In Wealth and Commonwealth Henry Lloyd critiques the capitalist system that creates wealth, only to breed greed. He claims that, while “nature is rich”, humans everywhere throughout time have been poor. This paradox is due to a flawed system. He believes that there are enough resources to create a comfortable, wealthy life for all. Lloyd appeals to his audiences logic by suggesting that only so much is needed for one person to live a “wealthy” life and that having too much is just as bad as having too little. He reasons that the strive for competition drives the economy and creates liberty, but that the wealth that comes from it destroys liberty. He also touches the heart strings of his audience by arguing that there are enough resources on Earth to provide the global population with comfort and freedom even greater than that of the most idealistic utopian societies ever dreamt up. By stating that our society will not be destroyed from barbarians from below, but rather by those from above, Lloyd makes another emotional appeal while also displaying his character. The statement strikes questioning, if not fear, into those concerned about the direction of society and shows that he strongly believes in the need for greater equality. The author makes a very convincing argument calling for the need to spread the wealth. In particular, pointing out the fact that such a small minority controls such a huge portion of the wealth, while others are starving. He also clearly shows respect for what industry can do by noting that it does create wealth for society but those in control choose to hoard it. He could do better, though, in making a call to action by focusing his efforts toward the factory owners and monopoly-men he is critiquing.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
TA Lead: Wealth and Commonwealth
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Your analysis was very detailed and did an excellent job of touching on the major points of the excerpt. In his book, Henry Lloyd borrowed heavily from the social and political philosophy of John Locke. The idea that there was an abundance of resources and that hoarding them out of greed was destructive to society, can be directly traced to his, "Second Treatise on Civil Government." I believe that this is the reason he did not choose to address his appeal toward the factory owners or monopoly-men. The people, and by extension, the government are duty-bound to regulate these destructive practises (monopolies.) That can only be done when the people are made aware of the root of the problem, and will push for legislation to correct it. Unfair business practices and corporate greed continue to plague our country. Lloyd may have been right about the destruction of our country coming at the hands of, "...barbarians...from above."
ReplyDeleteYou did a great wrap up analysis of the text first off! I thought it was interesting that although he used no names in his "Wealth against common wealth" everyone that read it seemed to know it was directed towards Rockfeller and the Standard Oil. Another quote I found interesting in the text was "They need not make money; they can take it from those who have made it." The whole point is to gain full control of the railroads.
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