The Great Depression

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The Great Depression

The Great Depression is known as a time of economic disaster, and for its impact on the social structure of families. As times got harder, the family way of life changed. Families that were well off did not suffer as much as those that were already struggling. When men lost their jobs they also lost the ability to support their families. Children were forced to leave home and find work without adequate schooling. The Great Depression affected people both physically and psychologically. It was an era of unemployment, family struggles, and the way they survived.

The Great Depression was an era of unemployment. One of the main causes of unemployment was the combination of the greatly unequal distribution of wealth throughout the twenties. The unequal distribution of wealth had gone on forever. Money was distributed disparately between the rich and the middle class, between the United States and Europe, and even between industries and agriculture. The unequal distribution of wealth had created an unstable economy. Companies were losing money because of this unstable economy so there for they had to make some changes. The first thing that had to be done was to save money and they did this by cut the pay role. Employees of many years were fired or took massive pay cuts. The employers only kept a select few workers that they had to have.

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If one did not make the employer’s expectation, they were fired.

Monte Cristo had a list, a little roll call.

And one by one he took them each for a ride

Saying One and Two and Three and so on

Till the names were all crossed off

And he had cleabsed the world of a giving number

Of betrayers who had personally wronged him.

He was judge, jury, and executioner

(Sandburg 445)

Finding a replacement was not difficult since everyone; men, women, children, and even grandparents, were looking for work.

I’m not asking for social equality,

…………

All I want is a job with a decent wage,

To exist now and provide for old age.

So kindhearted employers, my case is up to you,

Give me something to do.

(Proudberg 9-16)

With few job openings and so many people looking fo...

... middle of paper ...

...yday study the buffalo on the nickel,

….

Study before the nickel, the dime is spent.

(Sandburg 456)

A lot of the people today have long forgotten the lessons that their parents had taught them. Today people really do not appreciate the value of a dollar, but they know all about “plastic,” or commonly known as credit cards. I think a small dose of depression would do people today some good but not too much, because I think we would have a lot more people killing themselves and others just because people have fewer moral values today.

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Worked Cited

Hawes, Joseph M. Children Between the Wars. Ed. Joseph M. Hawes.,

N. Ray Hiner. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1997.

Proudbeg, Jim. “Poor Nut Ambitious (too Proud To Beg).” 21 Apr. 2000.

http://www.mudcat.org/!!-song99.cfm?stuff=fall99+9902682.

Sandburg, Carl. The Complete Poems of Carl Sandburg. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1970.

Underwood, Mark. “Black Thursday.” The New York Times on the web.

1 May. 1996. 4 Apr. 2000 <http://sac.uky.edu/~msunde00/hon202/p4/nyt.html>.

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