Money in Society Today
In today's society money is a necessary part of living. People no longer live off the land and travel with a horse and buggy. Now a day's people drive around in fancy cars like a Cadillac or a Corvette. To live in the Northern Virginia area a high salary is just an essential part of the life style. It is not necessarily a need, but it is always nice to have the comforts of an exquisite life style. People are in social classes where they live with their homes. Everyone who paid about the same amount of money for their house lives around one another, therefore they socialize. Large homes and nice cars show social status for many. Money should not rule ones life it should be a nice addition.
How nice your house is or how expensive your car is defines today's society. My philosophy on money is that it is a nice thing to have but it can neither buy love or happiness, they come from within. Many people feel that having money makes them more likeable. On the contrary is true, it shows the shallowness of people, and how they like people for their financial status. Money does drive me. When my grandfather was younger college was not a necessary part for him to get a job, for me college is essential. I am going to go to college to pursue a career in computer information to make a decent living. I picked the field not only because I am interest in computers, but also because I believe the field will always be in high demand. The future looks to be growing in the technology field and I think I will be able to grow both in position and in salary.
I do not think I could be truly happy if I was to allow money to truly run my life. If I choose a job or position strictly on the fact of a salary increase I could never learn to love the job. If I sort of liked the job I think it would be an ok move. I could never switch to a job that I hated just for the mere fact of a salary increase.
Money is something that can either be used for the greater good of society, or it can be contorted into something that is detrimental to society, it all depends on whose hands that money happens to fall into. Human tendencies begin to change once people come to have money, the lavish and selfish lifestyle begins. Entitlement comes with having money because money gives people what they want which makes people think they are entitled to get everything they want. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald portrays that money is the root of all problems with can ultimately lead to loneliness and careless behavior.
The role of money in people's day-to-day lives is quite amazing when it's put into perspective. The primary reason most Americans get up in the morning is so they can go out and make money. Money buys things; money influences people; money keeps us ali ve; money makes us happy. Or does it? In Fences, by August Wilson, the Maxtons get their money when Gabe's head is shot in the war. In A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansbury, the Younger family gets their money when Walter's father dies.
Money is the driving force behind our society, and the severe materialism that we are experiencing is taking a toll in our persona, relationships and quality of life. People work extremely hard to have bigger houses, the newest car models, and the latest technologies. At the end, none of these things make individuals happy because they barely have time left to enjoy them. However, society keeps reminding us that we are what we own, and if we don’t have much, we are nobody. The author Carolyn Gregoire explains that “…there is no direct correlation between income and happiness. Once our basic needs are met, wealth makes very little difference to one 's overall well-being and happiness. And in fact, extremely wealthy people actually suffer from higher rates of depression.” Another interesting point relates to relationships; according to a study published in the Journal Of Couple & Marriage Therapy, materialism is actually correlated with unhappiness in marriages. Finally, materialism and consumerism affect deeply the attitude of the individual toward others. The individual becomes more self- absorbed, exhibit narcissistic traits, and is more likely to behave unethically. The article Wealthy Selfies by Maia Szalavitz argues that “…in five different experiments involving several hundred undergraduates and 100 adults recruited from online communities, the researchers found higher levels of both narcissism and
What a person does to make a living often defines who that person is. Because so much time and energy is invested into work, work is often seen as an extension of oneself. One of the first questions that someone asks after meeting you for the first time is about what you do for a living. The belief is that by knowing what you do, one should be able to tell something about who you are. People almost never ask the more telling question of whether or not you are happy. They rely on the nature of the occupation to tell them something about your happiness. If you are a doctor, lawyer, or celebrity, it is assumed you are happy because of the money associated with those occupations. For some, income is a determinate of happiness. Granted, money is a major determinant, but not the only determinant of happiness. Happiness on the job is better determined by the support to values that a job provides.
Your financial habits as a youth will usually follow you into your adulthood. As you grow older hopefully the amount of money you make will not be the cause of you acting like you are too good but it will humble you. Hooks described how she didn’t share the sensibility and values of her peers. Class disparity was important, it wasn’t just about money but about values which showed and determined a person’s behavior. A child develops certain desires and situations as he/she passes through childhood. While attending Stanford University, Hooks white, middle-class, Californian, roommate explained to her that hatred was “healthy and normal” (Hooks 419). Later on while attending graduate school she found that her classmates believed “lower class” people had no beliefs and values (Hooks
For some, happiness is all that matters. Happiness is achieved in many ways, and it doesn’t always involve money. There are many things that contribute to making a person feel happy and successful. One can feel successful without a lot of money at all. For example, feeling loved is something that makes everyone happy. Many believe that without love life is not thoroughly complete, thus never truly achieving success. Ones line of work can also affect how happy he is. Some feel that it is more important to enjoy work and get less money than it is to hate work and get paid more. Another factor in achieving psychological success is ones ability to enjoy what life gives him. There are many qualities of life that are overlooked. Everyone is dealt family and it is important to value that.
The materialistic value of money is unable to offer true happiness. However, factors such as family and friends can provide happiness to everyone. Prosperity cannot be bought, no matter how much money is spent. The only thing that can cause you to be truly happy is the memories you made in your life time with friends and family. Money can help get something off your mind by spending it, but the memories you made while spending your money will make you smile at any time in life. You can socialize with your loved ones and create memories with them. You do not always have to spend money to be happy, but you could make jokes and have a great time to create memories.
Is there anyone in this world who does not want to be rich? The first thing that crosses the people’s mind while choosing job is money. Money plays a vital role in one's life and most of the people are motivated to perform well in their jobs for money. Money is the reason what drives people to work better. In most cases, money greatly works. People are motivated to perform better by receiving monetary incentives like wages, salaries, allowances, bonuses, retirement benefits, etc. But, money doesnot always contribute in influencing people towards the work. This essay will discuss the arguments that are both for and against money being the key motivator and suggest that money is not always the best motivator.
Corporations are not responsible for an individual’s attitudes and the impact their attitudes toward money has on their lives outside the workplace. According to a study by R. Easterline (this time in conjunction with U.S.C.) while it is true the more money you earn the more happy you will be, it does not end there. Easterlin states that if it was just the money you earned you would be happier each passing year as your salary increases; however, this is not the case as our happiness level appears to be unchanging in our lives (Gunnell, 2001). In fact, Easterlin states the more we earn the more we want. According to the study society even starts to believe “wants” are the same as “needs” as our salary grows. Naturally, it would be unrealistic to expect our employers to be responsible for changing these attitudes within our society. Employers are only accountable to the degree of having employees who have a level of happiness with their salary which results in high productivity.
This return us to the question of how much consideration you should give to money when making life choices to achieve the universal goal of happiness. And the answer is you should make choices that will give you enough money to live comfortably and allow you to focus on other factors that contribute to your happiness, such as interpersonal relationships and generosity towards others. And you should do this with the understanding that more money does not necessary result in happiness, although it does help, if spent in the right way.
Money is probably one of the most important things in this world. Without it, life would be very hard. With it, you become economically stable making life would be easier in some ways. But the real question is, can money actually make someone physically and emotionally happy? There are many sides to this debate; some who say yes and others who say no. Though most people agree with the statement, “Money doesn’t buy happiness,” there is still a large amount of people who disagree with it. They believe that money does indeed buy happiness and that it’s the most important thing in the world. There is no right or wrong answer to this question, it’s just a matter of what you believe in and your values.
When none of us has ever come across such words and formulas, none of the great personalities has ever mentioned it, then who the hell has instilled it in our minds that money brings happiness. But among this debate one question still raises its head - What is happiness? Happiness is not actually leading a luxurious life but the luxury of living a life. Happiness is not actually about expanding your business, but it lies in expanding the horizons of life. Happiness is not having a meal in the most famous restaurant but to have it with your most beloved family. It does not lie in attending honorable parties but to attend a party with honor.
Now how does a person go about being happy, well let us examine one of the most common questions in reference to happiness, “can money buy happiness?” most people would say “yes.” The answer to this question will almost always be yes, because society and humans in general tend to be greedy creature always wanting more, from a better house to finer foods there is and always will be more to obtain. But is having these things what makes humans happy or is it the success of achieving your own...
“Money is number and numbers never end if it takes money to be happy your search for happiness will never end.” (Bob Marley). For the majority of people in our modern-capitalist world, money is the first thing, and sometimes the only thing that measures success in life. Money can buy power. Money can buy fame. Money can buy time. Sometimes money can even buy a life. So money has become the first common goal for everybody. There are many different perspectives, and how people view the world, in terms of success, and money. Money is not the root of all evil, but the love of money is the root of all evil.
It seems only natural that happiness should flow from having more money. Even if they don’t admit it, people still behave as though it were true. More money means you can have what you want and do what you want. The house you dream of? It’s yours.