Oh goodness, the sparks both react so strongly to the conditions of the tenement life depicted in Anbinder, that I have actually forgotten what strong feelings I was gonna post about. Honestly though, I feel horrible for not having that strong of a reaction to the conditions that Five Pointers faced. I took notes about what I reacted to after reading, and I probably put a sentence or two on the page in relation to the conditions. Perhaps it’s because I’ve read about it so many times in so many other books depicting this location and era that it doesn’t have an effect on me anymore. Perhaps I’m just that heartless. Perhaps it’s some spectacular third reason.
As bad as their conditions were though, I disagree with Rebecca’s statement that these sort of conditions make socialism seem like the better option. With socialism, everyone gets the same pay, same amount of property. The incentive to work harder, the motivation to strive to do something creative or even beneficial to the community, is suppressed. With capitalism, the opportunity to use your brain and get ahead of others, it’s there. As Liz said, people are greedy anyway. Survival of the fittest, humans are always going to want to climb to the top and dominate the pyramid, no matter what economic system you use. I think capitalism embraces this undeniable aspect of human nature, instead of inhumanely suppressing it through socialism. [Despite how anti-socialism that may sound, I’m not THAT much against it… I’ve considered it over capitalism in the past too]
Oh no, now I’ve REALLY forgotten what I wanted to talk about. Hmm…
Is it wrong that what irked me was not the conditions in which these people lived, but rather the process that certain areas of NY had to undergo? I was particularly torn apart when reading about the Collect in Anbinder. In fact, I was distraught about Queens as well in Foner. They both seemed to depict serene, naturally beautiful areas that would have made Laura Ingalls Wilder squeal with joy. Then the city has to expand, or the slaughterhouses have to relocate due to being banned from inhabited areas. Goodbye nature, and hello congested city life. I can’t believe that something as “verdant and bucolic” as the Collect Pond area became the notorious slum that was Five Points. But I love observing nature, so that’s just me.
Speaking of observing, as “slumming” was described in greater detail in Anbinder, I couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed. The term “self-fulfilling prophecy” came to mind. It was like viewing wild animals on display. I felt that if I lived in Five Points and saw people being escorted around to “observe” us, I would feel like I was some sort of animal. I would probably eventually truly believe that I was some substandard form of man, and this would hinder my psychological and mental growth. While slumming may benefit those unaware of poverty or looking to write exposes, I still feel like it would create a culture of poverty, a group of people who would feel that they were destined to be filthy and poor, and would never be able to rise above that (I don’t know if “culture of poverty,” refers directly to what I just described though). Being on display like that, I felt like it made the Five Pointers feel trapped within their low status, and doomed to stay there.
Something that also irked me was how Five Points was being “used.” Anti-abolitionists used FP as a means to say that slaves weren’t that bad off; Republicans used the Democratic orientation that FP had as a means to put down the Democratic Party. It made me feel like “Not only are these people poor and filthy, but they’re being used for other group’s corrupted agendas?”
Foner’s book is always full of facts and statistics, and I find that you’re either interested in the statistics, or you’re not. Certain figures managed to grab my attention. One of the facts that interested me from her chapter was the lack of Asian discrimination and their ability to move more easily into middle-class suburban areas. I was also amazed at some of the finer distinctions that she managed to pinpoint among ethnic groups. As someone who is Guyanese, I was amazed to see that she took a brief moment to state how interesting it was that Guyanese Indians and Guyanese Blacks tend to live apart in different areas, despite being from the same country. I didn’t think the distinction could have been made (I know of the clash between the two groups in Guyana, but I wasn’t aware that it was evident based on how Guyanese immigrants settle in the city).
I actually was intrigued by the transition from Five Points to Brownsville as I read the books. Anbinder mentions the area a few times in his chapters, and then I opened a book that described its history in great detail. Again, I was angered at how farmland was turned into a tenement display. But personally, as I read this, I felt like it was almost no different from the conditions described in FP, except this community had the Jewish feel. I actually felt like everything I read in this chapter had been said for Five Points (of course, there were political, social, and cultural differences).
Canal Street was mentioned often when describing the history of Five Points. Having been to Canal Street to attend a performance that was mandatory for my Arts Seminar, I was really intrigued. Canal street seemed so normal (I cant think of any other word besides that), and so I couldn’t believe what it once was. This actually sparked my interest and made me search up the history of where I grew up, which would be Jamaica, Queens. We are residing on top of crucial history, and we sometimes forget it.
