What is poverty?

What is poverty?        

        Poverty is a social problem of big dimensions, which is why its definition varies into many diverse ways. Generally speaking, poverty is defined as the inability of a family to cover its spendings. This focus classifies a family as poor or not poor. However, whenever this type of family can not cover the requirements to feed itself, it is considered to be in extreme poverty.

        On the first chapter ‘The poor are very different from you and me’ the author, Polak, provides examples of four people who live in Bahrimpur. Looking into the perspective of any other villager who lives in Bahrimpur, their conditions are very different; however, if this four conditions were looked from an outsider point of view their situations would be similar, as Polak explains “people like Sunil and the others all share similar limitations imposed on them by geography, history, and culture.” (Polak. ch.1, pg.32). In other words, the way this two point of views are different is because they are looked from different perspectives and different circumstances of the person. “Definitions of poverty by economists and officials worldwide span a wide range” explains Polak on chapter 3, page 37, where he also says that “The differences are both quantitative and qualitative.” for example; In a european country the concept of poverty is not having a car or a house to live throughout the summer; but for an african country, poverty means not having enough spendings to go to the doctor, to pay for education, and for something to eat.

        Although there is a wide range to define poverty because of a wide range of different perspectives, there are also similar limitations that any definition of poverty share: the lack of resources. Taking aside the geographic location of the country, ignoring the difference of cultures and history, if a person lacks of resources to maintain him/herself or his/her family, he/ she will be considered to be living in extreme poverty. That is the general definition of poverty, not being able: to pay their own spendings, to have the opportunity to travel, to be aware of the news, to have very few choices, to not have the chance to look beyond the future, and to live in misfortune every single day. Those are the things that create the big gap between the poverty and wealth. People with good wealth live every single day without having to worry for the present, and their income is much higher than any other person living in poverty.

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