Compare and Contrast

Poverty and paranoia are two states that a human can be in. Poverty is a state of life and paranoia is a state of mind. If you think about it one can lead to the other. Being in a state of both poverty and paranoia can be very upsetting for an individual. These are two states that no one would want to be in. Poverty and paranoia compare in that poverty is when a person is poor, one can be born into it or become poor, and a person in poverty is mentally normal; whereas a person who has paranoia may have decent amount of money, can have paranoia because of anxiety or fear, and a paranoid person is delusional. Poverty and Paranoia contrast in that two different people who are in these states can both be mentally lonely, in dire need of help, and simply can be very afraid.

An obvious contrasting point between poverty and paranoia is that a person who is in a state of poverty lacks money and a person who is in a state of paranoia can possess enough amount of money. When one is in a state of poverty, one lacks money to buy food, materials, and have a decent home. They might be hungry and be walking around in smelly clothes. Poor people might not receive a decent education either. Lacking money can mean that a person might not be able to put through his/her children through school and so would not have an opportunity to get out of the state of poverty through their children. People with paranoia may have plenty of money. People with paranoia can have money for food, material, a house, and other basic human needs that people in poverty are unable to obtain easily. People paranoid can even have enough money to get help.

A poor person can either be born into poverty if the person’s parents were poor or become poor at one point in the person’s life because of a tragic event. A paranoid person could have become paranoid because of anxiety or fear.

A poor person can be mentally normal and not have any psychiatric problems. The person may be thinking straight and is able to make decisions unless the person is so poor that it is too weak. A paranoid person can be mentally abnormal. She/he can be delusional.  Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself. In modern colloquial use, the term "paranoia" is sometimes misused to describe a phobia. The general lack of blame in phobia disorders sharply differentiates the two.

A person who is living in a state of poverty and a person who is paranoid can have similar traits. For example, both persons can feel extremely lonely inside. A poor person can be lonely because he has no family and has no one to share his situation with. Poverty can actually also mean loneliness. Mother Teresa once said, “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the

feeling of being unloved.” Some even say that one can feel lonely in a room full of people. Paranoid people can also feel a sense of loneliness when people don’t understand what they are going through. Loneliness can also cause paranoia. When a person is lonely they can easily develop fears.
            Both persons can be in desperate need of help. Poor people obviously need people’s assistance to get them out of poverty. They need people to get them food, help them to get a job, and help them to live a decent environment especially if they have a family. Paranoid people need assistance to simply escape from the state of paranoia. Being driven by fear can make one crazy. They need help to overcome fear to escape from their delusional state of mind.
            Both persons can simply be very afraid on either what to do. Poor and paranoid peoples can reach a state where they wouldn’t know what to do. This can be very scary.
            As you can see, Poverty and Paranoia has its comparisons and contrasts. Poverty is the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Paranoia is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself. Poverty can lead to paranoia. When one is poor, he/she can develop certain fears while living in complete desolation and develop paranoia.