Ragged Dick In Horatio Alger

19 September 2013
Essay 1 Does the old saying still stand as of today? Is America still the land of opportunity to become successful financially and mentally? Whether it be empty-handed immigrants or people born into poverty and burdened lives; they have nothing more than a mere picture of themselves living the American dream someday as long as they are “persistent in working hard.” The American culture has lead us to believe we can achieve what America has outlined as success; but the ones who say we can achieve financial achievement, despite our initial state, are the luxurious one percent, who are the result of unequal distribution. If people in America are supposed to be equal, then why is there unequal distribution? We are country
driven by fortune, and in order to obtain that, we must be hardworking, persistent, and dedicated. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger tells a story about an unfortunate man named Dick who started off with nothing, and ended up becoming an accounting clerk with a high paying salary because of the patient, diligent character he is. He happened to take a day off of business dressed in his best to accompany his peer for an errand and board the same boat where a wealthy man’s son happens to fall into the water. Because Dick knew how to swim and saves the boy, he is rewarded greatly as an accounting clerk. Now how often does this happen? It seems too good to be true that it had to be coincidental, because the chances of that scenario happening is very low.
Harlon L.
Dalton questions three myths that derive from Ragged Dick in Horatio Alger: we are all judged entirely on our merits, we are all given equal opportunity to gain those merits, and that merit will bring us success. If we are all judged by our merits, then “it suggests that success in life has nothing to do with pedigree, race, class background, gender... anything beyond our control” (Dalton 273). Dalton gives an example of the “best black syndrome”; Stephen Carter, a black man, earned second highest score in a scholarship test but gets “best black student.” Why must there be a category within a category? If a non-black student is addressed as the best student, and a black student is addressed as the best black student, what is it suggesting? That African Americans are not qualified to be considered as a regular, equal student? You are either the best or not all. This all goes to show that any way or form, we are all judged in society, affecting our
opportunities. Class background and gender, along with race, coincides in unequal opportunity gain.
“For the most part, class avoidance of class-laden vocabulary crosses class boundaries” (Mantsios 304). There are measurements in salary, physical appearance, and education to determine class. Mantsios studies showed that 34 percent of America’s wealth is held by the one percent, and almost one of every eight people are living below the poverty line ($19,307 dollars for a family of four in 2004). But it is not getting any better, since it has increased approximately $4,000 since then. One of the biggest reasons people are in poverty is because people cannot afford proper education to become well-sustained. It is all dependent on factors beyond our control. Mantsios compared class backgrounds of a life of a white male, whose father is a manufacturer and an industrialist who was enrolled in a prestigious preparatory school, and a black female, whose father a janitor and mother a waitress who lives in the ghetto. Who do you think has more of an advantage in life? The white male, as a result of opportunity handed to
him.
The black female needs to work for money to get out of the ghetto, but how? She has bills to worry about, money for education, and other expenses. How will she pursue her goals in life if she cannot even get a well-paying job? She did not choose this life because “the difference in class determines where they live, who their friends are, how well they are educated, what they do for a living, and what they expect from life” (Montsios 312). This correlates back to Dalton’s second to myth of having a fair chance to gain the merits we earn. There will always be blame on the underclass that they did not try hard enough, because there is always that tiny percent that “there is a chance to be successful!” A person can be as hard-working and determined as the want, but if they are in a state of poverty, it will be extremely difficult to those who have the advantage already, meaning merit will not out to the person’s liking. Journalist Barbara Ehrenreich went undercover to take on a series of minimum-wage jobs and writes her experience in Serving in Florida. Once a six our shift is completed, she has no time to fully rest since she will have to get ready for her next job ASAP. She experiences living in compact spaces because her salary could not even afford her a proper living space and the burden of working her body to extremes to only get minimum wage. “But there’s another capacity in the neuromuscular system, which is pain” (Ehrenreich 293). At this point, if I were in her position, I would think if life would be even worth living. Working yourself to the bone for something that does not benefit you positively in your life is not the definition of “merit will out.” Maybe if you are wealthy, then yes. But in term of having no control in the environment you are in will almost be impossible to work around. Our society is not getting any better, and we are not getting any richer. It is difficult to look for a solution to all this since the wealthy are too powerful. If we need to change the ways of our economy, then we need to come together and start a movement that will change the way our government runs America, because we are not living up to our title of “America: the Land of Opportunity.”

Works Cited "Rereading America 8th Edition, Books | Barnes & Noble." Rereading America 8th Edition, Books | Barnes & Noble. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2013.