Nickel and Dimed

still not truly free. Men have the opportunity to pursue various occupations, whereas a majority of women must settle for nursing, cleaning, or childcare occupations due to sexist employers. Barbara Ehrenreich explains her struggle as a maid in Nickel and Dimed. They are forced to carry a vacuum on their back weighing around fourteen pounds as well as use “the hands-and-knees approach” when they are scrubbing floors (Ehrenreich 83). This keeps women from enjoying their occupations, eliminating…

In the excerpt “Serving in Florida,” from the novel Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich, the author incorporates herself into America’s underpaid, working class from 1998 to 2000. She labors for long hours with little compensation attempting to survive on her earnings. The economy plays a ginormous role in the experience and quality of life she endures at the time. In the present economy, Ehrenreich’s journey would differ vastly. Barbara Ehrenreich’s experience in today’s economy would be…

The American Dream The concept of “rags to riches” has been around since the mid-1800s. Many people used to believe that the social class people were born into did not necessarily determine their life’s path. A great example of the American Dream is Andrew Carnegie. Andrew began as a poor Irish immigrant, and went on to almost monopolize the American steel industry. Proving the fact that determination and work allow every-day people to achieve their dreams. The American Dream was once an idea…

minimum wage just to make ends meet? Many people have trouble living a stable life and rarely have the chance to move up in social class. Being able to move up in social class through hard work and opportunity is defined as the American Dream. In Nickel and Dimed, Ehrenreich argues that the American Dream is impossible for the lower class to achieve due to making minimum wage and living in difficult situations that prevent them from living a prosperous life. In The Great Gatsby, however,…

America, we need to reduce government regulations. If we want our economy to do better than it is doing now, we need to understand that we need immigrants and the lower class, revitalize our government, and stop unnecessary government spending. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich is dedicated to express Ehrenreich’s experiences as she works undercover…

either born into a family of wealth or into a deficient situation where they simply have to commence their journey from the lowest levels of the pyramid. Literary texts such as The Great Gatsby, American Dream is Elusive for New Generation, and Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America, portray the necessity of obtaining…

Poverty is a struggle that has been a part of America for several years. There has been different ideas and reasons behind why poverty has continued to be such a tough aspect of society. These articles are a great way to understand the reasons behind poverty. Poverty has and will always be a never-ending cycle for most people in America if the government doesn’t make fixing this problem a priority. According to The Land of Opportunity, by James Loewen, young people in high school and college…

Work for most people is lifelong. Therefore this argument is significant because it involves all Americans. The only difference is some have harder jobs than others. Although Terkel’s Working and Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed are both about work, the way each portray the working class, their purpose of writing, and their attitudes toward the working class are very different. I tend to favor Terkel’s view on the working class more than Ehrenreich. However, I understand Ehrenreich is not intending…

In the novel, Nickel and Dimed: On Not Getting by in America, the author Barbara Ehrenreich undertakes an experiment about how individuals strive to survive working low-wage jobs. A person she meets in one of these jobs is a woman named Holly. Holly lives with her husband…

Millions of people work full time on minimum wage yet barely scrape by, some even have more than one job. Author Barbara Ehrenreich’s book, “Nickel and Dimed, ‘On (Not) Getting By in America,’” shows her struggle of trying to survive on minimum wage. Over a span of three months and three different locations, she obtains job(s) and attempts to survive the month. Ultimately, she fails in the last month and concludes that minimum wage is far too low to get by in America. The title is signify the…