Money and Respect
I believe that money cannot buy respect and I cannot be changed easily on that because I am not Superman (Allusion). (Amplification) Respect, real respect is earned, and those who believe that respect can be bought are only deluded. The ages when respect would be bought became history because what was said to be respected was fear. Kings used to instill fear on their subject under the assumption that fear was equal to respect. Respect is a value that is given out of heart (Idiomatic expression) and self-conviction where the recipient can only impact the giver by doing something that the giver thinks is exceptional. The amount of respect given by different people to one person differs significantly. The choice of the level of respect to accord to an individual is personal and cannot be shared. The only role that money can play in the earning of respect is placing an individual in a position that will enable the individuals to earn respect. The bare truth about respect is that it is expensive, but it can be afforded by the poorest and unaffordable by the richest (Antanagoge). The respect that people confuse with being bought by money is respect for money and not the respect for the money owner.
When a child is born, the first teaching that the parent gives the child is respect for others. The parent naturally believes that the child should respect them, and the parent should correct any mistake by the child without question. However, a parent may try a thousand times (Hyperbole) to teach their child to respect other people, but the choice of the people to respect depends on the relationship between the giver of respect and the actions of the person to be respected. As age sets in, people tend to grow discerning and able to rate people according to the respect deserved. For example, people will tend to group others according to the respect that is supposed to be given to each. The respect to be given might vary considerably, but the method by which an individual earns their respect remains the cornerstone of everything (Persuasion) (Gilbert, 203). Although people are brought up under the teaching of growing up with respect of other people, the difference comes in when the people to be respected are met. The unfortunate nature of humankind is that money and position have been given a chance to delude people into believing that everything can be obtained with riches and power. The part that individuals forget is that power can only put fear into subjects, but respect has to be earned no matter the size of the pocket. Additionally, respect is always honest, and an individual does not have the power to use respect where it cannot be used, and thus, people have to always earn their respect.
Respect begins with the person to be respected. The first step towards earning respect is to have self-respect. The authenticity to believe in oneself even when no one shares a similar opinion is crucial towards the journey to earn respect. Successful individuals are those who go beyond the limits set by common people, and success eventually leads to respect. However, the respect due to success should not be taken for granted. (Metaphor) Respect is like a wall that can be built in ten years but later is brought down in one day. Therefore, respect earned from success should be taken care of because bringing down such respect to the ground could only take a blink of an eye (Simile). Success if not well managed, could lead to pride. Pride leads to a destroyed reputation (Anadiplosis). Reputation is the foundation of respect. Besides, believing that money can, by respect, is similar to believing in a frozen hell (Metonymy). The respect that is earned from having a big-sized pocket is only for the money and not the individual. The respect for money stays around as long as the money is still in plenty. However, if an individual bases their respect on money, the time when the money is all spent marks the time when the respect leaves. Also, using a job position as a measure of respect is deceitful and can only be compared to dictatorship (Rogers, Kristie, and Blake, 1580). People who believe that job positions should be respected always get into confrontations with their juniors and become dictators. Generally, respect is only firm if it is earned and stays as long as the respected person knows how to stay respectful.
In sum, respect cannot be bought and is only earned. The level of respect to be accorded to someone is only decided by the respecters and not the person to be respected. The teaching that is given to young people on respecting others does not earn respect for people who do not deserve to be respected but only prepares an avenue for building respect on people who deserve to be respected. Respect is built over time, and care should be taken to avoid losing respect from committing a slight mistake that will remain regrettable after that. Generally, respected is earned, and money can only aid in earning respect but cannot buy it.
Works Cited
Gilbert, Emily. “Money as a “weapons system” and the entrepreneurial way of war.” Critical Military Studies 1.3 (2015): 202-219.
Rogers, Kristie M., and Blake E. Ashforth. “Respect in organizations: Feeling valued as “we” and “me”.” Journal of Management 43.5 (2017): 1578-1608.