All I can say is grass is always greener. I leave it there because it seems we have come to an impasse.Worgen said:
Do rich characters deserve pity?
- Thread starter Burnouts3s3
- Start date
Rich people are people, too. Now, that doesn't mean I inherently feel for their problems, but they absolutely can be sympathetic.
But you consider how many sociopaths and monsters on TV we're supposed to feel for, identify with, etc. and it seems trivial to empathise with a rich person. Ignore people who outright cheer the Joker, just look at people who cheer on House or Walter White.
But you consider how many sociopaths and monsters on TV we're supposed to feel for, identify with, etc. and it seems trivial to empathise with a rich person. Ignore people who outright cheer the Joker, just look at people who cheer on House or Walter White.
Well if we are talking about the types you see in reality shows who make anything trivial into the most serious problem ever cos they didn't get their own way, then yeah it's very hard to find sympathy for those kinda people xD
If we are talking about fictional characters, it does take some sympathy points away, but that is usually balanced by some other elements of the background, as seems to be the consensus already.
And no "grass is greener" crap, cos in this case the grass really is greener and higher in fiber too and whilst the rich might have a set of problems the poor don't have, you have a lot more problems as a poor person that a rich person doesn't have and which are significantly harder to deal with, not least because you don't have the economic freedom to live and work as you want, most average joes are tethered to a workplace and a life of boring work they have to do to pay the bills, not because they choose too.
Money doesn't buy happiness, but it offers a heck of a safety cushion and financial freedom as well as an enhanced ability to deal with your problems in a manner an average joe can't.
If we are talking about fictional characters, it does take some sympathy points away, but that is usually balanced by some other elements of the background, as seems to be the consensus already.
I'll gladly trade my current set of problems for that new set please.IceStar100 said:
And no "grass is greener" crap, cos in this case the grass really is greener and higher in fiber too and whilst the rich might have a set of problems the poor don't have, you have a lot more problems as a poor person that a rich person doesn't have and which are significantly harder to deal with, not least because you don't have the economic freedom to live and work as you want, most average joes are tethered to a workplace and a life of boring work they have to do to pay the bills, not because they choose too.
Money doesn't buy happiness, but it offers a heck of a safety cushion and financial freedom as well as an enhanced ability to deal with your problems in a manner an average joe can't.
This is sort of a bizarre question because, when you get down to it, there is always someone who is worse off than someone else. You can say "those rich people in the US need to quit complaining because their problems are nothing compared to the poor in the US", but on the same note, one could easily say "those poor people in the US need to quit complaining, because they have it great compared to your average person living in Somalia".
No matter what the situation is, someone can always say "quit complaining because _________ has it worse than you". That doesn't necessarily mean that one doesn't deserve pity or sympathy.
No matter what the situation is, someone can always say "quit complaining because _________ has it worse than you". That doesn't necessarily mean that one doesn't deserve pity or sympathy.
I have a problem in general with characters who spend their whole time moaning about a situation they could easily escape from. I'm currently in the midst of re-watching Buffy with my daughter, and I'm reminded once again how much Buffy herself always irritated the hell out of me (while everything else about the show was awesome). Constantly whining about her terrible destiny which imbues her with superpowers, and every time she actually gets a taste of the option to leave (such as the arrival of Kendra and then Faith, or the episode where she loses her powers) she is immediately even *more* whiny about how much her life sucks.
Half-way through Season 4 now. Past Hush but still got the Jonathan episode coming up, always a favourite
Half-way through Season 4 now. Past Hush but still got the Jonathan episode coming up, always a favourite
Depends on their complaint. If they're bitching about material loss and they're billionaires, well, boo motherfucking hoo. You lose a car/house/boat ect. you can buy a new one. Even if there was sentimental value attached to the property, at least you can just pick up another. It won't be the same, but you'll still have a car. If I lost my car, I'd be utterly fucked most likely.
On the other hand, personal tragedy is not assuaged by a mountain of money. As of right now, no amount of money will bring someone back from the dead. Even something less than that, something like a loss of limb or freedom of movement are legitimate things to sympathize with regardless of the amount of money involved. Well, until medical technology makes better artificial replacements.
As such, I really couldn't feel bad for rich people in Deus Ex unless someone they loved died. Who cares if you lose an arm? You can just get a new one!
Finally, the stresses they might have to endure are the price paid for their comfort of life, their security, and the vast fortune their kids will most likely receive. Particularly for billionaires. If your job is causing you to get ulcers and have high blood pressure, just fucking leave. It's not like you don't have enough money to last you the rest of your life even if you decided every surface you touched must be gold plated.
On the other hand, personal tragedy is not assuaged by a mountain of money. As of right now, no amount of money will bring someone back from the dead. Even something less than that, something like a loss of limb or freedom of movement are legitimate things to sympathize with regardless of the amount of money involved. Well, until medical technology makes better artificial replacements.
As such, I really couldn't feel bad for rich people in Deus Ex unless someone they loved died. Who cares if you lose an arm? You can just get a new one!
Finally, the stresses they might have to endure are the price paid for their comfort of life, their security, and the vast fortune their kids will most likely receive. Particularly for billionaires. If your job is causing you to get ulcers and have high blood pressure, just fucking leave. It's not like you don't have enough money to last you the rest of your life even if you decided every surface you touched must be gold plated.
Nifty thing about being rich is that if you're fed up with all of the rich people problems you can donate money to charity until you're middle class, poor, or whatever you fancy and live the golden life with everybody else. Not quite so easy to try if you're poor.IceStar100 said:
Which is largely why I don't buy the "Rich people have just as many problems as poor people" shtick. You always have the choice to not be rich, if you find having less money so much more enviable, it's always just a stone's throw away. I'm not saying that there aren't problems that money brings, it's just that for whatever reason many people seem to prefer to have a lot of it than not.
OT: I think I get what you mean. It's not so much they don't deserve sympathy for death of loved ones, divorce or other generally difficult things, it's just when they try to make you feel sympathetic for them not being quite as rich and well off as they used to be. In Arrow one of the character's father cuts him off of his trust fund and the show's painting it as if it's so horribly tragic. All I'm thinking is "Okay, he's 28, he hasn't been working or doing anything besides spend money since high school and now the show wants me to feel sympathy for him because he's actually going to have to work for a living?".
Situations like that I find absolutely absurd