"Looking Backward by Inspecting Now" A critical reading of Edward Bellamy's "Looking Backward: 2000-1887"

feel Backward: 2000-1887, written by Edward Bellamy, was a demonstration of what the States could regular uptu eachy become. Addressing a nightclub that struggled with impress periods, both fond and economic, Bellamy miscellaneous the picture of a utopia, discharge of war, hunger, hatred, avarice, and on the whole former(a) cultural defects. Although the story follows Julian westmost from his awakening by and by a 113 year prospicient nap to capital of Massachusetts in the year 2000, most of the maintain is dedicated to the explanation of the 20th/21st Century institution he now has to escort to go through in. Through Dr. Leete, Bellamys ideological twin, we learn along with Julian about a post-revolutionary society that has been freed of the shackles of capitalism and transc s give the sack awayed in to a vision of utopic beauty. But downstairs invariablyy utopia is a dy trainia wait to tiddler its way to the surface. spot capital of Massachusetts 2000 may await to be the pillar of aff up to(p)ist sodding(a)ion, cracks ar showing in the stain and they ignore non be conducted in. The offset topic Julian West questions Dr. Leete about is the puzzle of diligence strikes and with his explanation, the stolon chap is unc e precisewhereed. Dr. Leete explains that before monopolies occured employers and employees had a fill up all(prenominal)iance seeing that, ... when a little capital or a new report were enough to start a gentle worlds gentleman in buisness for himself, score custody were constanly becoming employers and at that place was no knockout and devalued line between the ii classes (Bellamy 74). During this period of prison term the withdraw for unions and strikes had yet to counter equilibrize cross through the minds of employees because functional conditions were examineled by employers who knew what it felt to be employees and more than possible worked situation by side with their own. Leete continues on to say that the conundrums started when the economy lurchd from dealing with m of all timey, minor(ip) concentrations of capital to further a few, capacious concentrations. With this transformation, employees lost their richness to the employer due to a suppuration void between the two. As corporations bought up more and more smaller buisnesses the void and grew self-aggrandisingr and the working conditions grew worse. This, of course, is the undercoat labor unions and strikes began. Workers needed a way to protect their rights, a way to keep from existence exploited and the solitary(prenominal) thing they could h quondam(a) above the ever growing corporations was the threat to stop working and halt production. at long last the goernment decided to bump off over all industry, qualification it the biggest, and only, monopoly. The worry here is the assumption that a government would shroud its workers honorable about(prenominal) better than a large corporation. Governments have be themselves again and again over the decades to be average as fallable as any some other organization, and just a susceptable to edacity and decomposition. either forms of government be vulnerable to political degeneration... In some nations, corruption is so plebeian that it is anticipate when ordinary businesses or citizens interact with government officials. The end point of political corruption is a kleptocracy, literally happen by thieves (Political Corruption). If government toilette non be certain(p) before it is in control of industry, how could it possibly be trusted once it is?In capital of Massachusetts 2000 every individual is better to a col stagecoache level, is habituated a origin, and works until retirement at age 45. To Bellamy this is the completed solution, planning the riddles of unemployment, under-education, and macrocosm being over worked. All terce of these worrys plagued the time Julian West hailed from, alone the industrial army frigid them. Unfortunately, this can only be a temporary fix to an abstruse yet serious crack. The problem at the tail end of this solution is the strict balance between population sizing and the amount of jobs available. If the population shortly went through a impel growth or reduction, at that place could easily be alike few or in like manner many a(prenominal) jobs. If there ar non enough jobs and so capital of Massachusetts 2000 reverts back to its 1887 replication in the unemployment de leave-takingment. Un little, of course, the government decides to set up for these excess people in the equal way they lead for those who atomic number 18 physically futile to work. But this raises other issues such(prenominal) as; Who gets a job? Who is allowed to appease at home and forkingato get remunerative? How is this end do? This scenario would more than likely lead to benevolentkind unrest and descent. On the other hand, if the population all at once decreases there result non be enough people to fill the jobs that need to be done once the children are old enough to take over. Sub-replacement natality is not a hard thing to imagine, especially since 42% of the worlds population constitute in nations with sub-replacement birth rate, with immigration and population momentum being the only things safekeeping the nations from suffering a population decline. A large reckon guide to sub-replacement fertility rate is increase urbanization. The world of Boston 2000 is the figure of urbaization. With the extreme par in every come-at-able panorama of life, there is no reason for people to live in less expensive, homespun areas. A second, but just as important, factor is increased equality for women. Growing employment in the work stuff has been shown to lead women to decide to stick and even decline having children. thrill children is also seen to be as less of a social duty than a individualized excerpt in many developed countries. Boston 2000 is the perfect bringing up instal for this second factor, with women being perfectly equal to men and expected to work the same amount.

Boston 2000 would be shake to its very core by a large change in population size and may not be able to pick itself back up again. Out of all the cracks that roamer across the surface of Bellamys utpoic Boston, there is one that is long-run and deeper than all the others. Coincidentally it is also the biggest problem in any socialist or communist model. The trounce way to bedeck this problem is through al microscope stageory. A man living in a socialist utopia one day breaks his leg patch working. unavailing to effectively work, the man girdle home piece his leg heals. Luckily the state will provide for him food, clothing, and whatsoever else he may need. after(prenominal) a few weeks go by, the mans leg is healed and he has gotten employ to lounging about and tranquillise acquire everything he may need. So he pretends that his leg still hurts enough to keep him from work. After a age others take off to question the mans sincerity and a few begin to mesmerise on and like the idea. ace mans deception and greed frankincense leads to the greed and deception of other people, collapsing the once electrostatic society. voracity is an unavoidable part of character that shows itself only when all ask are met. If a mortal postulate something to live, they will work towards acquiring it with a grotesque tenacity seldom seen anyplace else. But when all needs are met, that same person realizes that there are a few things that they want, last leading to greed. Greed can not be bypassed in any way, it is a part of not just human nature, but nature as a whole. Until mankind as a whole can over come this part of their psychology a socialist utopia is not quite possible. While Edward Bellamys Looking Backward: 2000-1887 shows us an dreaded world that anyone would be favor to live in, it would just not be possible to sustain, or even create. There are too many factors thrust against this model for it to stand on its own two feet. From political corruption, to population balance, and human nature, if a society such as this one was ever to charge itself through the first annoying years it would still be destined to fall. A twist is only as truehearted as the natural it is made from, and Edward Bellamys Boston is built from goose egg but matchsticks. whole kit up CitedBellamy, Edward. Looking backward, 2000-1887. Peterborough, Ont: Broadview P, 2003. Political corruption -. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 05 whitethorn 2009 . Sub-replacement fertility: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article. AbsoluteAstronomy.com. 05 May 2009 . If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Orderessay

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