Assignment #5 (i, Pencil)

Summary:
the point of view of a pencil, Leonard E. Read describes the huge amount of efforts and materials required to make a product as simple as a pencil. There are no individuals that can make any one product. People around the world contribute to the production of objects such as pencil, whether it's the people collecting the raw material or the people monitoring the machinery or the people who makes the food that the workers each to give them energy. One product creates indefinite amounts of professions and specializations. These specializations lead to the belief that the people cannot do something out of what their roles require them to do in order contribute to one product. And the main reason for people getting involved with the productions and specializations is because they desire something, which can be brought to them by contributing to the productions.

Quotes:
1). "Think of all the persons and the numberless skills that went into their fabrication..."
2). "Their motivation is other than me. Perhaps it is something like this: Each of these millions sees that he can thus exchange his tiny know-how for the goods and services he needs or wants."
3). "...most individuals will believe that the mails could not be efficiently delivered by men acting freely. And here is the reason: Each one acknowledges that he himself doesn't know how to do all the things incident to mail delivery. He also recognizes that no other individual could do it... No individual possesses enough know-how to perform a nation's mail delivery any more than any individual possesses enough know-how to make a pencil."

Analysis:
Pencil is the main idea of the article, rather it is just an example of everything that is put up in the market. The points mentioned about producing a pencil can apply for any other product. All the workers mentioned, such as the miners, company presidents, etc. would be part of "the labor" which is part of Capitalism. Within the Capitalism, it also includes the "the land" (wood, wax, graphite, rubber, etc) and the "the capital" (Pacific Gas & Electric Company, lighthouse keepers, etc). In the bigger picture, all three of these are provided by households" to the factor market. It helps the factor market make the actual product, which is then sold to the business. Then they would sell it to the product market. From there, those goods are sold to the households, which is why the sold the land, labor and capital to the factor market. In the article, this was referred to as the "Invisible Hand." It is the desired goods that drive people to contribute to capitalism. The "Invisible Hand" is also profit motives; the chance for businesses and households to make a profit.