Shining Lives By Melanie Marnich: An Analysis
Americans are accustomed to a lifestyle of immediate gratification because of the advanced technology being discovered every day. These Shining Lives displays the extremes companies go to in order to maintain their reputations in society and among their competition. Through her play Melanie Marnich captures the false ignorance of the danger of radium when consumed by the women making the watches. In order for individuals to remain satisfied, dangerous jobs are necessary although safety should be a priority in any company and employees made completely aware of what their job entails. The needs of society increase daily because of the discovery and invention of new technology and new demands of the population. Safety of employees should
be the priority of employers when creating the jobs to be performed. While some jobs, such as oil drilling and coal mining are unpredictable, companies learn from past workers and new employees should be made fully aware of the dangers that exist. The needs of society must be met although there is no price on a human being’s life. Every measure should be taken to ensure the safety of a company’s employees and new precautions arranged if past ones fail or new problems are brought to the company’s attention. These Shining Lives exhibited hundreds of women losing their lives in order to manufacture watches with radium. Although the danger of swallowing radium was not known in the beginning, the company ignored Catherine and the other women’s complaints because they were replaceable to Mr. Reed. The safety of individuals takes priority over the needs of society, especially in a society such as today when people lose their lives performing jobs to allow the population to live extravagantly instead of using resources as a means to survive. Potential employees may be assumed to know the dangers of the profession they have chosen to pursue, but it is still the duty of the company to inform their employees of the risks included in the job. When hired for a job, contracts are agreed to meaning the potential employee agrees to the terms of employment in the company. An employer should want workers to be aware of the chance of being injured to avoid the process Catherine was forced to go through in These Shining Lives which brought bad press to the company. Radium Dial’s choice to continue to hire women to perform tasks that cost them their health displays what an employer should handle differently. After Catherine and the other women brought their concerns to the attention of Mr. Reed, future employees’ risks could have been expressed to them without Catherine having to take the legal action. Employers have the responsibility to manufacture products or find the resources necessary to do so, but the employees also have rights, including having knowledge of their lives being in danger. The responsibility of the knowing or sharing the risks of any job should be equal from the employee and employer. In These Shining Lives, the women did not have the resources to attain information on the effects of radium on their bodies and they desired to make their own money. Radium Dial may not have been aware of the effects early on, but as soon as the doctor informed the women of their illnesses, production could have been stopped until a safer way to assemble the watches was produced. In present day, employees have mostly studied to work in their chosen profession and are aware of the hazards they may face and that new ones may arise. It is the responsibility of the employee to voice any concerns to his or her potential employer and the employer maintains the responsibility to deliver honest answers. Dangerous jobs are necessary to satisfy the needs of society, but society faces the question; what need is so great to be worth the cost of a sister, wife, mother or grandmother?
be the priority of employers when creating the jobs to be performed. While some jobs, such as oil drilling and coal mining are unpredictable, companies learn from past workers and new employees should be made fully aware of the dangers that exist. The needs of society must be met although there is no price on a human being’s life. Every measure should be taken to ensure the safety of a company’s employees and new precautions arranged if past ones fail or new problems are brought to the company’s attention. These Shining Lives exhibited hundreds of women losing their lives in order to manufacture watches with radium. Although the danger of swallowing radium was not known in the beginning, the company ignored Catherine and the other women’s complaints because they were replaceable to Mr. Reed. The safety of individuals takes priority over the needs of society, especially in a society such as today when people lose their lives performing jobs to allow the population to live extravagantly instead of using resources as a means to survive. Potential employees may be assumed to know the dangers of the profession they have chosen to pursue, but it is still the duty of the company to inform their employees of the risks included in the job. When hired for a job, contracts are agreed to meaning the potential employee agrees to the terms of employment in the company. An employer should want workers to be aware of the chance of being injured to avoid the process Catherine was forced to go through in These Shining Lives which brought bad press to the company. Radium Dial’s choice to continue to hire women to perform tasks that cost them their health displays what an employer should handle differently. After Catherine and the other women brought their concerns to the attention of Mr. Reed, future employees’ risks could have been expressed to them without Catherine having to take the legal action. Employers have the responsibility to manufacture products or find the resources necessary to do so, but the employees also have rights, including having knowledge of their lives being in danger. The responsibility of the knowing or sharing the risks of any job should be equal from the employee and employer. In These Shining Lives, the women did not have the resources to attain information on the effects of radium on their bodies and they desired to make their own money. Radium Dial may not have been aware of the effects early on, but as soon as the doctor informed the women of their illnesses, production could have been stopped until a safer way to assemble the watches was produced. In present day, employees have mostly studied to work in their chosen profession and are aware of the hazards they may face and that new ones may arise. It is the responsibility of the employee to voice any concerns to his or her potential employer and the employer maintains the responsibility to deliver honest answers. Dangerous jobs are necessary to satisfy the needs of society, but society faces the question; what need is so great to be worth the cost of a sister, wife, mother or grandmother?