Money: the one thing that is on everyone’s mind
Money: the one thing that is on everyone’s mind. There have been countless songs, books, and movies that have been dedicated to it. It is one of those universal concepts that can be applied to every aspect of everyone’s lives. Money can provide a lot of happiness, yet make misery a true reality; it does not discriminate, yet serves as the standard for discrimination; it figuratively symbolizes greed, yet it is what everyone is striving for. It is the ultimate paradox.
The concept of money, physically represented by a small, colored piece of paper, has the power to dictate decisions, create conflicts, affect emotions, and place value. So, in hopes of satisfying my intrigue, I sought to analyze this all powerful unit starting with the banknotes themselves. I have been working on a data sheet researching different currencies from different countries, making note of who or what represents the face of the country or region, in order to get a better understanding from a sociological perspective on what aspects different cultures place value on.
I first started by analyzing the bills of my current home, the U.S. Dollar. Turns out, the U.S. as a culture really values leadership, as represented by 5 former presidents (Washington, Lincoln, Hamilton, Jackson, and Grant) and an influential founding father (Franklin). All these influential men played a pivotal role in paving the way to shape our country into what it is today and, without a doubt, deserve to be celebrated as our nation’s heroes. However, my current self can’t help but wonder where all the diversity is. The U.S. is a nation that proudly represents diversity as a melting pot of cultures, but why isn’t our fundamental core represented on the unit that identifies our society? Where is Dr. King? Where is Susan B. Anthony? Why not Einstein?
Why not indeed. This shows that we as a culture are not still quite there yet. We have been making great strides the past couple of decades towards becoming a more unified and equal country, but every time our nation takes one step forward in that direction, we get knocked back two paces. Our current politics is the butt of all jokes dividing our country, yet again, into two distinctly contrasting extremes; our education system has yet to find the right balance to accommodate scholars; our government is trying to fix other countries’ problems, while sweeping ours under the bed. Nonetheless, money is the root of all problems and also the solution to most, or at least a welcomed distraction.
Ultimately, my intrigue for the topic led to some reflection of my own ideals, which boils down to the question, “What does money mean to me?” To me, money equals power; more specifically, the power to influence, an insight I was able to gain while volunteering for Young Kim’s campaign for Assemblywoman. I was given the opportunity to see firsthand the level of dedication to a cause that was necessary for a community to come together. However, commitment isn’t what pays for campaigns. Donations and contributions from sponsors are necessary to affect change at the communal level, but that in itself may come at the cost of compromising ideals and principles. There is just no way to gain the benefits of money without the negatives. So, I’ve come to this resolution: I want to take money out of the equation of my life. I know it sounds naively idealistic, but as I move forward, I want to shift the focus of my ambition away from “financial” success to something much more worthwhile. I want to chase my dream of becoming someone influential freely and wholeheartedly without having to deal with the burdens associated with “money” by focusing on the humanity aspect of life. That would probably make the face on the $5 bill smile.
