The Cost of Progress
When progress comes at the price of people and their well-being, we are all in danger of not living with security, freedom, and respect. My mind wandered back to my education on the Industrial Revolution in America, when Polanyi said, “pauperism and progress are inseparable”(Kindle, 2875). To this day, it still disturbs me the price we paid for progress during that era. The lives of: children, immigrants, impoverished, and minorities were dispensable and devalued as progress was achieved with such a furious intensity. People of all ages were literally being worked to death, thus provoking the much-needed labor laws that still influence our industries today. Feudalism is also a prime example of a few benefiting lavishly off the labor of others creating a gross imbalance of quality of life. It begs the question, “Can progress and transformation in a society be achieved without the price of inequality or impoverishment?”
As a teacher, in an attempt to help my 7th graders know how to identify with and understand the powerlessness and cruelty of slavery, I had them split up according to eye color. The dark-eyed were “masters” and in charge, while the blue-eyed were “slaves”. To prevent a “Lord of the Flies” experience, I put down some ground-rules of what could or couldn’t be done, which I found to be fortuitous. The “slaves” owned nothing and had to ask permission of the “masters” before they could: sharpen their pencils, go the bathroom, be excused for recess….etc, and they had to perform services for their master like: throw their trash away, get them snacks, assist with work, etc… Despite my teachings on empathy, respect, and it being a Christian school, the masters became increasingly restrictive, inconsiderate, and arrogant. They thoroughly enjoyed having power over their classmates and gloated greedily in the faces of their disgruntled slaves. Even though they were all old enough to understand this was an experiment and boundaries were being kept, the slaves were becoming increasingly uncomfortable, agitated and frustrated with their powerless position.
What surprised me most was when I had them switch roles. When the slaves became the masters, they were worse than their predecessors! Instead of treating them how they would have wanted to be treated, they were eager to be in the position of power and lorded their authority over their slaves. To the relief of all, everyone was promoted to equals and we processed the exercise. Both groups detested being the slaves, but when they were the masters they loved being in charge and lost all empathy for one another. They experienced a society where progress came at the cost of another and how, when given the opportunity, it was repeated. In comparison to some industrial ages throughout history, I discovered middle schoolers don’t behave much different than grown adults, greedy for power and gain.
When a society’s single intent is on progress and forgets the value of humans and nature, destruction appears to outweigh the gains of progress as the next generation inherits progress along with difficult issues. In recounting similar societies, Polanyi summarizes it best with: “After a century of blind “improvements” man is restoring his “habitation”. If industrialism is not to extinguish the race, it must be subordinated to the requirements of man’s nature”(Kindle, 5806). In pursuing progress, it is an intelligent and fortunate society to achieve gains to the benefit of humans and nature, and establish a culture and society where all are treated with equity and respect.
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Jennifer Dean-Hill
7 responses to “The Cost of Progress”
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“The lives of: children, immigrants, impoverished, and minorities were dispensable and devalued as progress was achieved with such a furious intensity.” Unfortunately, “progress” and self-interested investment into the system continue to perpetuate inequality today. We see it in the way we value “cheap” food, not realizing that the true cost is borne by the laborers and land that bring it to us. As you note, those in power are highly invested with maintaining that status quo; if they didn’t, those oppressed may seek revenge. Your story was reminiscent of The Lord of the Flies!
The political climate is so agitated these days, I am not sure that you could do your 7th grade social experiment.
Even so, it is something true about human nature, that those in power seem to forget what it was like before they had it. Look at college fraternities and sororities. Some of the hazing rituals still utilized on new members are brutal, but explained away because “I had to do it when I was a freshman.”
That is why the gospel is truly revolutionary. I don’t see a lot of “and the last will be first” in the world today.
Yeah, I agree Stu. I can’t imagine doing that experiment today.
I saw that more with the Asian culture, the last shall be first in Thailand. Was that your experience? They were so polite.
I read this recently and it lines up with what you are saying Jennifer:
“Think of labour markets. We all exist within labour markets of one form or another, we’ve become more and more familiar with using the language of labour markets, but there is a non-commodified essence to the human form before it becomes labour. We’re just people and we have needs as people. Those needs as people might very well clash with the needs that we have to demonstrate as labour. The BMJ [British Medical Journal] has, for example, documented a whole catalogue of new psychological illnesses over the last 10 or 20 years that come with new forms of work. So as the labour market makes more and more demands of us, the less and less able we are to function as human beings; we lose some of that essential human essence.”
Source: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/features/polanyi/
Jen, thanks for bringing out the really human aspect of the discussion. Your stories bring out the heart of the issue. We are ‘social’ beings, but what should that look like?
Actually, I thought of Lord of the Flies while reading Polanyi’s illustrations of the African tribes. The reason is, though he rightly points out that we’ve commodified land and labor, he has also made a “thing” out of economics. Nothing, not even economics, exists in a vacuum apart from people. And those people are sinful. Socialism won’t be the answer.
Like you, I am longing for a culture where “all are treated with equity and respect.”
I did a similar experiment each year with my high school students, Jen. What I found interesting is that there was always one or two students (on both teams) who had empathy and refused to go along with the other masters. It was a great object lesson for abolition and resistance.
I really appreciate your comments about the human toll of progress. It seems to be a never-ending battle. I think Polanyi’s insight into the sociology of the economy can help us understand why money-first ideals are so destructive.
You question Jen,
“Can progress and transformation in a society be achieved without the price of inequality or impoverishment?”
I would love to believe that it would be but since Cain and Abel, we have experience hate for one another. We share our views with our children whether verbal and by our actions. I would say Most adults are grown children. They still have the need to be first and the best.
Great write up.