About the mentioned families, they include two with an American background, two are Bohemian, three German, and the remaining three are Irish, Polish, and Italian respectively. Interestingly, though belonging to differing ethnicities, some of the working individuals share an occupation. For instance, while the workers from family #8 and #1 are American and Irish respectively they are both bricklayers; and the #3 Bohemian and #9 Italian individuals work as laborers. Still, a further study of the variables shows that a similarity in employment does not mean one in income. By that logic, ethnicity, occupation, and income played key roles in determining the economic success of the subject persons.
In the textbook “Give Me Liberty!” Eric Foner echoes the given sentiment as he writes that “rigid lines of racial exclusion” existed in the United States even at the “dawn of the twentieth century” (673). In other words, the superiority with which Caucasians governed the country made life hard for non-whites. Many immigrants faced two problems: as non-Americans and as non-English speakers. The members of family #10 were both Polish and could not speak English; thus, their living conditions were terrible with no chances of relief. Another perfect illustration of ethnicity being vital in the financial statuses of persons residing in the country is evident in the different profiles of the German and the American families. The two American families (#1 and #2) survived on a budget that is well above $500 and lived comfortably despite the need for a better neighborhood; notably, their dissatisfaction with location hints on social class issues as none of them mentions security. Meanwhile, the three German families work for insufficient earnings; #5 earns $450, #6 takes $440 each month, and #7 would have relied on $450 were it not for the eldest son. The main difference between the two groups stemmed from their race which in turn affected their eligibility to well-paying jobs; after all, #2 and #5 were both blacksmiths, but the former's salary exceeded that of the latter by $414.
With the given facts in mind, economic success was subject to ethnicity, occupation, and income because the three factors intertwined to create profiles which, when acceptable, spelled monetary victory. Nonetheless, a salary did not necessarily mean a perfect life and another study of the ten families provide a reason for the same. Apparently, no matter how much one earns, family size was important and the bigger the number, the more the economic hardships. For example, family #8 had eight persons, and their budget was $1,291 while the income remained at $800. At the same time, family #6 has eight individuals and despite the total salary of $440 they still used $1,185 in one month. Each breadwinner in the two cases had eight mouths to feed and ended up facing economic hardships because of the number of dependents. Meanwhile, family #2 had only five people who used only $796 out of the $864 salary. Furthermore, on the family size variable, perhaps the ages of the children were also a factor. In #2 and #7, the profiles specifically mention more than one employed person catering for the households as the parents had their sons help take care of the families. Either way, family size played the greatest role in the economic hardships the families faced.
In conclusion, perceptions of white supremacy were still governing the American societies even as the country ushered in the twentieth century. In other words, one’s ethnic background determined his or her access to available opportunities and at the same time governed his or her success. In that sense, it was no wonder that immigrants faced a hard time in the United States. Aside from skin color, language was another signal used in establishing peoples’ place in the communities.
Works Cited
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty!: An American History. 4th. Vol. II. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2013. Print.
