The Term “the Third World” was first coined by French economist, Alfred Sauvy in the French magazine, L’Observateur. It means “underdeveloped” or “developing” and many refer to Third World countries as under-developed countries or developing countries because of this. It refers to countries that were not aligned with Communist countries or Capitalist countries during the Cold War. These are mostly countries in Southern America and Asia as well as Africa and Oceania. It was linked to “the Third Estate in French feudalism. Sauvy implied that the third World is exploited and it will always lead to revolution. A few of today’s Third World counties are former colonies. Upon further investigation in the 1980s, an economist, Peter Bauer, suggested that what defined Third World countries before such as how developed they are and whom they are aligned to, no longer applies to them today. The only link they all have is that they “demand and receive Western aid” which he opposed. Even to this day there is debate over the true meaning of the term, “the Third World.”
The link between "The Good Husband of Zebra Drive" and "the Third World"
“The Good Husband of Zebra Drive is a great tool in understanding The Third World. Set in Botswana, which is a Third World country, it touches on all the elements of the Third World. Poverty is a major aspect of it. In most Third World nations, poverty is the biggest problem they face. Not enough people have the income they need to survive and live in horrible condition. In the book there is a part where Mma Ramotswe recounts how she passes by a guard who works down the road. He makes a small fire with whatever he has and when she passes him by she often gives him a 20 pula note. Illness is common in Third World nations. There are no proper medical facilities available to the people and if there are – they are extremely expensive. For example, Mochudi Hospital in the book. Corruption is a massive problem in these countries. There are always people who get rich the quick, easy and dodgy way. For instance, the meeting with Charlie Gotso about mining. This leads to the next problem. There is no middle class. You are either dirt poor, or filthy rich such as Charlie Gotso being super rich and Mr. Polopetsi being extremely poor.
Poverty in "The Third World"
Poverty is one of the main issues in Third World countries. It, by definition, is the lack of common necessities such as food, clothing, shelter and safe water. It can include lack of education and employment. There are many organizations dedicated to seeing people out of poverty but unfortunately the number around the world keeps growing. It is evident in every country all around the world but most apparent in Third World countries. Without proper facilities, these people are desperate for the basic things that we take for granted. For example, medical treatment is such an everyday thing for us but those under the banner of poverty have no access to it. Sometimes poverty leads to awful things like crime, criminals are often driven by the fact that they don’t have enough to make ends meet and have no way to do so legitimately. It also leads to segregation within societies. Cultural groups and alienation is an obvious result of poverty. There is a massive amount of mistrust between those who have too much and those who have too little.
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