The first term, the attributed status, plays an important role in the analysis. For example, it is the social status that is assigned to a person at birth or assumed involuntarily later in life. It is a position that is neither earned nor chosen, but assigned. This term describes the two families immensely. The mother and father of both families came from poor backgrounds and experienced struggle throughout their lives. This plays an important role in life because it already puts people who come from successful backgrounds behind you. It's not easy to get out of poverty if you were born into it. No one asks to live that way, but some are simply assigned to live that way and can do nothing about it. The next term is conflict theory. This is a pretty tough argument for poverty. For example, it describes how more powerful groups use their material and power to exploit groups with less power. In many people's minds, this would be seen as “unfair,” but nowadays people are willing to do anything to gain power and status. This happened generation after generation. The more powerful groups deprive the less powerful of many benefits, which causes them to fall further into poverty than they already were