Sociology 266 Assignment
Week 12 Readings Due on Thursday 11/14/12
This week’s reading deal with issues of poverty and class. They include a number of
articles that complicate common stereotypes about poverty. I can pretty much
GUARANTEE that the exam will have a MANDATORY essay question based on the
article and discussion surrounding the “rethinking American poverty” article so read it
carefully. Avoid skimming, or using the find function to search for words from my
questions. As always, do your best to answer the questions in your own words. DO NOT
SIMPLY transcribe text from the article to your page. If you quote the text, be sure do
use quotation marks and to provide a proper citation. It should look like this: On page 1,
Eimer begins his argument by noting that “many people tell him they regret that they did
not do the assigned readings when they were in college since they seldom have time to
read” (Eimer 2006: 2). If you do not cite the text when asked, and do not cite properly,
you will be marked down. There are 6 questions and one extra credit opportunity
The Ph.D Now Comes With Food Stamps
1. “It’s the dirty little secret of higher education.” Those are the words of someone quoted
in the article. Please explain what this secret is, being sure to cite the text in your answer.
rethinking american poverty
2. Rank suggests Americans need to rethink the way they think about poverty. To make
this case, he first suggests that we need to recognize that poverty affects us all in at least
two ways. Please explain these two ways, being sure to provide statistical evidence for
each way.
3. Rank suggests poverty should be viewed as a result of “structural failings.” Please
explain what he means, being sure to comment on the issue of jobs and the social safety
net.
When Unionization Disappears…
4. Most Americans have misconceptions about the poor. We’ll discuss the difference
between some of these myths and fact more in class. The beginning of this article
addresses a common misconception about poor families and work. Please explain the
point the authors make, being sure to cite the text somewhere in your answer.
General and Extra Credit
5. The people profiled in the article on PhDs with Food Stamps have excelled in school
and gone on to earn PhDs. They do not lack motivation and are responsible. Try to
connect the points made by Rank and the food stamp article to explain why the PhDs are
poor. Be sure to cite at least one of the articles in your answer.
6. Most people would agree that if you have a PhD and work, you should not be on food
stamps. What, if anything, could be done to address this situation?
EXTRA CREDIT (1pt) on next page
I used to assign a much longer article by Rank, but students struggled with it so I replaced
it with the one you were asked to read. In the longer article, which I will teach you about
in class, Ranks states the following: “…lack of human capital and other marketable
characteristics helps to explain who is at a heightened risk of poverty, the fact that
poverty exists in the first place results not from these characteristics, but from the lack of
decent opportunities and supports in society.” If you can interpret this from sociology
speak to normal English, I’ll give you an extra point. For what it’s worth, he explains this
in the article that you read in the text around the musical chairs example.