Poverty in the United States. Poverty Eradication. Conflict Theory

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Poverty in the United States
Poverty is a human condition of being unable to obtain or provide food, clothing, shelter, and water. It is occurring in each state at a variable rate, and it is unlikely to end soon. The United States is an economically stable country, yet millions of its citizens are living in poverty (Rothschild). The issue of poverty has remained an issue since 1930s when it was prioritized in the national agenda due to the devastation impact of the Great Depression (Block et al. 14). However, almost a century later, poverty remains one of the problems in the American society today. There are two methods used in poverty analysis; complete poverty and relative poverty. The comprehensive approach focuses on the necessities a family or someone is unable to provide. Comparative poverty analyzes the situation of the need, how a standard group compares to another. Three theoretical perspectives control the sociological aspects of poverty as a social problem. They view the same issues, but in different methods. This paper will analyze poverty as a social problem using sociological perspectives.
Explanations of Poverty in Sociology
Sociologists agree that poverty is a social issue because citizens should not be less fortunate, and it encompasses social justice. Some sociologists argue that the low standards of living is a social issue because poor people raise their children badly, and it leads to social disorders. People believe that social justice requires suffering citizens to be less poor, while others say the poor citizens should be made better persons. The division between justice and order shows distinct commonsense views of why individuals are suffering. Analyzing ideology enables us to identify and define social problems. The issue of thinking also focuses on the sorts of solutions proposed in the way a question is created (Bulmer 39). The conflicting ideologies in sociology illustrate that there is more than one solution to social issues. Sociological discourses are ways of organizing knowledge. As Cassiman explains, a discourse is an exchange of ideas or a discussion that acts as representation to a certain issue (1691). Poor citizens have to show that they are unfortunate. The poor must demonstrate they are bankrupt; that is, they are themselves the topic of the discourse and understand their position. The less fortunate population have things done to them; other people have rights over them. Different policies on poverty aim to do essential activities; for example, the U.S. has measures of eradicating the degree of poverty. The discourses are also about the relations of governance and enabled to take the course.
Talking about poverty involves understanding inequality as a variance between two conclusions. The population may be termed as insolvent or non-poor. There are other opinions of discourses that do not agree with the view and see it as an intricate conclusion. The discrepancy between the non-poor and underprivileged means that the focus is concentrated on the poor; they are the deviations from the norm of not being needy. The attention on the poor people in the discourse of poverty illustrates that considerations and descriptions focus on what causes poverty. As a result, the poor become the subject of research, and it means that sociologists mean that Americans are aware of the living standards of low-income families. The discourse organizes knowledge in particular methods of how society views the people living in poverty.
Conflict Theory
The conflict perspective views social issues as arising from inherent inequalities. The inequality contributing to poverty in the U.S. is based on social class. The cause of poverty is said to lie in the external political and economic world. An increased number of people employed in low wage jobs produce small revenues; thus, many individuals live in poverty. Changes in state regulations on welfare gains may decrease people's incomes and get citizens in hardships since they lose benefits when they get income. As Cassiman, the discourse surrounding welfare in the United States differs significantly from other developed nations (1691). While other Eurpoean countries are proud of their welfare policies, the same could not be said of the welfare policies implemented in America. The policies have not yielded significant progress in eradicating poverty as expected (Cassiman 1691). The conflict perspective view poverty as an outcome beyond people and families, and they are based on social arrangements that are beyond personal control (Giddens and Sutton 35). However, the theory assumes that fundamental social change is required to address the U.S. poverty issue.
Functionalism Perspective
Poverty is viewed as inevitable; it is identified as an essential component in social life. Some segments of people are better gifted, try hard to be prosperous, and variation is the unavoidable result. In sociology, low intelligence rates are the key factors of poverty in the U.S. according to the functionalism theory. The issue of poverty is ordinary and socially relevant. Variations are the usual cause of unequal productivity in a competit...