It's Possible!

Unless things change drastically in the United States, no one will ever be able to convince me that people cannot move up (or down) when it comes to classes. The New York Times graphic and The Great Gatsby both actually show exactly how this is possible.

For one thing, the graphic does a great job of showing exactly how the US feels about the topic, and for the most part, people tend to believe that anything is possible. The polls, the facts, the charts, everything, all point to the idea that people can move up, or even move down. According to some polls, in 1983 just less than 60% thought that it is possible to start out poor, work hard, and become rich. Now, that number has increased to 80%. That shows that people really do believe in the idea. There is also a poll that says the 84% favor programs to help those who come from low-income backgrounds. I just have a hard time believing that with the support of the idea, that no one can actually do it. There is also record of people moving from lower classes to the upper middle or to even the top fifth, especially in today's world (not so much in 1988).

The Great Gatsby also confirmed my thoughts on this. Here we have this character named Jay Gatsby that came from a pretty low income family. His parents didn't have much success, but Gatsby aimed for a different kind of life. He worked his butt off and eventually became pretty rich. Throughout the book we can see how he hard he worked and how it paid off. Gatsby's father, Mr. Gatz, ends up telling Nick, "'Jimmy was bound to get ahead. He always had some resolves like this or something. Do you notice what he's got about improving his mind? He was always great for that...'" He says this right after we look at the type of schedule that Gatsby had made for himself when he was younger, and that boy worked hard. This all goes to prove that with hard work, anyone can move up or down in class.

Based on the fact that so many people believe it can happen, the facts behind the idea, and the example in The Great Gatsby, I find it really hard to believe that people cannot move up or down in classes. I guess it's just kind of the idea that anything can happen, especially if people work hard at life. Hard work (or even no work) will show results.