Herbert Gans wrote the "Uses of Poverty," in 1971. In the essay he wrote about what he believed to be the thirteen functions of poverty. Basically, he says that the poor end up with the worst jobs and the worst housing, and etc. all because somebody has to do it. He believed that not only does poverty serve a purpose to society that poverty provides a barrier for people to base their wealth. He also wrote that the poor help keep the aristocracy busy, because the upper class continues to gain points by "dedicating" themselves to end poverty. However, poverty is what keeps them in the lights in the first place. Some of the more important functions will be discussed in this essay.
The first and second functions of poverty, as written by Herbert Gans, deals with the fact that the existence of poverty ensures that society's dirty work will get done and that because the poor work these "low-wage" jobs, they have to subsidize a variety of economic activities that benefit the affluent. Every society has these types of jobs, the dangerous, temporary, dead-end and underpaid jobs that nobody else wants. So, guess who end up taking these jobs? The poor do only because they can't do any better. And for the same reason they have to subsidize a variety of economic activities that benefit the affluent.
Another one of Herbert's functions that I feel is important is that the poor "buy goods others do not want and thus prolong the economic usefulness of such goods." For example, the poor don't mind day-old bread, secondhand clothing, or deteriorating cars to name a few. This is the kind of thing we do with third world countries, we give them our old technology and such that we no longer use or need. We are helping the poor out while also getting rid of things that we consider obsolete. .
Poverty also helps people to recognize that status of those who are not poor. Somebody always has to be at the bottom of the hierarchical structure, and with the definition of poverty people can measure themselves.
