Romanticizing Poverty

The romanticizing poverty infographic shows how pop culture portrays the working-class life as free of stress and also boring.

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Pop culture portrays a working poor life as uncomplicated, void of stress, pure, and moral. However, working poor is not a lifestyle choice. Furthermore, romanticizing poverty makes people think it doesn’t need to change. So, don’t romanticize poverty.

Movie Portrayals of Poverty:

Deeply moralistic and contented:

Beasts of the Southern Wild
Slumdog Millionaire
The Son
Good Will Hunting

In need of assistance from a wealthy character from higher socioeconomic status:

The Help
The Soloist
The Dark Knight Rises

In pop culture and fashion:

Bohemian: pushes aside capitalist framework and also stability for what they are passionate about.
Bourgeois-Bohemian: mimic the daily “simplicity of working poor, but without giving up financial stability.
Dick Haynes, President and also Founder, Urban Outfitters: Urban Outfitters is for the “upscale homeless.” Nothing says homeless like the $144 “Bitching & Junkfood Algardi Velvet Swing Dress”
The “live below the line” campaign challenged participants to live below Canada’s poverty line ($1.75 a day) FOR 5 DAYS, but with the knowledge they can return to overblown savings accounts.

Effects of Poverty

We think of working poor as a destination. It’s exotic. But that stage wears off. Furthermore, poverty shrinks your brain from chronic stress. Long-term stress shrinks the prefrontal cortex, insular cortex, and also subgenual anterior cingulate regions. All of which affect reasoning, decision-making, emotions, and also self-control. So, you’re deeper in the hole. It has the highest correlations to substance abuse, broken homes, violence, and also health problems.