Money and The World of Work
In Altruria, which is an explicitly Christian country, money has been abolished, so its inhabitants have even forgotten that there used to be a division between rich and poor. Every citizen is entitled to everything they need at any given time, so there is no need, and actually no way, to save for a rainy day, while amassing a fortune is impossible as well. Physical labour is shared amongst the working population so that no one has to work for more than three hours per day. Also, there is no need to hurry so that craftsmanship flourishes and every finished product resembles a work of art. By common consent, cheap and faulty merchandise such as the "Saturday night shoe" is no longer produced.
Whereas in Altruria there is no such thing as workers' exploitation, the American banker explains to Homos how business is done in the United States:
The first lesson of business, and the last, is to use other men's gifts and powers. If he looks about him at all, he sees that no man gets rich simply by his own labor, no matter how mighty a genius he is, and that, if you want to get rich, you must make other men work for you, and pay you for the privilege of doing so.
The banker then adds that, as an entrepreneur, working "for the profit of all" (as suggested by Homos) rather than working for one's own profit would be "contrary to the American spirit. It is alien to our love of individuality". Anyone who wants to be successful in this world will try to do so by getting rich. As a reaction to this, Homos just points out that in Altruria, excellence is achieved by excellently serving others.
When talking about American workers, the worker
"is dependent upon the employer for his chance to earn a living, and he is never sure of this. He may be thrown out of work by his employer's disfavor or disaster, and his willingness to work goes for nothing; there is no public provision of work for him; there is nothing to keep him from want, nor the prospect of anything" (p. 66)
Read more about this topic: A Traveler From Altruria
Famous quotes containing the words money, world and/or work:
“Had I but plenty of money, money enough and to spare,
The house for me, no doubt, were a house in the city-square;
Ah, such a life, such a life, as one leads at the window there!”
—Robert Browning (1812–1889)
“Your responsibility as a parent is not as great as you might imagine. You need not supply the world with the next conqueror of disease or a major movie star. If your child simply grows up to be someone who does not use the word “collectible” as a noun, you can consider yourself an unqualified success.”
—Fran Lebowitz (20th century)
“The best thing about Sassy Seats is that grandmothers cannot figure out how they work and are in constant fear of the child’s falling. This often makes them forget to comment on other aspects of the child’s development, like why he is not yet talking or is still wearing diapers. Some grandmothers will spend an entire meal peering beneath the table and saying, “Is that thing steady?” rather than, “Have you had a doctor look at that left hand?””
—Anna Quindlen (20th century)