In this essay for Liberty Unbound, I examine the romantic idea that poor people are happier, more spiritual, or more connected to life because they live with less.

My argument is that poverty should not be sentimentalized. A poor society may appear warm or hospitable to an outsider, but poverty usually means survival pressure, fear, fatalism, envy, and a lack of space for reflection. There is nothing noble or spiritual about deprivation. Anyone who wants to help poor societies must first honestly understand the roots of poverty.

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