The Price of Everything
The most important is the least valued. For proof, look no further than the compensation of educators as opposed to entertainers. Teachers do far more valuable work but earn a tiny fraction of what professional athletes, movie actors and rock stars make.
Farmers also spring to mind. Those who labor long hours to produce what we eat make a pittance compared to how much of the food dollar goes to those who process, package and sell us our groceries.
Still, farmers farm, for love of the land and of animals, for love of the life, for the slim hope of profit. Some eke out a living, others go broke.
Writing has this in common with farming. Those who observe the ways of the world and try to make sense of it all see little of the proceeds from sales of the stories they tell. A book is a boat plastered with publishing industry barnacles.
Still, writers write, out of devotion to the craft, for the chance that the words they string together could enlighten or enrich, might move someone to laughter or tears or epiphany. All but a miniscule few can’t afford to quit their day jobs.
There was a time when the richest man in the world gave away 90% of his fortune building libraries so everyone could have access to books. By the time he was through, Andrew Carnegie funded the construction of nearly 1,700 libraries.
In Carnegie’s day, giving back was a duty, a necessary repayment to society for the many blessings he benefited from. He once said, “the man who dies rich dies in disgrace.” The French describe this code of honor in two words—noblesse oblige. The Bible puts it this way: To whom much is given, much will be required. That age-old ethic has fallen on hard times.
Today, the richest among us control a record share of America’s wealth. The net worth of the wealthiest dozen and a half families in our country jumped to about $2.6 trillion by the end of last year after the biggest one-year increase ever.
Oscar Wilde defined a cynic as someone “who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.” We live in an extremely cynical, selfish and antisocial age where the most important is the least valued, where it’s hard to imagine the richest men in the world giving away 90% of their wealth for the benefit of humanity. Their ex-wives maybe, but not them.