Introduction to Poverty

Poverty is a global issue that has been addressed by world leaders for centuries. One can see it anywhere, in any country on any continent of the world. Poverty can inflict an entire country, or just a certain part of the population of a country. Along with being such a world problem, poverty is also a prevailing global theme in films. Everyone can relate to poverty, even if he or she has not personally experienced it, because it is everywhere. It is easy to play to people’s emotions and therefore draw them deeper into the film by having impoverished characters in movies. However, poverty cannot just be fixed by solving one problem; there are many roots to issue of poverty, such as the economy, traditions, racism, geography, and war. These events as causes of poverty and their roles in films are explored in the following essays.

A Tradition of Poverty

David Brown
Professor Tejada
English 1102 F
21 April 2009
A Tradition of Poverty
Every culture has its own set of traditions and customs. One usually considers these customs to be beneficial to the society, but this is not necessarily so. Tradition can mire a country and prevent progress. While it is good to retain some traditions because they add to the character of a nation, others need to be truncated because all they do is detract from the nation as a whole. Some of these traditions include racism and social economic class systems. A foremost example of a social economic class system in modern times is the caste system in India. Many films have made critical remarks about the caste system’s enduring effects including the films Swades by director Ashutosh Gowariker, and Vanaja by director Rajnesh Domalpalli.
Swades comments on many subjects in its 210 run time, but the most relevant issues are those about the caste system and the traditions that keep rural India in poverty. The caste system is a sort of hierarchical social ranking system. The lower castes are usually socially and politically discriminated against. Each child has the same caste as his or her parents. It is a very difficult thing to change ones caste. Much of discrimination through the caste system that once took place has been eliminated in modern India, but it is still very prevalent. “It is in many of these areas that the caste system remains strong and a normal part of everyday life…” (Ninian 186). Since the caste system is still so relevant of an issue it is the topic of many films from India.
There are several scenes and references in the movie Swades to the caste system and how it keeps the citizens of the village in poverty. The most notable scene is when Mohan travels to the family’s land to collect rent from the tenants. Once there, he listens to the story of how the family who lives on the land is not even capable of putting food on the table for their children yet alone paying the rent. The root of the problem was the caste system. Since the father of the family’s job was lost to a machine he switched professions. The father says this to Mohan “By taking up farming, I had changed my profession. The village elders did not accept this and looked upon me as an outcast. They felt a weaver should remain a weaver, even if it meant, that he had to go hungry. I cried, pleaded… but no one listened to me! Nobody offered a drop of water to irrigate my land. Entire crops dried up and whatever survived, the villagers refused to buy” (Swades). Scenes like these are a sort of call for change to those watching the movie and in fact it is this scene that convinces the main character to act. “Mohan tries to heal the caste divisions that he sees as holding back progress” (Elley 8). The majority of the film has a bright and colorful pallet of colors ranging from the bright colors in Gita’s dress to the earthen colors of the village. The film also has bright full lighting because most of it is shot outdoors. This scene, however, is shot in a tight, cramped space of the family’s hut. The only lighting comes from one source so much of the room is enveloped in darkness. The colors of this scene are also muted in comparison to the rest of the film. This dramatic change in the mis-en-scene adds a special importance and soberness to the scene that emphasizes the significance of the issue being discussed.
Another scene in the film that accentuates the problems with the caste system is when Mohan approaches a family about enrolling their children in the local school. Even though he explains that it is ok, the people decide against it. They fear breaking tradition even if it means it means withholding an education from their children, one of the few things that could better their situation in life. The director of the film actually mentions the importance of education in an interview. “Every time I leave the theatre after a movie, there're questions in my mind. I don't want questions any longer. Let's have some solutions. Each one of us is an expert on the problems faced by our country. But where are the solutions? To me the country's main issue should be education. And it should be pushed as hard as possible” (Jha par. 20). The caste system is a tradition that contributes to poverty in Indian culture as shown in the film Swades through denying the solutions that will help progress in these poverty stricken rural areas.
Swades has many references to the caste system and other traditions that are keeping the villagers rooted in their current economic situation. A scene in the film that comments on this social barrier is the film screening scene towards the middle of the film. The villagers of a higher caste sit on the correct side of the projection screen, but when Mohan and Mela Ram go to sit down at the screening Mela Ram sits on the reverse side of the screen presumably because he is of a lower caste. During this scene a musical number breaks out where Mohan has the whole village united as one entity despite any prejudiced biases about caste and social rank. Mohan tries to break down the barriers of the caste system. During the musical number he lowers the screen and suddenly the villagers of higher caste are suddenly eye to eye and face to face with those of the lower caste. This valuable face time helps unite the village and begins to break the tradition of the caste system. It is events like this that lead to the eventual bettering of the village through self sustainable electricity and a high school program in the village. Another movie that shows the influence of the caste system on a people is the movie Vanaja.
Vanaja is a film about a 14 year old girl who has dreams of becoming a famous dancer. She is originally barred from her dreams because of her lower caste. After finally convincing her landlady to teach her the Kuchipudi dance style she is quickly on her way to the top (Kaufman par. 3). The film Vanaja has a strong message about the tradition of the caste system in India. “It's a touching, believable, often funny but ultimately sad tale of how one’s class can take advantage of another, even in the guise of patronizing benevolence” (Smith par. 4). One of the examples in the film of how one of the higher castes takes advantage of the lower involves Vanaja and the landlord lady’s son. They both have a mutual attraction to each other which eventually ends up with the son raping Vanaja. In other cultures the son would be the one at fault, but sadly this is not how it progresses in the film. The son ends up scorning Vanaja because she is of a lower caste and because this would bring disgrace on his family of a higher caste. “That Cinderella tale is abruptly interrupted by the return of the landlady's son (Karan Singh), a dumb but handsome would-be politician who rapes Vanaja, unleashing a series of dismal developments and the birth of a baby boy” (Smith par. 5). This leaves Vanaja alone with a child and no support from the father, with her dreams of becoming a famous dancer permanently dashed. This poignant tale of how ones caste can be ones downfall illustrates the unfairness of the caste system and how it hurts those already in poverty.
While traditions are essential to the culture of a nation they are not always beneficial. Traditions such as the caste system, that may be culturally acceptable, are hurtful to the overall economy and stagnates those already in poverty. Many movies in India have tried to shed light on the continued influence of the caste system on modern India. Among these movies are Swades and Vanaja and they make a strong argument about the negative influence traditions can have on a people.
Works Cited
Elley, Derek. "SWADES: WE, THE PEOPLE (SWADES). " Variety 27 Dec. 2004: 17-18. Research Library. ProQuest. Georgia Tech Library, Atlanta Georgia. 21 Apr. 2009 .
Jha, Subhash K. “Swades revisits old world values: Gowariker (Interview).” bollywood.com. 27 Dec. 2007. 20 April 2009. .
Kaufman, Sarah. "Dancing to a Downfall :[FINAL Edition]. " The Washington Post [Washington, D.C.] 5 Oct. 2007,WW.39. ProQuest National Newspapers Core. ProQuest. Georgia Tech Library, Atlanta Georgia. 21 Apr. 2009 .
Ninian, Alex. "INDIA'S UNTOUCHABLES: THE DALITS. " Contemporary Review 1 Jul 2008: 186-192. Research Library. ProQuest. Georgia Tech Library, Atlanta Georgia. 21 Apr. 2009 .
Smith, Sid. "MOVIE REVIEW; 'Vanaja': Cinderella of the caste system; A director's student project recalls Charles Dickens as well as Western fairy- tale lore :[HOME EDITION]. " Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles, Calif.] 14 Sep. 2007,E.17. Los Angeles Times. ProQuest. Georgia Tech Library, Atlanta Georgia. 21 Apr. 2009 .

Poverty: Can the governments do something about it?

Arun Duraiswamy
Professor Perez Tejada
English 1102 – D2
21 April 2009

Poverty: Can the governments do something about it?

Poverty is an issue that every nation faces in today’s world. It has been an age old problem and will continue to do so for the years to come. The issue of poverty is also one that is overlooked by a significant number of people in the world. Poverty has many aspects as to why it is such a significant issue. There are several factors that affect a country’s economic growth, which directly affects its poverty status. These factors include a country’s traditions that prevent people and society in general from progressing, wars between countries in that region, economic standards and government regulations and lastly, geographic location of the countries. While all these factors and important there are some that more directly impact poverty compared to others. This essay is focused on how the economic standards and government regulations have affected poverty, a global issue.

A country’s economic standards and government regulations affect poverty in a variety of aspects. In some cases it may a direct effect on the poverty situation in that particular country and in other cases it might affect it indirectly through a chain reaction. A few economic trends or standards that affect poverty include a period of recession, a state of economic inequality and a shock to consumer prices especially food. There are also several government regulations that play a role in the issue of poverty. They include a lack of a democratic government, weak rule of law, poor management of resources, lack of essential infrastructure, a lack of access to affordable education and high levels of corruption by the government officials (Global). Over the years poverty has remained a significant global issue and the factors playing a part in its presence continue to be the same. There are several countries in the today’s world that are living proof of this. Some of these nations include the Soviet Union, North Korea and India. The issue of poverty is a very prevalent and sentimental one. Ever since the film industry started directors and producers have used films as a way to communicate certain ideas or issues to the audience. Numerous filmmakers over the years have used the theme of poverty in their films and have depicted various aspects of poverty.

Filmmakers insert several scenes throughout their movie to subtly convey their message. They use the setting, background music and sometimes even lighting to convey a certain message in a specific scene. Director Danny Boyle used a variety of settings in his movie Slumdog Millionaire to paint a powerful picture of how unfortunate people living in the slums are and the poverty levels that they endure. Boyle uses very similar settings in his movie compared to the actual slums of Bombay. There are several scenes throughout the movie that represent different factors that affect the issue of poverty. The movie Slumdog Millionaire follows the story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching him on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees (Sandhu). However during a break in the show police arrest him on suspicion of cheating. They were all shocked as to how could a street slum know so much. Desperate to prove that he is innocent, Jamal narrates his life story in the slum where he and his brother grew up (Sandhu). He talks about their adventures together on the road, experiences with local gangs, and of the girl he loved and lost whose name is Latika. Each experience Jamal has had in the past reveals to him the answers to the questions on the show and how he knows the answers (Travers). Throughout the movie there are numerous scenes that are powerful depictions of the poverty levels in India.

Towards the beginning of the movie when Jamal is discussing his early childhood the viewers get a glimpse of the living conditions in the slums. Kids are shown scourging through landfills, trying to find something they could reuse. There is a scene where Jamal and his brother build a make shift tent in the middle of a land fill after having lost their home and parents. This is a powerful scene because it shows the people living in the nearby slums all digging through the mounds of trash attempting to find something that could be reused. Also, the nearby river is flowing with heaps of trash floating on it and people living in the slums use the water from the river. During the scene when Jamal and his brother are being chased by a security guard they run through the slums and the audience gets an overall picture of what life in the slums is like. There is a shot where the camera zooms out from the top showing hundreds of tiny shacks, which were used as houses built right beside each other. Also, there is a scene which shows the residential are of the slums is adjacent to a huge landfill and has sewage pipes around it. These scenes highlight the lack of proper sanitary living conditions for these people living in poverty. The government has failed to help these people out.



Houses in the slums






Jamal sleeping in a make shift tent in the landfill with tall building in the background.





Furthermore, there a few scenes throughout the movie that illustrate the lack of proper or in certain case any government infrastructure in slums. This is significant because one of the main reasons poverty is rampant in certain areas is because there is a lack of proper infrastructure and education facilities for the people to use to help better them. For example, there is a scene in Slumdog Millionaire where Jamal’s mother drops him and his brother of in a class room in their school. The classroom is tiny and there are clearly too many students for a classroom of that size. Students are shown sitting on the floor by the black board near the teacher and some even almost outside the classroom. The lack of a proper school building prevents these already underprivileged children from receiving proper education, which in turn denies them the opportunity to work to towards a better life. Another significant part of the movie that depicts the government’s negligence is the number of orphaned kids shown in the film that no one cares about. Even after Jamal and his brother are orphaned no government agency picks them off the streets. They continue to live on their own until they are picked up by a gangster who runs a fake orphanage and makes the kids beg for money. The lack of government concern also leads to make poor people facing abuse and sometimes even death at the hands of criminals.




Classroom in the slums








Contrast in Bombay - Left side has all the modern buildings and right beside it are the slums



A reason why many countries lack proper management of resources and appropriate infrastructure is high levels of corruption within the government. An example of a country like this would be India. The country is ranked eighty fifth out of one hundred and seventy countries in Transparency International’s Corruptions Perception Index. Officials in all levels of the government are notorious for receiving and giving bribes. A study conducted by Transparency International in India reported that over fifty percent of the people in the country have been involved in some form of bribery (India Corruption Study). It is especially common along state borders especially for truckers. In addition, government officials often illegally develop and sell government land. In Government Hospitals, often times there are not enough money to pay for adequate medicines and doctor services because a significant portion of the money is stolen. All these reasons lead to a lack of proper facilities and the people who are already poor tend to remain that way because they are not provided with adequate opportunities and facilities to better them.

Often times government regulations and policies drive the country’s economy in a certain direction. Every now and then poor judgment and failed policies will drive a country’s economy in the wrong direction and eventually into a recession. A recession occurs when a country’s economic activity slows down over a sustained time period. The general outcome of a recession is loss of jobs, closing of business, lack of consumer spending and an overall increase in poverty. An example of a significant recession that affected a large number of people is the Great Depression. The Great Depression was a worldwide economic slow down affecting people in all income level ranges. All forms of construction, trade, tax revenue and consumer spending had ceased. The depression lasted from the early nineteen thirty’s to the nineteen forty’s. The true cause of the depression is still debated but most experts believe the general cause to be a state of under consumption combined with overinvestment led to a burst in the economic bubble, which halted all forms of spending including further investment (Great Depression). It took approximately ten years for the world to completely recover from the depression and return to its regular economic activity. Many experts believe recessions are part of the economic cycle and are unavoidable. The best thing the governments can do is adequately prepare for recessions so that the country can come out of it quickly.

The worldwide issue of poverty has its causes rooted in many different areas. They include government regulations and policies, conservative traditions that hinder society from progressing, wars with other nations and the geographic location of countries. Poverty is an issue that plagues almost every nation in this world and will continue to do so for some time. It is an issue that is so vast and affects hundreds of millions of people that it can not be completely eradicated in the immediate future.


References:

Boyle, Danny. “Slumdog Millionaire.” Dev Patel. Celador Films, 2008.
Sandhu, Sukhdev. “Slumdog Millionaire, review.” The Telegraph. 19 January 2009. 18 April 2009.


Travers, Peter. “Slumdog Millionaire.” Review. Rolling Stone Magazine. 13 November 2008. 18 April 2009.

"Great Depression" Encyclopedia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 19 Apr. 2009

“India Corruption Study 2005 to Improve Governance.” Transparency International – India. 30 June 2005. 19 April 2009.


“The Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009.” World Economic Forum. 8 October 2008. 18 April 2009.

Poverty On Screen

Youtube

Location is Everything

James Brunson

Perez Tejada

English 1102

April 24, 2009

Location is Everything

More than eighty percent of the world’s population lives on less than ten dollars a day. This is because of many things but mostly because of the people’s geographic location (Shan). Geography is the main reason for poverty because most countries don’t have the natural resources necessary for living. They don’t have the things that we have and probably take for granted everyday like electricity, running water, and sufficient shelter to live in. It is very difficult for people that live in places that have limited water because without it they cannot grow crops and then they don’t have anything to eat. In the movies Swades and Turtles Can Fly, they show poverty in different geographic locations and how they are affected by it.

One thing that affects people geographically is that the people are trapped in thesl e locations. They are trapped and there is now way of getting out of it. It could be that they live in a desert area or they just live in the slums of city. In the film Swades, the location is set in a smaltown out in the country in India. The people here are not educated and they don’t have very good jobs. Even if they wanted to get out of this poverty stricken place they can’t because they don’t have the recourses to do it. Schooling is not important to these people because they know that they will not be able to do anything with it. Even if they try to get a higher education, they don’t have the money to pay for it. Also, because of the location some of the jobs are not as profitable as others. Some of the villagers live too far away from the school and cannot get there and one man says that since his children are reaching the age of marriage, there is no point sending them off because primarily the woman do not work outside of the house. The setting of Turtles Can Fly is on the border between Turkey and Iran. They have a small village mainly filled with children and elders. All the kids live in small huts together. Satellite, one of the older kids in the village, orders around the kids and gives them jobs so they can make money. Their main job is deactivating old mines from the mine fields. Most of these kids will never get the chance to leave this place partly because some of them will be involved in an accident with the mines and either die or lose a limb, or because they have had no education and they don’t know anything different. Most of them don’t even realize what all they are missing out on.

Natural resources are another thing that affects poverty geographically. Most countries have become industrialized because of the natural resources that lie in their land. Wars have started because countries are scarce in natural resources, so they invade to try to gain new land with abundant resources. Those countries or cities that lack these resources never become industrialize and therefore continue to live in poverty. This is what it is like in Swades. The town is nothing like America, where the main character, Mohan, grew up. The streets aren’t paved; the houses are no longer made of brick and wood but with clay and straw rooftops. When Mohan goes back, he sees that they have nothing that he is used to. They do not have running water, reliable electricity, television, internet, and many other things that he has become accustomed to. After time, Mohan realizes that he wants to help the people out. He gathers the men of the village and plans to use the stream coming down from the hill, to generate electricity. After a long process of planning and building, they finally get enough water power to generate electricity. Without this stream and its location they would not be able to produce electricity this way. They are making a step to a more modern civilization but with this they are losing some of their customs and way of life at the same time. It is pretty similar in Turtles Can Fly. Their shelter is not very good; they live in large tents. The resources there are not very abundant and the village is not industrialized although they do have electricity established already. They lack the resources, like farming land, to establish an economy that they clearly need. Only when they can establish some sort of economy or government system, will they be able to get out of the poverty stricken area that they live.

One very important thing that affects people geographically is disease and lack of medical help. These people suffer from some of the worst diseases in the world and they have no one there that can help them out or give them any kind of medical attention that they need. These people cannot afford any type of medication because it is very expensive and no one will sell it to the cheap. Also, there are no doctors to give the regular checkups that they need to see what is wrong with them. In the movie Turtles Can Fly, the children are being hurt and even killed from the mine fields. They are losing limbs and no one there can help them out to amputate the limb properly or give them any sort of medication that could help ease the pain they go through or kill the bacteria they get from the wounds. Many of the children there are missing a limb or one of their relatives is missing one. Only because of their geographic location, they cannot get help. The movie doesn’t show much about disease and the struggles the people go through. In Swades, one of the school teachers becomes ill. Eventually he cannot fight it any longer and he dies. If they could have had proper medication and medical attention, he could have been helped. He might not have been cured but maybe just kept alive a little while longer.

Geographically, another thing that affects people is food. Every day thousands of people die from hunger alone. They don’t have the right kind of settings needed to grow crops. There is limited water and the conditions are too harsh for anything to strive. In the movie Swades, Mohan goes to visit a man that owes Gita some money and tries to get it from him. When Mohan arrives, the man feeds him and when they are done the man tells him about how he could no longer be a weaver so he switched to a farmer, but when he switched to a farmer he could not get any water for his crops so most of them died. The crops that did grow he could not sell because the people didn’t want them. Now the man could not support his family. They are suffering and they cannot do anything to stop it, so Mohan, feeling bad for the man, gives him some money and tells him not to worry about paying Gita back the money he owes her for leasing her land. In Turtles Can Fly, the children are not old enough to farm. Also, much of the land surrounding them is covered in mines so they cannot use any of that to provide for food.

Geography is one of the most important reasons that poverty exists in the world today. Thousands of people are dying every day just because of where they live. Whether they live in a rural area or urban area poverty can exist. These people are born into this and they cannot get out. They don’t have the natural resources that could help them get out of this mess they are living in. They cannot provide enough food to support their families and the land is too rugged to grow crops. With disease spreading through the country, these people cannot get any medication to help them. There is no one near them that is trained to treat them or provide them with the proper equipment needed to diagnose them. Even though geography is one of the main reasons for poverty, with the help of other countries we can try and help the effects of it in the world.

Work Cited

Ebert, Roger. "Turtles Can Fly." Movie Reviews 14 Apr 2005 Web.20 Apr 2009. .

Shan, Anup. "Causes of Poverty." Global Issues 22 Mar 2009 Web.20 Apr 2009. .

Venkataramanan, Vijay. "Swades." Bollywood - Film Review 17 Dec 2004 Web.20 Apr 2009. Swades/>.

Poverty makes the first gunshot

War has followed mankind for centuries and has influenced many writers, artists, and filmmakers. War comes with both successes and failures that lead to both positive and negative consequences. One of the major penalties is poverty. The reason why poverty is a major price of war is because of the reasons behind it. Religion, discrimination, government disorder, and power are just some of the reasons why no one can escape the conflicts of war. Two kinds of poverty exist: self-inflicted, and not self-inflicted. War usually forces poverty onto people by taking away their land, family, possessions and rights. The poverty that results in the war can be seen in many movies such as Schindler's List and Hotel Rwanda. Both movies are based on true stories and their stories are similar. They can show the realities of poverty.

Schindler's List and Hotel Rwanda are anti-war films that show the despair and struggles wars force people live through. Rotten Tomatoes says Schindler's List is “one of the greatest and beautiful movies ever created.” Schindler's List is a black and white movie with only one color which is red. The color red signifies the deaths and struggle of the Jewish people in the Holocaust during World War II. The movie depicts a self-made business man who got rich on the war by selling pots and pans to the Nazis. During this time, the Nazis focused their attention on removing the Jews from the world. Many once prosperous and wealthy Jews were stripped down to mere rags, bartering for bread and butter, and begging for pitiful jobs like making pots,

Figure 1 Jewish people digging holes

digging holes and being maids when they were once doctors, lawyers and bankers. They were also being killed left and right like insects. The drop from rich to poor is significant in the movie and brings about how war can bring poverty to even the most fortunate people.

Figure 2 The Nazis are dumping the Jews' belongings

The cruelty of poverty is a strong message in this movie and inspires many people who watch the movie. Even the main character in the movie is moved by the despair and poverty the Jewish people are forced to live through and spends all his money to save the people. New York Times announced that this movie will “have its place in memory” and “cleverly displays the horrific terrors of the Holocaust.” (Manslin) Even after World War II ended, many Jewish people were not able to retrieve their possessions. In the end of Schindler's List, the main character, Schindler, dies. The people he saved visit his grave and give him gifts. There is no grand prize for saving people from a persecution like the Holocaust only self-gratification.

War is no stranger to any parts of the world. World War II caused many misfortunes for the Jewish people and has caused them to lose their land, families, and possessions. World War II is a perfect example of those who were thrown into the depths of poverty against their own will. Wars cause people to be persecuted away from their homeland. During the Dynasty Era in China, many ardent followers of the previous Dynasty were thrown into jail, slavery, and expelled from the kingdom. The Civil War in America put many southerners to the brink of destruction because of the slaves they lost to run their plantations. The freedom is beneficial to the slaves; however, some slaves became worse because the slave owners gave them shelter which some freed-slaves were not able to own after the Civil War. War veterans suffer a lot during the aftermath of the war. Vietnam War veterans who lost their legs because of a mine are stuck on streets begging for money. Even though there is relief for war veterans in America, there are plenty of countries who do not provide support for them and the veterans are left to wallow in their forced unconditional and uneducated black mist. Many wars inspire racism on people. The winners of the war think that they are better and therefore discriminate against the losers. Also, some cultures consider some people are divinely better than other people because of the color of their skin or what family they are born into. This can lead to wars that come in the form of genocides. Any war in human history causes poverty in some way. Some of the damages in the war have been fixed, but human nature is to repeat itself, so the damages will emerge and even become greater.

Hotel Rwanda which is characterized as Africa’s Schindler's List by the New York Times depicts a genocide in Africa. (Holden) The conflict is between the Hutu and Tutsi people. The Hutu people believe that the Tutsi are inferior and must be erased from the face of the earth. The Hutu people started to pillage and kill all the Tutsi people. Many Tutsi people fled from their homes and take refuge in the Hotel which is ran by a Hutu person but his wife is Tutsi. A civil war breaks out in Rwanda and in three months, millions of people were murdered in their homes. The Hutu forced many Tutsi people into poverty by taking away their possessions and making them flee across the country. With no place to rest or work, only the hotel and the foreign countries strive to protect the Tutsi people.

Figure 3Hotel before the genocide

Figure 4 The dead bodies the Hotel manager finds

In the end, the hotel manager is broke, but the people try to help support him by giving him gifts. The hotel manager isn’t even characterized as a hero; he is “ordinary and never playing hero” as an author from Entertainment Weekly describes him. (Schwarzbaum) Compared to his previous life, the gifts are like accepting a dead rat from a cat. The results of the civil war left many Hutus in grave poverty because they lost the war when the United Nations intervened to help the Tutsi. Also, the Tutsi lost everything in war due to fire or some form of destruction. The United Nations tried to help by sending soldiers who were “peacekeepers, not peacemakers.” (Puig) Many people in Africa, like Rwanda, suffer from corrupt governments which force the lesser people into poverty. They are not being lazy or just plain stupid. They are forced to live through these conditions because they are simply born there. This conflict is similar to the Holocaust and makes a good point that war is not a onetime event. War consistently repeats itself. The same tactics, beliefs, and reasons sprout up year after year and some of them cause major wars in the world. War is inevitable and no one can avoid it. So long as warfare exists, poverty will reach to the four corners of the world.

Figure 5 The United Nations rescue the survivors

Schindler's List and Hotel Rwanda are examples of how war forces people to make drastic decisions that take away all their hard work and earnings which puts them into the streets of poverty. In both movies, the main character isn’t glorified or rewarded. Sacrifices impact everyone in the war and drags the most righteous to the ground. There is no happy ending to poverty that results from a war and it can persevere in different form for years to come. No one in either Schindler's List or Hotel Rwanda end up being happy in the end. The people in the movie are relieved that they simply survived. Even though there are movies that focus on some survivors from the beatings of poverty, the reality is that the majority of those whom poverty has enclosed its inescapable jaws around are not able to live a prosperous life. War is a classic entrepreneur in making more of these people in the world and this still occurs today.

Works Cited

Holden, Stephan. “Civilization Fell.” New York Times. 15 April 2009.

Maslin, Janet. “Schindler’s List (1993).” New York Times. 15 April 2009.

Puig, Claudia. “Haunting ‘Hotel Rwanda.’” USA Today. 15 April 2009.

“Rotten Tomatoes.” 15 April 2009 < http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/schindlers_list/>

Schwarzbaum, Lisa. “Hotel Rwanda (2004).” Entertainment Weekly. 15 April 2009. < http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1014175,00.html>

-Raymond Chian