Relative Poverty
First, relative poverty is when people are poor relative to those around them. For example, someone who lives in an expensive subdivision yet rents a run-down house and does not own luxurious things could be considered poor compared to the rest of the neighborhood. For the most part, poverty is relative and socially defined. Compared to people starving in third-world countries, even many poor Americans are well-off. The impoverished that live in the inner city may have the same amount of money as those who live in rural areas, but since the cost of living is so high, those in the inner city may be worse off. At the same time, though, those in the inner city may also have access to more resources.
Absolute Poverty
Regardless, the poverty line does give us a way to identify those most in need. Most that fall below it suffer from absolute poverty, which is when people do not have enough money to purchase what is needed for survival. Where relative poverty sees inequality of income, absolute poverty sees families go hungry, live in inadequate housing, suffer from lack of health care, and possibly not have access to safe drinking water.....
