Redistribution
Redistribution is a play written by George Bernard Shaw that explores the theme of wealth inequality and the idea of redistributing wealth from the rich to the poor. The play follows the story of a wealthy family who are forced to give up their fortune in order to help those less fortunate than themselves. Throughout the play, Shaw uses satire and humor to critique capitalism and advocate for socialism as a more equitable economic system.
By George Bernard Shaw · First published 1928 · Genre: Political, Social Commentary, Philosophical · 201 words
First lines
Now it needs no Christ to convince anybody today that our system of distribution is wildly and monstrously wrong. We have million-dollar babies side by side with paupers worn out by a long life of unremitted drudgery. One person in every five dies in a workhouse, a public hospital, or a madhouse. In cities like London the proportion is very nearly one in two. Naturally so outrageous a distribution has to be effected by violence pure and simple. If you demur, you are sold up. If you resist the selling up you are bludgeoned and imprisoned, the process being euphemistically called the maintenance of law and order. Iniquity can go no further. By this time nobody who knows the figures of the distribution defends them. The most bigoted British Conservative hesitates to say that his king should be much poorer than Mr. Rockefeller, or to proclaim the moral superiority of prostitution to needlework on the ground that it pays better.
What this Textopian page supports
Redistribution is listed on Textopian as an essay by George Bernard Shaw, dated 1928 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Essay
- Author: George Bernard Shaw
- Date: 1928 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Political, Social Commentary, Philosophical, Non-fiction
- Length: 201 words
- Structure: 1 section, 2 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
Good citation fit
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- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Similar titles
- The Social Question by George Bernard Shaw
- Equal Distribution by George Bernard Shaw
- Labor Time by George Bernard Shaw
- The Dream Of Distribution According To Merit by George Bernard Shaw
- The Mask Of Socialism by G. K. Chesterton
- The Impossibilities Of Anarchism by George Bernard Shaw
Genres
- Political — The text critiques the economic and social systems, advocating for income redistribution.
- Social Commentary — It addresses societal issues such as poverty and inequality.
- Philosophical — The work questions moral and ethical aspects of wealth distribution.
- Non-fiction — The content is factual and argumentative, focusing on real-world issues.
Tags
socialism · economics · politics · class struggle · inequality · reform · philosophy · society · wealth distribution · capitalism · labor · justice