Poverty is defined by social reaction, not by material deficiency

Evidence

For this reason, no one is socially poor until he has been assisted. And this has a general validity: sociologically speaking, poverty does not come first and then assistance—this is rather fate in its personal form—but a person is called poor who receives assistance or should receive it given his sociological situation, although perchance he may not receive it. — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 444

Categorization

• DEFINE: This is Simmel’s core redefinition: ‘poor’ as a sociology category means those who receive or warrant assistance, not those with insufficient resources.
• CANDY: The surprise inversion — ‘no one is socially poor until he has been assisted’ — is a compact, quotable line for conversation.
• XREF: connects to: Society aids the poor to neutralize a threat, not to help them — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 410; Poverty, like crime, is defined by social reaction rather than inherent state — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 445; Sociological poverty is defined by receiving assistance, not lacking means — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 448 (+6 more)

Related

• Sociological poverty is defined by receiving assistance, not lacking means (similarity 0.94)
• Poverty, like crime, is defined by social reaction rather than inherent state (similarity 0.94)
• Society aids the poor to neutralize a threat, not to help them (similarity 0.86)
• Classifying poverty as social rather than moral or economic enables political change. (similarity 0.85)
• Class norms can render poverty invisible by forbidding both asking and offering help (similarity 0.82)
• A person can be socially poor yet individually wealthy (similarity 0.82)
• The poor form a social stratum united by society’s attitude, not by interaction (similarity 0.80)
• Welfare can target the fact of poverty or its individual causes (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• Poverty, like crime, is defined by social reaction rather than inherent state #corroborates (0.95) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 445
• Sociological poverty is defined by receiving assistance, not lacking means #expands (0.75) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 448
• A person can be socially poor yet individually wealthy #exemplifies (0.70) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 439
• The poor form a social stratum united by society’s attitude, not by interaction #expands (0.60) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 446
• People from impoverished conditions do not always recognize their poverty. #corroborates (0.60) — Crews, Harry, A childhood the biography of a place, 21
• Class norms can render poverty invisible by forbidding both asking and offering help #complicates (0.55) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 444