Monday, June 20, 2005

Nobility of the Image 4

IV.
Naturally, the situation also changes in the nineteenth century with the rise of a capitalist economy. Whereas previous generations had considered trade to be dishonorable, now there was a merchant class whose wealth was rivaling that of the nobility and who desperately wanted the status of the nobility. After the European revolutions ended the idea of hereditary nobility, these capitalists enshrined themselves as a sort of industrial nobility. The values of the capitalist countries reveal this; hard work and sacrifice and the entrepreneurial spirit become the paramount values and the belief in a “meritocracy” becomes central to social life. We see this in the Netherlands, Great Britain, and finally the United States of the twentieth century; the man in the gray flannel suit reigns supreme.

The idea of a meritocracy is strange because it asserts that everyone is born poor, and that the rich are rich because of their intrinsic abilities. This is perhaps why noblesse oblige is relatively unheard of in the United States. However, it seems ridiculous to expect the elites to not pass on their wealth and status to their children, and perhaps inhumane. In fact, the family is the core unit of unequal social structures, which is probably why the Khmer Rouge spent so much time trying to deprogram the Cambodian people’s belief in Confucian ideals of filial piety. So, we should understand that, were we to wipe out social inequality, we would have to wipe out the family; a move that I personally do not feel is worthwhile.

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