In her essay "What is Poverty", Jo Goodwin Parker describes her difficult life living in poverty. She explains that poverty is a lack of basic necessities like adequate food, healthcare, education, and hope for the future. Parker describes the daily struggles she faced in providing for her three children with her limited income. She was unable to afford medical care for herself or proper childcare when she worked. Her children often went without necessities while she tried unsuccessfully to obtain help from social programs. Through telling her story, Parker aims to give readers an understanding of what life is really like in poverty.

1. WHAT IS POVERTY BY JO GOODWIN PARKER
DETAILED SUMMARY:
This personal essay ‘What is Poverty’ has been written by an anonymous person named Jo
Goodwin Parker from West Virginia, the Southern United States. This essay was mailed to George
Henderson, a professor at the University of Oklahoma, with a sign of Jo Goodwin Parker. Later on,
this essay was published with no further information about its actual author and source. The
essay was published with the facts of hardships faced by a woman due to poverty.
Here in this essay, we find the writer's painful experiences in her life due to her poverty. She has
explained her miserable experiences from childhood to adulthood where she has experienced
various hardships in her life.
In her personal essay, she has talked about various aspects of poverty. She has given a real and
graphic account of what is being poor actually means on a daily basis. According to her, the
poverty is more ugly, cruel and devastating than it is shown in newspaper.
She has defined poverty as a lack-that is living without hope, better foodstuffs, medicinal care,
proper sanitation and proper education. It is like an acid that destroys pride, honour, health and
future. Parker’s main purpose is to show how shameful, humiliating and disgusting it is to be a
poor. She wants to draw the readers’ attention towards the pathetic state of the poor people.
She wants her readers to know about poverty without showing pity over her.
Poor people have to live restless life looking at the dark future of their children. Poverty breaks
relationship. Parker had three children. Her husband left her due to the poverty. He didn't have
regular job. He left all of them due to the burden of family. He left home without saying goodbye.
Their condition was quite worse during that time. They even didn't have money to buy
contraceptives to prevent unwanted birth. She had a job. She only earned 22 dollars a week then.
Due to her poor diet, she suffered from anemia. The doctor advised her for operation but she
didn't have money. She struggled hard alone to care her children. She faced various hardships to
care her children during cold and summer seasons' days and nights.
Once she left her children under her mother's care. But, when she returned home, she found her
kids in a very pitiable condition. Her youngest son was covered with fly specks and his diaper
hadn’t been changed since morning. Her next kid was playing with broken glasses and the oldest
son was playing alone at the edge of the lake. She didn’t have enough income to admit them at a
nursery school. She had to pay up 20 dollars a week for three children to admit them.But, her
income was 22 dollars only. For the sake of children 's care, she decided to quit her job.
ANALYSIS:
This essay is related with the problems of poverty. Poverty makes us weaker in various aspects.
Money plays vital role in poverty. If we want to solve problems, we need money. To get rid of the
garbage, we need shovel. But, to buy a shovel, we need money. To get any job, we must be neat

2. and clean but we need money to buy soap and clothes. The writer has described about various
events which happened to her because of poverty. She left the school because rich people’s
children used to tease her all the time in the school because she was poor. She became pregnant
many times because birth control was expensive for her. Her husband left her because of poverty.
Her economic status was too poor so that she couldn’t do her operation in time. She used to
provide cornbread without oil as a breakfast to her kids. She used to wash dishes with cold water
without using soap. She didn't buy soap in order to buy her baby's diaper. She even didn't buy
vaseline for her hands and the baby's diaper rash. She visited various government and private
agencies to ask for help but did not find the right person to help her. She felt much same and
humiliation. For the sake of three children, she had to spread her hands in different places.
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SHORT SUMMARY:
This essay "What is Poverty" has been written by an American writer Jo Goodwin Parker. In her
essay “What is Poverty”, Jo Goodwin Parker has described about her life living in poverty and her
daily struggles for the sake of her family. Here, we find her very descriptive in the text about her
daily life. She has put forward her personal painful experiences of living a life in poverty.
According to her, poverty is a lack-that is living without hope, better foodstuffs, medicinal care,
proper sanitation and proper education. It is like an acid that destroys pride, honour, health and
future. Parker describes herself as “dirty, smelly, and living life with no proper underwear on and
with rotten teeth which stink much”. She describes that due to the high cost of essential things as
hot water, soap, medicine and clothing, she doesn't have luxuries in her life. She informs all her
readers through her writing that it is difficult to get help from government agencies' programmes.
The help related programmes for poor people by government agencies never exist in her area.
She wants to get help through various agencies but she has no means to travel to reach them.
Parker explains that her job even doesn't support her to get out of her situation because the job
does not pay enough to pay for the expense of child care. Parker writes that “poverty is looking
into a black future” and states that her children have no future. She suffers a lot due to her
poverty. It's difficult for her to run her family on a daily basis. For her, running life on a daily basis
itself is a great challenge. In this situation, none can expect a good future. Parker does not want
sympathy, but rather she wants an understanding of her readers about poverty.
The writer has described about various events which happened to her because of poverty. She
left the school because rich people’s children used to tease her all the time in the school because
she was poor. She became pregnant many times because birth control was expensive for her. Her
husband left her because of poverty. Her economic status was too poor so that she couldn’t do
her operation in time. She used to provide cornbread without oil as a breakfast to her kids. She
used to wash dishes with cold water without using soap. She didn't buy soap in order to buy her
baby's diaper. She even didn't buy vaseline for her hands and the baby's diaper rash. She visited
various government and private agencies to ask for help but did not find the right person to help
her. She felt much same and humiliation. For the sake of her three children, she had to spread her
hands in different places.

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FROM THE TEXTBOOK:
a. What do you consider poverty to be? Do you have a definitive explanation of it or do you
consider it an abstract circumstance?
Answer: I consider poverty to be a curse. Yes, I have a definitive explanation of it. I have watched
the life style of poor people in my life time. Just as the writer, I also think the same about
poverty. poverty is living life in despairity where we feel lack of various things. Poverty is living
life without hope, better foodstuffs, medicinal care, proper sanitation and proper education. It is
like an acid that destroys pride, honour, health and future.
b. Look at this picture. What do you see? Where do you see such people? Who are the poor? Why
are they poor? Where do the poor usually live?
Answer: I see a poor woman with her baby on her lap. Poor are those who have lack of basic
requirements in their lives. They are poor because they don't have good economic status and
support. They usually live in different places as footpaths, fields, deserted and old houses etc.
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a. What is poverty according to Parker?
Answer: According to Parker, poverty is a lack-that is living without hope, better foodstuffs,
medicinal care, proper sanitation and proper education. It is like an acid that destroys pride,
honour, health and future.
b. How is poverty difficult for Parker’s children? List some specific examples.
Answer: Parker's three children suffer a lot due to poverty. They live their miserable lives due to
the lack of proper foodstuffs, education, clothing and care. Parker has presented the very bad
condition of her children along with her. She has provided us information with related to her
children's bad state. According to her, they used to eat oilless corn cornbread as a breakfast. They
used to wear dirty clothes. They weren't sent to a proper school. Parker has informed us about a
day's event when she had left her children under the care of her mother during her job. After her
job, that day she found her youngest covered with flyspecks whose diaper hadn't been changed
since morning. Her next son was playing with the broken glasses. Her eldest son was playing on
the edge of the lake.
c. How does Parker try to obtain help, and what problems does she encounter?
Answer: Paker tries to obtain help by spreading her hands in front of different people and
institutions for the sake of her children. Due to the lack of money, she tries her best to find
supportive hands most of the time. To get help, she encounters problems to find the right

4. organisation and person most of the time. She has to move to different organisations. She has to
wait and tell her miserable story time and again.
d. Why are people’s opinions and prejudices her greatest obstacles?
Answer: People's opinions and prejudices are her greatest obstacles because these aspects
prevent her from getting supportive hands for the sake of her family. Most the people don't
realize the bitter experience of poverty. For them, the pain of poor people is nothing. They keep
on giving their opinions and prejudices against poor people. In the case of Parker, these opinions
and prejudices of people make her failure to get help to run her family.
e. How does Parker defend her inability to get help? How does she discount the usual solutions
society has for poverty (e.g., welfare, education, and health clinics)?
Answer: Parker defends her inability to get help through her opinions related to her experiences
of poverty. She discounts the usual solutions society has for poverty by telling her experiences
related to welfare, education and health clinics. According to her, in the name of welfare, she has
to move and spread her hands in many agencies in many places. In these agencies, she has face
shame all the time. She has to prove her poverty time and again. She has to tell her story many
times. Sometimes, welfare programs promise to help but to reach them takes a lot of time. In the
name of education, school launch programs are there but they are of no use. She has experienced
her two children condition after sending them to school. If we talk about the vital aspects of
health clinics, Parker life is quite away from health clinics' facilities. To get medical help, she has
to walk miles. If she asks for someone's help, the helper expects negative things from her. Thus,
Parker is quite away from all these three important aspects.
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a. Explain the following:
Poverty is looking into a black future.
Answer: This line " Poverty is looking into a black future" has been stated by the writer Jo
Goodwin Parker in her essay. She has put forward this line for her readers to present her
experience related to poverty. Here in this line, the writer is advising all the readers about an ugly
and cruel aspect of poverty. According to her, poverty leads people towards the black future.
Poor people have to live a miserable life on their daily basis. It is quite difficult to manage proper
daily foodstuffs for them. For them, there is no hope for the upcoming future. They keep on
spending their lives in disparity looking into a black future. Poverty breaks expectations and
dreams of future days.
b. What does Parker mean by “The poor are always silent”?
Answer: By "The poor are always silent", Parker means the helplessness state of poor people. In
poverty, money plays a very vital role. Money itself is the right solution for all the problems. But,

5. due to lack of money, poor people feel weaker. They always remain silent in front of others. They
have to listen to others words being silent due to their pathetic state.
c. What writing strategy does the author use at the beginning of most of the paragraphs? Do you
notice a recurring pattern? What is it?
Answers: Here in this essay, the author uses her repetition strategy at the beginning of most of
the paragraphs. Yes, I notice a recurring pattern. It is the structure " Poverty is". The essay is well
organized, and the structure “Poverty is” is repeated at the beginning of each paragraph.
Here, with the help of her repetition strategy, she tries to establish a relationship between the
woman and the readers. The author's informal style makes the writing appear as part of a casual
conversation between the narrator and the readers. Goodwin Parker’s writing is extremely
effective and reaches its purpose.
d. How does Parker develop each paragraph? What details make each paragraph memorable?
Answer: Parker develops each paragraph starting with her repetition strategy. She starts most of
her paragraphs with a repetition statement as "Poverty is". Later, she provides her personal
experiences about her topic sentences.
The author first clearly explains to her readers that her purpose is to help people understand
what poverty is. Her second purpose is to convince all her readers to help people in need. The
details related to her personal painful experiences and bitter reality of poverty make each
paragraph memorable.
e. In the final paragraph, how does the author use questions to involve the readers in the issue of
poverty?
Answer: In the final paragraph, the author uses questions in her informal style of direct
conversation to involve the readers in the issue of poverty.
Parker has done a successful job at involving her readers through her persuasive manner. She
asks them to look at the poor with an angry heart but not with the pitiable heart. This manner of
question has attracted readers' emotion as well as attention. Here, in the final paragraph, she has
become successful to attract her readers' attention toward her plight and the struggles of other's
in her situation.
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a. Define a social problem (homelessness, unemployment, racism) imitating Parker’s style.
Answer: Homelessness is sleeping in footpaths. Homelessness compels you to sleep in footpaths.
Living life on footpaths makes you weaker in various aspects. It ends up your pride and prestige.

6. Unemployment is living a life with shame. Unemployment degrades your value in society. Due to
the lack of a job, you feel shame and humiliation all the time. People ridicule you in the name of
unemployment.
Racism is living a life with humiliation. The racists make you feel weaker in society. They keep on
humiliating you in the matter of skin colour. Due to your skin colour, you will have to face
humiliation in your society. Living life under the concept of racism is a curse.
b. Using adjectives to highlight the futility of the situation, write a short definition essay on
Growing up in Poverty.
Answers: Poverty is defined as a pitiable situation where people feel a lack of various essential
things in their life. Apart from others' opinions, I think growing up in poverty is annoying. Poverty
never allows you to be happy. Living life in poverty annoys you most of the time. Growing up in
poverty makes your life boring. You never try to do anything interesting living within the criteria
of poverty. You feel both confusing and disappointing to grow up in poverty. You feel confused
about your life all the time. Disparity and inequality never let you be free and do something good
in your lives. Growing up in poverty is a frightening experience where you have to face various
hardships and struggles. It provides you with tiring and worrying experience where pains are
always ready to welcome you.
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