Something that has been in my mind since last Thursday (2/25) has also been this idea of equality vs. competition. It was only briefly mentioned in class but I think it's a good thing to point out. Equality and competition are two things that we try to stress in our society, or in our culture, however they do conflict with one another.
Equality--we want everyone to be equal no matter their race, religion, gender, sexuality, etc. But what does that mean? Equal in what way? For one, we all want the same rights. ok. We all want equal opportunities in the work place, job market, schools, and when buying a home. We know that we still have a ways to go before our wants become reality because there still isn't pure equality in these.
Competition--we value good ol' competition. It drives us to succeed, it separates the strong from the weak. Our culture encourages competition in sports and academics. Be the best you can be and all that. However as we read, money has a lot to do with that. A lot of times money can open the door to more opportunities that can enable a student to prep better for a test (resulting in a better grade), or go to a more challenging school. I know of at least a couple cases where girls were not originally accepted into my high school but admissions changed their mind after their parents made a hefty donation.
We say "where there is a will, there is a way" but sometimes it needs a little help. Sometimes hard work doesn't pay off.
How can we live in a society that values both equality and competition when they contradict each other? Are we actually striving for equality in all cases, or just to make us look like we care? Just because we say we are post racism does not make it so. Just because we say we are equal does not make it happen in our society. Our competition is not exactly fair. We don't have an even playing field here.
So, which do we value more? any votes?
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MIranda I would vote that we say we value equality more, but it is on a philosophical level. We create laws to level the playing field, stamp out discrimination, and protect everyone equally (at least in theory). However, this is the starting point for the competition that American society bills as the "American Dream". We are all equal in the fact that we can compete, but competition is what we value, in my opinion, more than equality in practice.
ReplyDeleteIt all starts at a young age. We all play tee-ball or soccer and everyone gets a certificate or a trophy so we are all supposedly equal, but they keep score and kids know the difference between winning and losing. In school you get grades and are likely to compare them with your peers or the teacher may even show you a chart of the average score and you can deduce for yourself how you stack up against the competition. Because we soon learn that they are the people we will have to compete with for jobs and our livelihoods. This competition is life long.
You have pointed to the implicit advantages that some people have and I do not think anyone would want to give up their advantages because we love competition and the ability to "achieve" and "move up" in society. It is what helps to distinguish us as individuals. If we were all equal, we would be more limited in the ways in which to create our identities. And the freedom to create one's life and identity are probably the most important characteristics of American society.
In sum, my vote is for competition over equality.