Atwood Debtor's Prism Analysis

It seems that debt has become a norm in today’s society; people do not flinch at the sound of the word or attempt everything in their power to not succumb to it. When debt was a feared concept, people ran away from it. However today it seems that people are somewhat forced into a life of debt. The piece by Margeret Atwood, “Debtor’s Prism” is one about how the idea of debt has been deeply woven into our literature, social structure, and culture. Since the recession began in late 2007, Atwood takes a unique perspective of the history behind debt and the meaning of having been pawned. The piece, “Investigating the Nation’s Exploding Credit Squeeze” by Danny Schechter talks about the debt in a different way than Atwood did. Schechter’s piece

Essentially, by going home for a year or two after college gives young adults the opportunity to take control of their career, finances, and allows them to transition from the college bubble to the real world. A few decades ago, that would seem like a crazy concept. However, in today’s society that makes a lot of sense because of the financial instability and the force of debt into people’s lives. The last piece, “The ‘Responsible’ Child?” by Florinda Vasquez, follows the same theme however, it opposes Healy’s view. Vasquez talks about how it has become a lot harder for young adults to make it in the real world today; she has seen it first hand with her own son, Chris. She is glad that, in Healy’s words, her son is irresponsible because he did not return home after college. Even though all these pieces approach the topic of debt in impressively different ways, they all have a similar string between them. These four pieces along with society today makes one believe that people are somewhat bottle necked into debt. The financial stability everyone wants is somewhat impossible for the common

Danny Schechter wrote Investigating the Nation’s Exploding Credit Squeeze, two years before the 2008 world crisis. It is said that only true crisis can lead to change, an explanation to why so many people ignored the signs. Everyone is a target to the credit industry, not only the poor or middle classes. In a consumption driven culture, it is impossible not to spend your money and get into debt. Products seem fairly cheap, companies are always suggesting that you are making “a great bargain”, “buy two and one free” and it seems that everything is always “on sale” (Schechter 357). In the documentary In Debt We Trust by, Schechter talks about how the mall has replaced the factory as America’s dominant economic engine. The film shows how big banks and credit cards companies drive Americans to become sheep. Schechter is clear when he says that a bubble could burst, and comparison of the USA today is comparable to Rome before its fall (Schechter 358). Government loans are comparable to “mafia loan” because of their outrageous interest rates. In Debt We Trust shows behind the scenes of what the big banks and credit card companies do to their targets. It also demonstrates how advertising can be a seducing and powerful trap (Schechter 358). For the credit card industry, the newest target is the lower class. Steve Barnett, a former credit card company