Urban Problems That Were Most Acute and What Different Solutions the Leading Religious Figures and Social Reformers Proposed, Essay Example

In the pages of the American history, the different turn of events have resulted to several sources of social dismay that have later on given birth to several social problems that plagued the American generation. Some of these problems have even retained their impact in the current living situations of the American people. Take for example the era right after the economic depression that happened in the country. People were depressed and it finding the chance to purchase the most basic items they need from the market in order to survive. Such products included food and clothing; not being able to acquire even these most basic things resulted to social dissatisfaction and depression. Another resulting factor from this particular occurrence is the instantiation of the increased rate of crimes especially in urban areas.

Urbanized locations became an epitome of a promise of better job opportunities for the people. However, it could be noted that upon reaching the said areas, people were just dismayed to see that their expectations are simply failed by the fact that instead of finding good jobs that would supposedly better their lives, they find themselves staring at hopeless individuals themselves who have nothing to do but to beg for the mercy of others. Understandably, such conditions resulted to alternative sources of money, crime. The development of crimes such as robbery and murder did not simply root out from the simple desire of ‘wanting to supersede or invade the lives of others’. Instead, such an idea of living came from the desire to survive.

As the years pass, robbery and other crimes that are likened to its nature has become a norm for those living less-fortunate lives in the urban areas of America. Most often than not including several social minorities, these individuals settle for the chance of living their daily lives under the defining impact of the crime that they have already pursued to engage in. Prostitution and organized syndicates became the course of lifestyle for those who were less fortunate to find good jobs and later on such approach to living also corrupted the society as the greedy individuals captured the idea of earning more out of the misery and desperation of others. This made social immorality more of a way of living than an undesirable source of social humiliation.

Religious groups and reformers believed that the need for change was necessary and that being able to incur such change would need to involve the redefinition of the human understanding about life and the proper way of living it. Going back to the basics and being contended was one of the primary campaigns that were pursued by the churches. Asking their members to be more thankful for simply being alive was a common ground of the supposed satisfaction that humans should be able to recognize. Along with this, living a life with God was somewhat a campaign of the churches that was expected to bring about some moral sense into the people. Sadly though, with all the genuine desire to help the society recovery from moral decay, individuals who consider themselves liberalized by the living system of the modern world consider such idealism to be quite based on hypocrisy and impractical thinking. Most often than not, such thinking about God and contentment are considered as a sign of religious fanaticism that makes it harder for some people to admit that they are indeed religious. This is the reason why there is a notion that religion and its groups have already lost power over the lifestyle that majority of the human population choose to live along with at present.

Reference:

Glaeser, Edward (Spring, 1998). “Are Cities Dying?”. The Journal of Economic Perspectives 12 (2): 139–160.