Productivity and Psychology: A Comparison of "The Metropolis and Mental Life" and "The Bet" Anonymous College

Human beings, as thinkers, tend to assume that there is a causation for everything. Whether it can be proved through physics, psychology, or experimentation, most natural phenomenons have several explanatory theories that attempt to explain why things are the way that they are. Authors frequently use these social phenomenons in fictional stories to criticize social norms and make readers question the rhyme and reason behind existing standards. Abe Kobo’s short story “The Bet” is a critique of the modern world and the way it uses the media and advertising to manipulate citizens and further material goals. However, Georg Simmel in his essay “The Metropolis and Mental Life” presents the idea that the mentality adopted by urban society is not just caused by money and capitalism, but also helps to fuels its effectiveness. A close comparison between these two publications proves the relationship between the productivity of a society and the mentality of the people within it; Simmel’s commentary on the psychology of economics and metropolitan society can be used to explain modern society’s codependent relationship with money and media that is evident in Kobo’s “The Bet”.

Simmel’s essay breaks down the specific frame of mind that is...