I chose to do my second exercise on “Living on the Edge of Poverty: A Balanced Budget”. I'm getting married this year and my fiancé and I have started to have a tight budget for ourselves, so this assignment came very close to us. Together we will do more or less the same result as the couple in the example. If a couple earned around 18,924 a year, or $1,577 a month, it would be difficult to live and enjoy life. I asked many different people for their estimates of how much they pay for certain things, and I also looked online for several examples and estimates. My findings are that for a two bedroom apartment in Bellbrook Ohio it would cost around $600.00 per month with water, sewer and trash all included. Electricity would cost the family an additional $125.00 each month. For two paid off used cars, insurance would cost them about $150.00 a month, and with gas prices up about $4.00 a gallon, if work and shopping were all within fifteen minutes of them, I estimated it would cost him approximately $384.00 per month. For child care for preschoolers and after-school care for seven-year-olds the figure would be approximately $544.00 per month. Health care would cost approximately $1,400.00 for the entire family for one month. For food, clothing, extras and entertainment it is approximately $880.00 per month. This all adds up to about $4,008 per month, a staggering $48,096 per year. This is more than double the amount the family together earns in a year. With all this cost of living they have to make drastic cuts. For example, if a family member took care of the children instead of keeping them in day care, they would cut $500.00 from their expenses each month. They could reduce their entertainment to once a month and throw it down… middle of paper… functionalist, this family has a purpose being almost on the poverty line. Everything in society has a purpose and a function. Poverty and inequality play a specific function in society. Inequality is a graduated scale of people at different income levels. Poverty motivates people to “climb the ladder.” Poverty therefore ensures that all jobs (functions) in society are filled. So while it is sad that this family will struggle their entire lives and will most likely be sick and stressed more than the average family, it is a necessary thing. Their status helps make everything balanced and in order. Works Cited “Sociology: Causes and Effects of Poverty – Cliffs Notes.” Get Homework Help with CliffsNotes Study Guides - CliffsNotes. Network. 02 June 2011. .