We talked about the game of Pachinko in our class discussion, and how it relates back to the structure of the book: life based on chance, based on personal choice, and / or based on odds rigged against the characters. Do you think your personal life is like a casino game, based on chance and luck, or is it based on free will? Do you feel that the odds are stacked against you and unchangeable? Did this novel influence your perception or change your understanding of life?
After our class discussion on Tuesday, I took some time to reflect on life and see how the topics we talked about on Tuesday relates to our present day world. This introspection of mine led me to believe that life is a gamble and that certain individuals do have an advantage in the world, however at the same time, I do believe that those dealt with a poor hand can still work their way up if they work really hard.
It is undeniable that wealth plays a role in this advantage certain groups of people have. As the wealth gap continues, so does this level of advantage. The role money has is applicable throughout all of time and space. In the context of Pachinko, it is seen through Hansu being able to pay fully for his son's tuition, his ability to learn of an attack before it arises, and the influence it has in the politics of the story allowing the Korean individual named Sunja to come to Japan. Wealth grants individuals to do things many other people in the world can't do.
In the present day world, the upper class contains a significant portion of the wealth. In a topic I learned from my business calculus class, I learned of the gini index. This index is meant to illustrate the distribution of wealth in the country. In a range from zero to one, this indicator shows where the distribution falls: the closer to zero, the more the population owns the country's wealth; the closer to one, the less the population owns the country's wealth. In the United States from 2014-2018, the Gini index was 0.4822 as reported by the population reference bureau. It's disheartening to see how much of our wealth is in the hands of a select few individuals.
I believe though, that the people can strive to reach new economic heights. Us students are attending university, for the prospect of an improved financial future. We're seeing the hand we're given, and are working in hopes to make it better. I think that people that aren't in the top one percent of wealth can reach those heights, if they work hard and have some luck.
Hard work and a bit of luck are certainly some of the most essential ingredients to the entrée called success.
ReplyDeleteWealth does give certain people an advantage in life, but I agree that hard work can get anyone higher up in life.
ReplyDeleteI agree that both sides are partially correct. Someone born in poverty will not have the same opportunities as someone born with wealthy parents. However, I also think that hard work helps people go far in life.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your take, but it is important to recognize that most of us never have and never will experience extreme poverty, and having to live one meal at a time certainly makes it a lot harder to work hard. Although I suppose that's where the luck part comes in handy...
ReplyDeleteI think your idea is very fair, and also very optimistic which I like!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information about the Gini index! I'd be interested in seeing how that number has changed during the pandemic. I like how optimistic you are about everyone being able to create wealth, but I don't entirely agree with that. There are many instances where it's impossible to generate wealth when all odds are stacked against you. Very interesting post, and I enjoyed reading about a different viewpoint from my own!
ReplyDeleteI never hear of the Gini Index and its so interesting to read about it in your blog post. I'm going to look into it more now so thanks for bringing it up
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with your positive outlook on the 'gamble' of life!
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