One Defining poverty
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Paul Spicker
Abstract
This book explores the different meanings of poverty and the views that people hold about it. Although the book is written as an introduction to ideas about poverty, it is unlikely that anyone who reads it will have no prior thoughts about what ‘poverty’ might mean. If the way the book deals with the subject does not fit with the way that readers understand the issues, it will probably seem to miss the point. From the perspective of someone who thinks that poverty is about malnutrition and destitution in developing countries, a study of how people live in the banlieues of Paris or a housing scheme in Glasgow is likely to seem marginally relevant at best. If poverty is about how people live, the vast literature on measuring low income may seem irrelevent. If poverty is all about low income, a discussion of social problems might look like a distraction – poverty might lead to problems, but that is not the main issue. And where people think that poverty is about social problems, focusing on malnutrition and destitution offers a very narrow perspective on a much wider set of questions. The various understandings of poverty are often inconsistent, and there is no easy way to reconcile them all.
The best way to understand what a term means is not usually to start with a definition, because people mean different things by the same words. Long ago, philosophers used to define things in terms of ‘essence’ and ‘attributes’. If we wanted to define a term, it would have an ‘essence’, something at the core, and we could detect it by looking at the way it appeared, and working out what the thing really was.
Abstract
This book explores the different meanings of poverty and the views that people hold about it. Although the book is written as an introduction to ideas about poverty, it is unlikely that anyone who reads it will have no prior thoughts about what ‘poverty’ might mean. If the way the book deals with the subject does not fit with the way that readers understand the issues, it will probably seem to miss the point. From the perspective of someone who thinks that poverty is about malnutrition and destitution in developing countries, a study of how people live in the banlieues of Paris or a housing scheme in Glasgow is likely to seem marginally relevant at best. If poverty is about how people live, the vast literature on measuring low income may seem irrelevent. If poverty is all about low income, a discussion of social problems might look like a distraction – poverty might lead to problems, but that is not the main issue. And where people think that poverty is about social problems, focusing on malnutrition and destitution offers a very narrow perspective on a much wider set of questions. The various understandings of poverty are often inconsistent, and there is no easy way to reconcile them all.
The best way to understand what a term means is not usually to start with a definition, because people mean different things by the same words. Long ago, philosophers used to define things in terms of ‘essence’ and ‘attributes’. If we wanted to define a term, it would have an ‘essence’, something at the core, and we could detect it by looking at the way it appeared, and working out what the thing really was.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Preface iv
- Acknowledgements vii
- About the author viii
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Understanding poverty
- Defining poverty 3
- Poverty in different societies 11
- Understanding the figures 19
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Poverty as material need
- Concepts of need 29
- Area deprivation 37
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Poverty as economic position
- Economic resources 45
- Class 53
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Poverty and social relationships
- Social exclusion 65
- Dependency 73
- Poverty and politics 83
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Poverty as a moral concept
- The moral dimensions of poverty 93
- The moral condemnation of the poor 101
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Explanations for poverty
- Why people are poor 111
- Why poor countries stay poor 121
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Responses to poverty
- Responding to poverty 135
- Policies for poverty 143
- Notes 153
- Index 173
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Preface iv
- Acknowledgements vii
- About the author viii
-
Understanding poverty
- Defining poverty 3
- Poverty in different societies 11
- Understanding the figures 19
-
Poverty as material need
- Concepts of need 29
- Area deprivation 37
-
Poverty as economic position
- Economic resources 45
- Class 53
-
Poverty and social relationships
- Social exclusion 65
- Dependency 73
- Poverty and politics 83
-
Poverty as a moral concept
- The moral dimensions of poverty 93
- The moral condemnation of the poor 101
-
Explanations for poverty
- Why people are poor 111
- Why poor countries stay poor 121
-
Responses to poverty
- Responding to poverty 135
- Policies for poverty 143
- Notes 153
- Index 173
