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An Analysis Of The Apprenticeship Of Duddy Kravitz

2836 Words12 Pages

Chase Kalish
ENG4U
Mr. Ishiguro
May 12th 2015
Death of a Kravitz

Capitalism is an economic theory that benefits the wealthy. Adam Smith, the father of capitalism, believed that, “capital for the production and distribution of wealth could work most effectively in the absence of government interference” (Welch). In other words, capitalism gives people the opportunity to manage their money without government control over it. As Canadians, we are forced to live in a capitalist society to economically run our country, whether we like it or not. Everyone knows capitalism is not perfect and some say it is not the answer for governments and societies. There are positive aspects as well as negative aspects to this ideology that shapes our society …show more content…

Duddy Kravitz, the protagonist in this novel, thinks money, or in this case land, equals power and success. He believes in order to make a name for yourself, you need land purchased in your name. Duddy is persuaded that all he needs in life is land. In a capitalist society, money and land is not everything for one to be known and successful.There is a lot more to capitalism than land, except Duddy Kravitz does not want to think about that. The idea of capitalism benefiting the rich gets into Duddy’s head and makes him think that nothing else matters, thereby showing a negative aspect of capitalism. As he attempts to reach his goal, Duddy makes his money not knowing that there is more to deal with than just money, he does not understand that in a capitalist society, freedom and democracy take a huge part in the way things are run. Capitalism could brainwash someone like Duddy into thinking that land is the only thing that matters and not being able to be free with your money. Laissez Faire is a big part of capitalism that explains that freedom from government control happens in a capitalist society, except Duddy thinks it is all about earning money to buy …show more content…

Some make it, while others don’t. Capitalism is a double-edged sword that involves isolation, as well as individuality: “The idea that each of us is unique and should be free to do as we like... corresponded to a society of market relations, in which people are connected with one another only through buying and selling.” (Myers). Human relations are based on much more than market relationships and sales. This dysfunctional capitalist relationship is reflected through the way Willy and Happy communicate. Regardless of how hard Happy works, he still does not make enough to support himself and his father. If this society were communist, the wealth would be shared equally amongst the citizens, which means that Happy and Willy would be able to support themselves. New York in the 1940’s is a right wing capitalist society, and as such, it is a gamble as to how much wealth their work earns them. The fact that neither Willy or Happy earn enough shows this negative aspect of capitalism. Although Willy Loman is unfortunate with money, he does not try as hard as someone such as Duddy Kravitz or fail as hard. Duddy Kravitz tries much harder than Willy Loman to make money and it is even harder for Duddy to make money because of all of his struggles. Both characters believe money is everything and get manipulated so much by its perceived power, they forget what else is important in life such as

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