A: What a Billionaire Should Give

What Should a Billionaire Give?

Analyzing a Written Argument

The general argument made by Peter Singer in his work What Should a Billionaire Give is that some people live in immense wealth while others fight to survive on very little money. More specifically Singer suggests that the rich should give more money because they have much more than they need. He writes, “Philanthropy on this scale raises many ethical questions: Why are the people who are giving doing so? Does it do any good? Should we praise them for giving so much or criticize them for not giving still more? Pg. 805. In this passage, Singer is suggesting that while very rich philanthropists are donating lots of money they might not be donating enough. In conclusion, it is Singer’s belief that while rich philanthropists donate a lot of money by other’s standards, but that doesn’t mean that they are donating enough because they have so much more than everyone else.

Planning Your Own Argument

            In my view, Singer is right because I believe that some people shouldn’t own many mansions and private jets and all these toys when there are people who are starving to death and could have been saved by the money spent of the toys. For example, in the Hunger Games the residence live in wealth and comfort while the residents of the districts are barely surviving on their small amounts of food that they work all day to get. Although Singer might object that we can necessarily tell the people with all the money what to do, I maintain that what they are doing is just as cruel as what the capitol does to the districts in the Hunger Games. Therefore, I conclude that the rich should share a lot more of their wealth than they do.