Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth Essay

Authored by Sarah Smarsh, the book Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth sheds light on the working-class poverty experienced in the American West. The author describes her turbulent childhood while staying with her parents in Kansas between the 1980s and the 1990s. Smarsh explains the various forces of contemptuous poverty and the changing economic policies in the United States that cemented her family and the working poor. Through her life on a farm in Wichita, Smarsh provides the readers with a unique overview of the lives of the poor working class Americans within the region. While growing up in the Kansas area, Smarsh enjoyed the freedom provided by country childhood protectionists. However, her memoir records a number of challenges she was subjected to, resulting from poverty in the area.

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Besides the argument regarding the working poor in the society, Smarsh also argues about the social divide in the United States. As such, the social divide can be the primary argument in her book. Through the powerfully and beautifully crafted memoir, Smarsh argues that social imbalance in a society can only exist where social divisions are well pronounced. According to Smarsh, the concept of social class refers to the people or a group of individuals within a community who share a common socioeconomic status. In other words, it is a group of individuals who have the same level of influence and status, as well as wealth.

From the book, readers can comprehend the four underlying types of social classes. In her descriptions, Smarsh begins with the lower level, the working classes, the middle class, and the upper class. The lower class within a society is comprised of the unemployed, homeless, and individuals living in epitomized poverty. Individuals from this class have no access to quality medical care, basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter as well as vocational training. The working class is made up of individuals who have minimum levels of education, as well as those involved in manual labor. Similarly, the class includes unskilled workers such as waitresses, maids, and cashiers, among others. Such individuals are not only underpaid, but also lack the opportunities for personal and career development. Additionally, other skilled workers who fall under this category include electricians, plumbers, and carpenters, among others.

In addition to the two social classes, the next category as described by Smarsh is the middle class. In this category comprises of white-collar workers and individuals who typically make more money compared to those below them in the social hierarchy. The group is often referred to as the sandwich class because it can be divided into the lower middle class and the upper middle class. The lower middle class comprises of individuals with meagre earning, and who are less educated such as the teachers, and small business owners, among others. The upper middle class consists of the highly educated individual, such as lawyers, company CEOs, and doctors, among others. According to Smarsh, the last division is the upper class, which is comprised of approximately 1-3% of the total American population, and own about 25% of the total wealth of the country. Similar to the middle class, the upper class falls under two categories, namely; the lower and upper-upper class. The lower upper class comprises of individuals who have recently acquired wealth through ventures and investments, while the upper-upper class comprises of individuals whom have been wealthy for generations.

In addition to the argument of the working poor in the American society, Smarsh has also focused on the class divide in the country. Through her book, she states that a society can only exist in social classes, thus the majority of people in the United States fall under the lower and working poor category.

However, according to Beynon, a society can exist without classes. A classless society refers to a society whose ranks have not developed (Beynon 46). In other words, it is a society where all the members have equal economic statuses and play similar economic roles. Therefore, the term classless can also be used in describing a state where each member shares an equal status. Similarly, the term can be used in describing a hierarchical society whose classes have been abolished, such as an Israeli kibbutz and a commune (Beynon 49). In the Marxist theory, the notion of a classless society plays a crucial role in describing the social condition that is achieved when communism has been successfully implemented. The Marxist theory holds that social classes result from the growth in agriculture as well as a surplus in the production of food. Nonetheless, this condition allowed a particular group of individuals to dominate the rest of the society. Contrary to a Smarsh's argument, social class theorists like Karl Marx have argued that the contemporary democratic society can be considered a classless society because the economic and social mobility of people has eliminated the supremacy of a single group (Marx et al. 42).

In collaboration with Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx drew from Hegel's theory that claims that conflict in history results from states and nations continually seeking more power. Using the same line of thought, Marx and Engels proposed the classless society theory, which was built on the notion that conflict within the society emerges from socioeconomic classes (Marx et al.). The theory sought to explore the political and social disorders that resulted from the industrial revolution and offered a solution that would see the establishment of a communist society that would ensure that each member has equal opportunities and share similar statuses. Therefore, as the state fades, individuals attains the full human attribute while living in a classless society.

The theory of classless society proposed by Marx holds that primitive and tribal societies were classless since all individuals held equal wealth, and performed similar tasks. According to Marx et al., an ideal classless society is an agreement between producers, who would be both workers and owners of the production means. Therefore, there is no such thing as private ownership within the means of production. Preferably, it would be the property of the entire society. In such as society, the decisions are made in a democratic way and the position of the state as an instrument of class authority fades. As a result of such a revolution, the society is no longer faced with challenges about competition and rivalry, and issues such as economic crises would be eliminated.

Additionally, the production experiences a significant upsurge, with agriculture being planned and accomplished in larger spaces. Thus, this means that there will be a possibility for eliminating issues of shortages. In other words, the reasonable needs of all individuals will be met. Moreover, no workers are separated from the fruits of their efforts, and work is seen as an expression of an individual's personality.

On the other hand, Smarsh's argument of a divided society based on social classes is flawed, given the development of democracy. Perhaps, the most democratic nation must be in line with Smarsh's arguments. Nonetheless, Smarsh fails to acknowledge that the conventional social classes are no longer present in the contemporary democratic society. According to Smarsh, a democratic society is as a form of society that favors freedom and equal rights. To achieve such, a society requires efforts and mutual understanding from all the members. However, there is a need for active members who bear great value for the government system to strive towards achieving a shared vision in civil life.

The characteristics of a democratic society prove that this type of organization can achieve a classless structure. Additionally, it is apparent that a democratic society provides members with a variety of benefits. Notably, the members are also equipped with the freedom of making individual choices, as well as developing their prospects as human beings. As such, individuals are free from discrimination, and harassment, as well as fear. Individuals are also protected by the law and have a right elect or remove their representatives. Such a society ensures there is independence, and strives to achieve equality for all members. A democratic society encourages individuals to voice their own opinions and challenge the government on various issues. This means that the members of such a community are provided with an abundance of opportunities for public life participation.

Keeping with the characteristics of a democratic society can easily be translated into a classless society. Therefore, contemporary scholars argue that in the modern democracy, there exist no conventional social classes. These scholars draw their arguments about the meaning of the term class, which describes the particular measures of class identity. Some of these measures include the ethnic and demographic similarities between members as well as the degree to which the members share a mutual cultural alignment. The criteria might also include the level which the members of the society share a joint political affiliation and the level at which the members share life experiences. Equally, the social class of individuals is determined by the extent to which they have access to opportunity and education. As such, the self-perpetuating lower, middle, and upper class do not exist in a democratic society.

The classless society approach comprises of a myriad of features. For instance, the theory takes the state as a class institution. However, the Marxian approach assumes that the state is a class mechanism and a tool that is used by the wealthier people to exploit and control the poor. This means that the country remains the figment of the haves. Nonetheless, it is not a natural social creation, but rather, it is a classification tool that has been developed by the wealthy in a society. As a result, there is no place for the state in the Marxist approach which calls for a communist society that comprises no states or classes.

According to Dahrendorf, the Marxist approach also states that there is a close relationship between practice and theory. The approach holds that argument should result in practice, and a failure in this makes it is useless. Arguably, the aim having a classless society is to provide and lead a revolutionary movement.

The existence of a democratic society in America means that the issue of class divisions that have been discussed by Smarsh can be challenged. These include; cultural, economic, and political connotations associated with a democratic society. A key element on which a democratic society is developed is the power, which in such a type of the organization, it is exercised by members of the community. The political aspect of a democratic society includes factors such as the right to equal treatment, the right to voice individual opinions, as well as freedom of speech. The economic element covers issues such as the right to profession and livelihood, and the right to equal access to resources. On an overall, the democratic society comprises of freedom of speech and thoughts, which are critical for the growth and development of both the individual and the nation as a whole.

Conclusion

Throughout the book, an underlying theme is the issue of the class divide in the American society. In her book, Smarsh explains the various forces of contemptuous poverty, as well as the changing economic policies in the United States that cemented a place for her family among the working poor. The concept of the working poor is included in the social class division argument presented by Sarah Smarsh in her book. Therefore, Smarsh's primary argument is that the society only exists in social class...