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The Protestant Work Ethic: Just Another Urban Legend Summary

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In “The Protestant Work Ethic: Just Another ‘Urban Legend?’” Jonathan Klemens states what the work ethic is and how it applies in American society. Klemens explains that the work ethic has helped the nation as a whole. Klemens explains that people work hard to achieve “the company or organization’s missions” (122). Not only that, Klemens also explains that people would work hard to gain the particular professions they desire instead of just working with no goals. Moreover, Klemens explains how the American work ethic has evolved from the Protestant work ethic, embracing hard work and dedication. Klemens uses Max Weber’s statement as an example to explain what the Protestant work ethic is. Weber states that “Focus on Work”, being “Unpretentious and Modest”, and being “Honest and Ethical” are the values that the Protestants believed to be the important aspects of the work ethic (123). Klemens explains that these values are also applied in our lives. For example, one must focus on …show more content…

In the movie “The Pursuit of Happyness” by Gabriele Muccino, the main character had a hardship in life to get a job. However, he worked harder than others to achieve the position in the work place. He was successful in the movie due to his hard work. He had a great work ethic that helped him succeed and achieve the American dream. Just like the main character in the movie, there are many people in American society who works extremely hard to achieve the American dream and to make the society better. This does not only apply to people applying jobs. Even politicians work hard to create law and order to make the American society better. For example, senators would work hard and stay up several nights to discuss about laws that would be helpful to American society. The work ethic is evident in the American dreams to improve the nation and the

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Mike Rose's article "Blue-Collar Brilliance" from They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing With Readings challenges common beliefs that blue-collar work is less skilled or essential and highlights the specialized knowledge these workers have. Rose uses pathos, ethos, and logos in his essay to challenge societal assumptions about skill. Through rhetorical appeals, Rose effectively argues that the value of blue-collar work must be recognized rather than overlooked. Mike Rose establishes his ethos in "Blue Collar Brilliance" by sharing both his personal and professional experiences. Rose mentions he is a professor of education and has done extensive research on the cognitive demands involved in blue-collar work (Rose, 2018, pp.

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The blue-collar work force has been the building block for many centuries, even without directly realizing it. In “Blue Collar Brilliance” the author Mike Rose discusses how his mother strengthened social and memory skills which allowed her to excel in her job as a waitress. Mike Rose realized everything that although his mother was smart in her own respect, working without a proper education is not all that it is cracked up to be. For example, blue collar jobs may require reading, but it is reading symbols.

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There is a huge indication that work is good and Keller argues that work shouldn 't be seen as a restriction to the lives we want to live. Typically, work is considered restricting and prevents people from freedom. Since God 's design is work, this means that work can actually be freeing. When we live and act out God 's perfect will, we find freedom. We have to work for a meaningful life, but work is not the

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All of those who succeed are held to a higher standard than most other people. This appreciation in success is deeply rooted in the great American dream. The American dream is what makes up America since the beginning of independence. Many people flocked to the United States because the pull and appeal of freedom and the American dream. In reality, many were faced with horrible working conditions and poverty, such as in The

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Europe was the strongest Economic power in the 1500s because of the Age of exploration, Protestant work ethic and the Dutch east India Company . The Age of exploration began when the west European people were being heavily taxed on all imports coming from the silk through the ottoman empire, So the Europeans saw only one solution find another route to the silk road. The most influential naval Explorers at this time were the Portuguese and the Spanish or at that time know as the kingdom of castile. By the 1500s Portugal was occupying much of costal Africa they had even circumnavigated the continent of Africa where they began the slave trade giving them copious amounts of money. When both these countries reached the shores of the Americas

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To reap you must sew, so without working hard it will be difficult for one to be successful. In today's world competitive world everyone wants to be wealthy and successful. Whether it may be a successful actor, designer, realtor, or inventor luck had nothing to do with it, but hard work does. When it came to The American Dream, people believed that if they worked hard enough they would be able to sustain a better life for those behind them. Success may be described as the realization of any goal.

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A job can teach many important skills and life lessons, but one of the most valuable is work ethic and determination to finish a task. This is shown in the story when Gary is faced working in the fields and still continues to work despite the pain he is in.

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In response to Americans working less, writer Richard Schiffman argues that the importance of spending time with your family and friends, working less, and taking care of your personal needs, need to come before working all day and then bringing home more work to stress yourself over. Schiffman builds his argument by using anecdotes and a pathological stand point. Schiffman started his article by telling a friend's issue that they addressed him with - her work was “killing’ her and that she was thinking of leaving her job to take care of herself. As well as sharing another friend's concern that her job “...routinely forced to work late and at home on weekends—often without pay—on the projects she didn't have time to finish at the office. With

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When one achieves a goal that they have been working towards, it brings a feeling of satisfaction. This satisfaction is due to knowing that the work that was involved paid off. However, what if one doesn’t have to put that much work into getting to where they got? Does that person really feel a sense of accomplishment if they don’t have to work for it? The American Dream is the constant pursuit of goals, but people who stop setting goals for themselves will never achieve the American Dream.

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At the beginning of the 20th century, the United States was booming with new industrial innovations because of new technologies, and it was becoming one of the leading economies in the world. This economic boom came to a sharp halt as events such as the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl hit, causing millions of Americans to face economic struggles. “The Strenuous Life,” a speech given by Theodore Roosevelt, displays the ideas of American work ethics that led to economic growth in the early 1900s. These ideals of work ethic not only prompted the cause of the Dust Bowl, but were continued on into the lives of the affected farmers as Americans displaced and in poverty from this event continued to participate in migrant work with awful living

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In his essay, “On Laziness”, Christopher Morley persuades his audience that laziness is a virtuous trait rather than a shameful one through the use of irony, diction, historical allusions, and logical reasoning. Morley utilizes irony to describe the consequences of having a good work ethic. He states, “We have been hustling about for a number of years now, and it doesn’t seem to get us anything but tribulation…. It is the bustling man who always get put on committees, who is asked to solve the problems of other people and neglect his own.” The irony in this statement is that as people try hard to prove that they are responsible beings, they bury themselves in piles of responsibility even though they do not want it.

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Success is the highest accomplishment everybody hopes to achieve. It is never easy, but there are still multiple ways to approach it. The American Dream is the equal opportunity every citizen is given to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. This “American Dream” is different to each of us and this is due to the fact that each person is different. We each yearn for the things that we hope will in return make us happy.

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Braverman’s deskilling concept According to Attewell (1987) Braverman starts with an argument that was made by Marx (1967), which stated that employees sell only their ability to work. Management must ensure that this ability is turned into work performed by the employees which will lead to profitability. Additionally, Braverman takes into consideration three implications that result from the argument made by Marx.

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