Alexander Diaz
Ways of Reading
SA1.3
Word Count: 603
To Be Human
In “Lovers of the Poor” we see a group of women who call themselves the Ladies Betterment League take it upon themselves to try and help the poor in their society. At first glance this seems to be a noble cause but when the reader delves into the story we see quickly that their cause changes to utter intolerance. Brooks stages this poem to make it seem as if the rich are trying to rid themselves of the thought of their own natural state. Throughout the story the women are repulsed by the poor, set standards on who to actually help and cower in the idea of such a dirty existence. What they do not realize is that this state the poor live in is closer to being natural than they have ever been.
On page 91 they state their mission as “To give money to the poor, the worthy poor. The very very worthy poor. And beautiful poor. Perhaps not too swarthy? Perhaps not too dirty or too dim”. Right here we see the ignorance their idea of the poor truly is. They do not want to fathom the idea of a human being dirty, smelly, unpleasant to look at. It is as though their idea of being human entails being fully dressed with decent clothes and decent smelling. Natural to them is not the waste we excrete, it is not the smells we produce, it is not the bearable food we eat to survive. Natural to them is money, it is objects, it is beautiful fragrances and gourmet foods.
On page 92 where they “Have never seen such a make-a-do-ness as newspaper rugs before! In this, this “flat”…. The Ladies look in horror”. This realization that the poor resemble too much the natural state of man. In all their years they spend dollar upon dollar hiding their true forms, covering up their smells with perfume, and decorating their houses with what society deems is the appropriate style. They do not understand how people can live in such unnatural settings. To them this city, this concrete jungle that puts so many people in close proximity, is foreign to them. It is unnatural for so many odors to be mixed with each other. For things to be cramped and clustered, only the bare minimums are sheltered inside. These clearly aren’t the poor they wanted to help, no, they are too poor, too close to their natural state to even be bothered helping.
Again on page 92 the author says “Their League is allotting largesse to the Lost. But to put their clean, their pretty money, to put Their money collected from delicate rose-fingers Tipped with their hundred flawless rose-nails seems…”. Here we can see the ladies and their complete attachment to their material things. Their money is an extension of themselves, and to give it to these poor poor people would be as bad as touching the poor with their bare hands. No, nothing must touch these beings, their garments must not brush up against any wall. Their money must not be given to such lowly creatures. They do not deserve such a gift from them. But what the ladies do not understand is that the poor have more in common with them than they think. Because just as the poor live in unnatural cities that cramp them together, they live in their own materialistic world, trapped in dresses and perfumes that hide their true selves. No matter what they think, at the end of the day we are all human.