My essential question is "How does the obsession of wealth dehumanize people?"

Many times, although not all the time, wealth affects a person's perspective and attitude on the world around them. In her article, "How Money Can Change People and Affect Their behavior", Jacqueline Curtis refers to a study that was published in 2013 where people of different classes were asked to "rate things such as class, genetics, and even I.Q." (Curtis 10). The analyzation of the results were defined as "class essentialism" which is the idea that claims social differences are based on genetics and identity. Wealthier people believed this to be true, while the poor believed anyone could become either rich or poor. Rich people view their wealth as a obvious result, meaning that they believe that "life is fair and people mostly get what they deserve" (Curtis 11). Some of the rich who believe this lack the ability to emphasize and have compassion.

Because the rich believe that their wealth come as a natural result, they just think that the poor people are just getting what they deserve. As a result of this, they show less grace than the poor. If they were able to emphasize with the sufferings of the poor, they would be more compassionate but many of them do not. The rich may treat the poor with less regard even leading to the idea that some lives are not very important. Dehumanization starts with the idea that some people are more superior than others because of their identity. In a little bit different way, the Nazis thought of themselves as superior to the Jews because of their race, which is why they believed there was nothing wrong with exterminating the Jews.

Carolyn Gregoire starts off her article "How Money Changes the Way We Think and Behave" with the definition of affluenza: "[the] painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety, and waste, resulting from the dogged pursuit of more" (Gregoire 1). Then, she refers to an incident that involved a sixteen- year-old boy who killed four people while drunk driving. The boy avoided the responsibility of the deaths through his family's wealth which angered the public. Many of the rich, especially children who grew up in rich homes, suffer from affluenza. They do not understand or care about the gravity of their mistakes. Sadly, they mistaken wealth as the solution to all problems. If this misunderstanding is not cleared up quickly enough, they gradually become dehumanized.

Just seeing what wealth does to people is terrifying but when they are obsessed with it, it only gets worse. People who have a lot are never satisfied with what they have, so they go for more. They will do anything to get to their goal, more because the obsession over wealth is a compulsive behavior which is driven by "the good feeling that comes from receiving money or possessions" (Gregoire 14) according to Psychologist Dr. Tian Dayton. In the process of attempting to get wealthier, they commit irreversible crimes which dehumanizes them. After a while, some of them actually do not feel remorse or guilt for their immoral actions. Instead, they would try to justify themselves. This is the result of someone who has been left dehumanized for some time.

Sadly, many times obsessions lead to immoral actions because there is a limit to the speed of attaining wealth through moral ways, which obsessed people do not want to keep. And, they are not afraid of going down an immoral path because they trust their wealth to back them up. They create their own world where only they exist and their only goal is to gain more wealth. When they do not come out of their little world, they end up turning into wealth-obsessed monsters. Jacqueline Curtis gives an example in her article of an incident where people took "more candy than offered...even when the researcher indicated that taking more candy would result in less for children" (Curtis 13). These may seem like a small deal but this shows how their moral standards have been distorted.

Examples of the obsession of wealth leading to dehumanization can be seen quite often all around. The Great Gatsby portrays this issue well. Daisy Buchanan's obsession of wealth was hard to see in the beginning of the novel because it was kept well under the surface. But, it becomes evident she has that obsession when she is willing to give up neither Tom or Gatsby who are both quite wealthy. Also, she does not leave Tom even after finding about his affair. She tries to find security in wealth which is why she obsesses over it so much. Whatever her reasons, she ends up hurting herself and the people around her especially Gatsby who had devoted his whole life to her. She loses her sense of morality which is one of the biggest things that sets apart humans and animals.

Similarly, Myrtle has an obsession over wealth too like Daisy but for different reasons. She wants to climb up the social ladder to a higher place which is why she gets into an affair with Tom who is rich. She finds no satisfaction with her husband and her current status. When she got into an affair and enjoyed that life, she obviously ignored her conscience to walk the moral way. In the end, she gains nothing and deeply hurts her husband who was devoted to her.

In conclusion, greed for wealth cannot be satisfied and it will only lead to an obsession of it. And, it easily dehumanizes people who have been blinded by their greed. So, it is best to stay away from it from the start and be satisfied with our current status and wealth.