Scan barcode
enadeline's review
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.75
The best part about this book is Teo You Yenn’s ability to make a mostly academic book, (in reference to the way it is written, its format as a series of essays, references to other studies, etc.), personal and moving in ways that most research papers can’t. When you talk about inequality you are ultimately talking about people - real people, whose lives should not just be subject to a research paper. To talk, write, read about inequality is deeply uncomfortable and Teo’s personalisation (inserting herself in her academic research), makes this book so great.
Minus points because while she covers a breadth of issues and people (public policies, housing and living spaces, youth / kids, social workers, and much more), a couple pages on race (a single short chapter) omits a large chunk of the conversations that should be had about inequality, especially in Singapore. Race and inequality, everywhere but especially in a country like Singapore that masks itself behind racial harmony and multiculturalism to avoid topics about race, are inextricably linked to class and inequality.
Minus points because while she covers a breadth of issues and people (public policies, housing and living spaces, youth / kids, social workers, and much more), a couple pages on race (a single short chapter) omits a large chunk of the conversations that should be had about inequality, especially in Singapore. Race and inequality, everywhere but especially in a country like Singapore that masks itself behind racial harmony and multiculturalism to avoid topics about race, are inextricably linked to class and inequality.
yvkhan's review
5.0
I admit that I find it difficult to review this. Maybe Teo’s work is so impactful that it fundamentally shaped the GP discussion of meritocracy at my school, maybe I’ve already been pilled about people of all backgrounds wanting to work hard and rely on themselves because of Twitter communists, but I didn’t find her work intensely illuminating on a personal level, I suppose. But then again, not everyone follows leftists online and such, and this is undoubtedly an accessible text for the regular Singaporean to whom these opinions may seem revolutionary,
I think I tend to give higher ratings to non-fiction books that trigger fundamental shifts in worldview for me (eg The Dawn of Everything), but I suppose the revelations Teo’s book have brought me are more subtle than that. I feel that I’ve learnt more about the way in which one-room flats are built, the living conditions of such rental flats (the smell, the displays), and my own ignorance with regards to my idea of privilege (i.e. perhaps my privileged head can acknowledge that going to poly could actually be a privilege that not everyone can have? TIL that about 1/3 of the population aged 25+ didn’t finish post-secondary education: https://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/reference/ebook/population/education-and-literacy).
I think I find myself most struck by ideas of dignity and how much emphasis Teo places on them over more material disadvantages. Perhaps I will start saying hello to and nodding at cleaners and foreign workers after all.
I think I tend to give higher ratings to non-fiction books that trigger fundamental shifts in worldview for me (eg The Dawn of Everything), but I suppose the revelations Teo’s book have brought me are more subtle than that. I feel that I’ve learnt more about the way in which one-room flats are built, the living conditions of such rental flats (the smell, the displays), and my own ignorance with regards to my idea of privilege (i.e. perhaps my privileged head can acknowledge that going to poly could actually be a privilege that not everyone can have? TIL that about 1/3 of the population aged 25+ didn’t finish post-secondary education: https://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/reference/ebook/population/education-and-literacy).
I think I find myself most struck by ideas of dignity and how much emphasis Teo places on them over more material disadvantages. Perhaps I will start saying hello to and nodding at cleaners and foreign workers after all.
fengyuseah's review
4.0
an incomplete picture of inequality in singapore (a chapter on race doesn't make up for the rest of the book not addressing how race factors into one's experiences in singapore, especially re: perceptions of deservedness) but an important book nonetheless. i wish singaporeans were more willing to engage with points of view that disrupt their worldview, but alas,
poxav's review
3.0
The first half of the book is, without a doubt, a must-read for every Singaporean. It provides a perspective into a troubling reality that many of us would choose to blissfully ignore. Indeed, by reading, you are forced to admit not just systemic inadequacies that you might have refused to consider, but also might have to admit your unconscious compliance in facilitating this problematic milieu.
However, despite its strengths, the second half of the book is remarkably different from the first. While This Is What Inequality Looks Like never pretended to be academic in nature, the second half abandons objectivity and nuance for highly opinionated streams of consciousness. Much needed elaboration on certain topics is oftentimes not offered, and certain issues are not discussed in any satisfactory way. While it is good for the author to recognize the issues with not discussing the impact of race, sidestepping the issue in such a manner still makes the text feel incomplete in a sense.
"One has to make conscious effort to move beyond defensiveness and ideology." In the context the author presents this statement in the last chapter of the book, I completely agree. However, this same quote, when considering the backdrop of the latter half of the book, is, dare I say, just a tad bit hypocritical.
However, despite its strengths, the second half of the book is remarkably different from the first. While This Is What Inequality Looks Like never pretended to be academic in nature, the second half abandons objectivity and nuance for highly opinionated streams of consciousness. Much needed elaboration on certain topics is oftentimes not offered, and certain issues are not discussed in any satisfactory way. While it is good for the author to recognize the issues with not discussing the impact of race, sidestepping the issue in such a manner still makes the text feel incomplete in a sense.
"One has to make conscious effort to move beyond defensiveness and ideology." In the context the author presents this statement in the last chapter of the book, I completely agree. However, this same quote, when considering the backdrop of the latter half of the book, is, dare I say, just a tad bit hypocritical.
jwsg's review
5.0
This is a book about inequality in Singapore, based on 3 years' worth of ethnographic research by Teo. In it, Teo seeks to force deeper reflection about the narratives we tell ourselves about inequality and poverty in Singapore - that the story of Singapore is unequivocally one of progress from Third World to First; that while there is poverty (there is poverty everywhere after all), the poor here have it better than their counterparts elsewhere, with roofs over their heads, plenty of government assistance, and opportunities for advancement; that the winners and losers in Singapore are the natural outcome of meritocracy at work - and if you are one of the losers, you must lack merit in some way.
Each essay in This Is What Inequality Looks Like examines a different aspect of the low-income experience - their every day life in rental flats, how they juggle work and family commitments, parenting, how their status shapes their interactions with the government and other citizens, etc. For the winners in life's sweepstakes, it is tempting to attribute success to ambition, diligence and sheer hard work. Conversely, we apply terms like "dysfunctional" or "unmotivated" to the losers; their lack of success is the result of some moral failure and poor life choices. But we don't consider how privilege (and luck) play a role in giving one a headstart in life, in growing and entrenching that advantage.
This Is What Inequality Looks Like forces one to reframe our perspectives, by interrogating some of the assumptions we hold of the low-income. We might consider someone in a rental flat to be extravagant or to have money squirrelled away somewhere, when we see that they have fairly nice furnishings and fancy electronics like flat screen TVs. But Teo argues that "the furnishings people have reflect the excesses of Singapore society - some people with limited income have quite nice furniture because well-to-do Singaporeans throw out nice things that are still in reasonably good condition...It is worth speaking explicitly about televisions. In Singapore and elsewhere, people regularly remark that low-income persons are perhaps not as poor as they claim to be or that they are making bad choices...because they have large screen televisions. I heard this from social workers I interviewed and among people who volunteer for organisations that work with low-income families...There is a popular belief that low-income families buy appliances from furnishing/appliance chain stores and they do so because there are instalment plans. When people mention this, they are usually implying that people are not prudent and giving beyond their means...[But] a common way in which families gather the things they need in their homes - TVs, fridges, sofas, beds, washing machines, study desks - is through donations and second hand shops. People with money in Singapore buy new appliances and furnishings, upgrading to higher resolution TVs for example, before their existing sets break down. Numerous appliances and furnishings in the homes of people I visit are incongruent with their income levels. While some buy these things on instalment plans, many made a point of pointing out: "this one is from [organisation X]...that one [organisation Y] gave me"...TV sets, including large screen TVs, then, tell us less about 'bad choices' by low-income households and more about our society of high consumption and waste."
Through the experiences she describes, Teo asks the reader to consider whether the bad choices made by the low income are the result of bad circumstances (where one can only, at best, choose the option that is least bad) or because of some moral failure. Why doesn't the single mother choose to take a job that pays better, or go for training that will enable her to upgrade to a better job? (How hard can it be to make childcare arrangements for her children, such that she can take a better paying job that is further away from her home?) Why don't children from low income families work harder in school so they can secure better prospects in life? (How hard can it be to catch up with children from middle and high income families who enter school knowing how to read, write and speak fluently, and not believe from the start that one is stupid and slow? And what help can their parents possibly offer them, beyond nagging them to work harder so that they don't end up like their parents?)
This is What Inequality Looks like is thought provoking and reflective. And it is (perhaps most importantly) also highly accessible in its language and style. It forces one to re-examine one's assumptions and prejudices about the low-income, to understand a bit better the texture of the low-income experience, and to consider whether we need to reframe our narrative about inequality and poverty.
Each essay in This Is What Inequality Looks Like examines a different aspect of the low-income experience - their every day life in rental flats, how they juggle work and family commitments, parenting, how their status shapes their interactions with the government and other citizens, etc. For the winners in life's sweepstakes, it is tempting to attribute success to ambition, diligence and sheer hard work. Conversely, we apply terms like "dysfunctional" or "unmotivated" to the losers; their lack of success is the result of some moral failure and poor life choices. But we don't consider how privilege (and luck) play a role in giving one a headstart in life, in growing and entrenching that advantage.
This Is What Inequality Looks Like forces one to reframe our perspectives, by interrogating some of the assumptions we hold of the low-income. We might consider someone in a rental flat to be extravagant or to have money squirrelled away somewhere, when we see that they have fairly nice furnishings and fancy electronics like flat screen TVs. But Teo argues that "the furnishings people have reflect the excesses of Singapore society - some people with limited income have quite nice furniture because well-to-do Singaporeans throw out nice things that are still in reasonably good condition...It is worth speaking explicitly about televisions. In Singapore and elsewhere, people regularly remark that low-income persons are perhaps not as poor as they claim to be or that they are making bad choices...because they have large screen televisions. I heard this from social workers I interviewed and among people who volunteer for organisations that work with low-income families...There is a popular belief that low-income families buy appliances from furnishing/appliance chain stores and they do so because there are instalment plans. When people mention this, they are usually implying that people are not prudent and giving beyond their means...[But] a common way in which families gather the things they need in their homes - TVs, fridges, sofas, beds, washing machines, study desks - is through donations and second hand shops. People with money in Singapore buy new appliances and furnishings, upgrading to higher resolution TVs for example, before their existing sets break down. Numerous appliances and furnishings in the homes of people I visit are incongruent with their income levels. While some buy these things on instalment plans, many made a point of pointing out: "this one is from [organisation X]...that one [organisation Y] gave me"...TV sets, including large screen TVs, then, tell us less about 'bad choices' by low-income households and more about our society of high consumption and waste."
Through the experiences she describes, Teo asks the reader to consider whether the bad choices made by the low income are the result of bad circumstances (where one can only, at best, choose the option that is least bad) or because of some moral failure. Why doesn't the single mother choose to take a job that pays better, or go for training that will enable her to upgrade to a better job? (How hard can it be to make childcare arrangements for her children, such that she can take a better paying job that is further away from her home?) Why don't children from low income families work harder in school so they can secure better prospects in life? (How hard can it be to catch up with children from middle and high income families who enter school knowing how to read, write and speak fluently, and not believe from the start that one is stupid and slow? And what help can their parents possibly offer them, beyond nagging them to work harder so that they don't end up like their parents?)
This is What Inequality Looks like is thought provoking and reflective. And it is (perhaps most importantly) also highly accessible in its language and style. It forces one to re-examine one's assumptions and prejudices about the low-income, to understand a bit better the texture of the low-income experience, and to consider whether we need to reframe our narrative about inequality and poverty.