Fourth, the poor buy goods others do not want and thus prolong the economic usefulness of such
goods - day-old bread, fruit and vegetables that otherwise would have to be thrown out,
secondhand clothes, and deteriorating automobiles and buildings. They also provide incomes for
doctors, lawyers, teachers, and others who are too old, poorly trained or incompetent to attract
more affluent clients.
In addition to economic functions, the poor perform a number of social functions:
Fifth, the poor can be identified and punished as alleged or real deviants in order to uphold the
legitimacy of conventional norms. To justify the desirability of hard work, thrift, honesty, and
monogamy, for example, the defenders of these norms must be able to find people who can be
accused of being lazy, spendthrift, dishonest, and promiscuous. Although there is some evidence
that the poor are about as moral and law-abiding as anyone else, they are more likely than middleclass
transgressors to be caught and punished when they participate in deviant acts. Moreover,
they lack the political and cultural power to correct the stereotypes that other people hold of them
and thus continue to be thought of as lazy, spendthrift, etc., by those who need living proof that
moral deviance does not pay.
Fourth, the poor buy goods others do not want and thus prolong the economic usefulness of suchgoods - day-old bread, fruit and vegetables that otherwise would have to be thrown out,secondhand clothes, and deteriorating automobiles and buildings. They also provide incomes fordoctors, lawyers, teachers, and others who are too old, poorly trained or incompetent to attractmore affluent clients.In addition to economic functions, the poor perform a number of social functions:Fifth, the poor can be identified and punished as alleged or real deviants in order to uphold thelegitimacy of conventional norms. To justify the desirability of hard work, thrift, honesty, andmonogamy, for example, the defenders of these norms must be able to find people who can beaccused of being lazy, spendthrift, dishonest, and promiscuous. Although there is some evidencethat the poor are about as moral and law-abiding as anyone else, they are more likely than middleclasstransgressors to be caught and punished when they participate in deviant acts. Moreover,they lack the political and cultural power to correct the stereotypes that other people hold of themand thus continue to be thought of as lazy, spendthrift, etc., by those who need living proof thatmoral deviance does not pay.
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