expertise, as they are left with no choice. This is so unfair because it leads to a lot of misery within the working class, hence creating a dystopia (Essortment, par 2, 3).
power elite This group is composed of men who are positioned to transcend the environment of ordinary men. Additionally, they make decisions which affect every one and have serious consequences. They own the biggest companies and corporations and they run the state as their own.
They are in command of the social structure where they are able to exercise their power and celebrity status, something which they really enjoy (Rothkopf, par. 11).
Since time immemorial, one of the ways that the elite have used to ensure that they maintain their power is by having offspring who will inherit their positions. This is driven by a desire to remain at the top so that they can continue to hold onto positions and power . This enables them to have the tools required so as to continue being powerful, which is a thing they hold dear.
Thus, they come up with laws that ensure they continue enjoying the power and prevent others from getting it (Rothkopf, par. 50).
Their children are taught tricks on how to win the hearts of the public. They are also given networks of contacts, support staff and anyone who can assist them to maintain that power. As a result, there has been the emergence of global class structures (Rothkopf, par 51).
The Term Paper on Shrinking Buying Power Of The Middle Class
The Shrinking Buying Power of the Middle Class According to the Merriam-Websters Online Dictionary, the middle class is a class occupying a position between the upper class and the lower class; especially: a fluid heterogeneous socioeconomic grouping composed principally of business and professional people, bureaucrats, and some farmers and skilled workers sharing common social characteristics and ...
Today a trend is being observed where the politicians are occupied with coming up with laws which have been influenced by the intolerance of the power elite and their principles of control.
It has been observed that the policies they come up with are framed in such a way that they lead to the closure of small private firms. Also, these small firms are not allowed to run the way they want hence, everything pertaining to the management of the small and private firms is controlled by the ruling class. When these small enterprises are closed down, people are then forced to be dependent on the state. Some of them are forced into taking subsidies for their businesses which can be withdrawn anytime.
The moment this happens, they end up with no funds, which eventually lead to bankruptcy. Consequently, the small firms collapse and at the end of the day and the big businesses belonging to the power elite take over (Struksnes, par. 26-29).
This is very unfair to those who are being ruled, because it leads to a lot of misery. Conclusion In conclusion, all these scenarios show that the world is really a dystopia. Right from the issues of discrimination based on sex and race to the power elite, one thing comes out clearly, that people continue to suffer and being oppressed in the process.
Black American convicts continue to suffer as a result of being discriminated against, and some of them have undeservedly died . Additionally, women at work places suffer as a result of being looked down upon. The men are regarded as greater over the women, regardless of the level of education, wisdom or expertise they have. The working class continues to wallow in poverty as a result of being oppressed by the capitalists. Lastly, the world continues to be manipulated by the power elite who disguise themselves in the name of ‘the rule of democracy’ but in the actual sense, they are just up to shield their interests.
All these scenarios lead to poverty, misery, sufferings, oppression among others . This is what is happening in almost all societies in the world today. What more can we say, is this not a dystopia world? Work Cited Death Penalty Information Center. The Death Penalty in Black And White: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Who Decides, 2010. Web. 5 June, 2010, <http://www. deathpenaltyinfo. org/death-penalty-black-and-white-who-lives-who-dies-who-decides>. Essortment. Oppression as a Cause for Working Class Poverty, 2002. Web. 5 June, 2010, <http://www. essortment. com/all/oppression_rtqr.
The Term Paper on C. Wright Mills- The Power Elite
The powers of ordinary men are circumscribed by the everyday worlds in which they live, yet even in these rounds of job, family, and neighborhood they often seem driven by forces they can neither understand nor govern. 'Great changes' are beyond their control, but affect their conduct and outlook none the less. The very framework of modern society confines them to projects not their own, but from ...
htm>. Lips, Hillary. Gender Wage Gap. Women’s Media, 2008. Web. 5 June, 2010, <http://www. womensmedia. com/new/Lips-Hilary-gender-wage-gap. shtml> New World Encyclopedia. Dystopia, 2009. Web. Jun 5, 2010, <http://www. newworldencyclopedia. org/entry/Dystopia> Rothkopf, David. The Global Power Elite And The World They Are Making. Third World Traveler, 2008. Web. Jun 5, 2010, <http://www. thirdworldtraveler. com/Ruling_Elites/Superclass. html>. Struksness, Abel. The Power Elite. End Time, ND. Web. Jun 5, 2010, <http://www. endtime. net/engelsk/power1. htm>.
