What is development? a. “Development is a process of expanding the real freedoms that people enjoy.” Development requires certain unfreedoms such as poverty, tyranny, poor economic opportunities, systematic social deprivation to be removed. It is also based on more than just GNP or individual incomes but is impacted by social and economic arrangements as well as political and civil rights. Money is crucial however it is not the solution to all developmental problems. Development is the ability for people to enlarge their choices and freedoms and to make their own economic decisions. Development is the expansion of freedoms and is fundamentally based on freedoms.
Is this definition of development an expansive or narrower view? a. I see this as more of an expansive view of development. A narrow view of development would state that all we need is money in order for it to be successful. It’s the expansion of freedoms across every facet of human life from health to jobs and more. Amartya Sen says that it is not just money that play a crucial in development. The comparison of GNP and life expectancies is interesting between China, India, and Brazil and shows a wider view of development in that, a higher GNP does not necessarily mean a higher life expectancy in those countries.
What are some of the sources of unfreedoms development requires being removed? a. The major sources of unfreedom that need to be removed are “poverty, tyranny, poor economic opportunities, systematic social deprivation, neglect of public facilities, and intolerance or overactivity of repressive states.” Poverty is a significant one that denies people the freedom to obtain sufficient food and the access to healthcare. Other factors that make create this unfreedom is the lack of facilities and care available for the public. Any denial of political and civil rights is directly caused by authoritarian states and from restrictions that were imposed on the freedom of people to be active in social, economic, and political life.
Why is free and sustainable agency a major engine of development? a. Free agency itself is essential to development and it reinforces mutual connections as well as reinforces constituent relations. Development is dependent on a free agency of people and this free and sustainable agency is about achievement of development. Achievement is influenced by economic opportunities, healthcare etc. which centers around this ‘culture of initiative.’ Agency facilitates that and the freedoms to make those decisions propel these opportunities.
What does Sen say about being generically against markets? a. He says that denying the opportunities for transaction is a potential unfreedom. Amartya Sen believes in the freedom of exchange and transaction. While there is evidence that the market can be a source of growth and wealth of living standards, but markets can sometimes be counterproductive. However, overall, it is important to recognize that denying people the right to engage in an exchange and transaction of goods contributes to social loss. When market opportunities are restricted, then the widening of these freedoms he discusses throughout the reading, are restricted.
What was the story of Kader Mia? What was the penalty of his economic unfreedom? a. Kader Mia was a Muslim laborer who had to travel to the city of Dhaka, Bangladesh to do work for a family. In a predominantly Hindu neighborhood, Kader Mia was stabbed in the back and later died. Because he was poor (his economic unfreedom) and needed to work to provide food for his family, he was forced to go into a dangerous neighborhood. The penalty of his economic unfreedom was death.
Who were Condorcet and Malthus? What were their primary arguments regarding development and fertility? a. Condorcet was a French rationalist from the 18th century who argued that society would see a sharp decline in population growth if greater freedoms were afforded to people. He said that more education, more security, and more general freedoms would inhibit higher fertility rates. Malthus came from the same time period but staunchly disagreed with Condorcet’s view of development and its negative affect on fertility. Malthus aligned more with the profreedom view and that more freedoms would not “disable them [persons] from rearranging in health the largest families.”