| Surviving Hard Times: American Society During the Great Depression (1920-1940) |
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Sections:- Franklin Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Address (March 4, 1933)
- The Federal Writers Project
- The Federal Music Project
- The Federal Theater Project
- The Federal Art Project
- The Documentary Impulse: The Photograph
- The Marx Brothers
- Radio
- The Grapes of Wrath
- Gone With the Wind
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| Historical Context
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 –1945) served as the 32nd President of the United States and was elected to four terms in office. He served from 1933-1945, and is the only President to serve more than two terms. A central figure of the 20th century, scholarly surveys rank him among the three greatest U.S. Presidents.
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Roosevelt created the New Deal to provide relief for the unemployed, recovery of the economy, and reform of the economic system. His most famous legacies include the Social Security system and the regulation of Wall Street. His aggressive use of an active federal government reenergized the Democratic party. Roosevelt built the New Deal coalition that dominated politics into the 1960s. He and his wife Eleanor Roosevelt remain touchstones for American liberalism. Roosevelt's administration redefined liberalism for subsequent generations and realigned the Democratic Party based his the New Deal coalition on labor, ethnic and racial minorities, the South, big city machines, and the poor. Defeating Hoover, Roosevelt won 57% of the vote and carried all but six states.Attached Documents
In his first Inaugural Address, included below, Roosevelt sketches his administration's goals for stemming the tide of the Depression. The second document is a photograph of the president. The final document is an image of a newspaper headline relating to Roosevelt's inaugural address. Questions to Consider
1. Why would fear play such a large role in the Depression?
2. In FDR’s opinion, what problems face the country?
3. Although the United States has abundant resources, what, according to Roosevelt, prevents prosperity?
4. According to Roosevelt, what is the primary goal of his administration? How does he plan on accomplishing this goal?
5. What measures does Roosevelt propose to prevent future economic recessions?
6. According to Roosevelt, what task supersedes rejuvenating international trade? Why? |
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| Historical Context
The Federal Writers Project (FWP) was one part of the New Deal for the Arts or Federal Project No. 1 that funded written work and supported writers, editors, historians, researchers, and others who worked with the written word during the Great Depression. The FWP produced the American Guide Series that detailed the histories and described the towns and cities of each state, as well as the Alaskan Territory, Puerto Rico, and Washington D.C.. The FWP also created a collection of oral histories taken from people of every strata of American life, known collectively as American Life Histories.
Attached Documents
The selection "A Woman's Viewpoint," (1939) tells a brief story of a woman's experience working and fighting to get paid in Depression Era America.
The selection "Jim Cole's Story" (1939) explains the experience of a negro working in the meatpacking industry who wanted to join the AFL, but was kept out. He was accepted into the CIO and he shows how the union helped him at work.
The selection "John Maines Jr.'s Story" describes a more privileged, white, male lifestyle during the same time period.
The final document below is an image of the state's guide covers. Questions to Consider
1. Why is it valuable to record the accounts of ordinary people during a time like the Great Depression?
2. What kind of challenges did the woman in the first selection have in her work environment?
3. Why did Jim Cole feel that the CIO did "the greatest thing in the world" for him and his colleagues?
4. Compare and contrast the hardships faced by the people in the first two selections to those of John Maines Jr.. |
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| Historical Context
The Federal Music Project (FMP) was one part of the New Deal for the Arts or Federal Project No. 1 that funded musicians, conductors, and composers. The FMP organized the Composers Forum Laboratory, created orchestras, and, among other things, began research in American ethnomusicology. Zora Neale Hurston, one of the more prolific writers of the FWP was involved with the FMP ethnomusicology. She looked at negro culture in the south and collected numerous work songs and spirituals. She recorded many of these songs, along with her explanation of their history and development.Attached Document
One such recording of Hurston's is found below, of a widely known song in the south that Hurston calls "Mule on a Mountain". (4:35) Question to consider
1. What do you think might have happened to an article of cultural history like this if the FMP had not been in existence? |
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| Historical Context
The Federal Theater Project (FTP) was one part of the New Deal for the Arts or Federal Project No. 1 that funded theater artists, playwrights, and producers. The FTP was funded by the federal government with the dedicated purpose of supporting theatrical artists during the Depression. Although the program brought affordable entertainment to the masses, it was a byproduct rather than an intentional goal of the FTP. The FTP produced a number of mainstream productions, such as Malone's Dr. Faustus and Shakespeare's Macbeth. However, it also developed a new form of theatrical performance known as the Living Newspaper. This new style of theater that presented documentaries on contemporary social issues such as race and labor issues.Attached Documents
The first document below is a costume design from the Federal Theater Project. The second document is the cover of a playbill from the Federal Theater Project. The third document below is a photograph of a stage set from the Federal Theater Project. Questions to Consider
1. Why do you think the government singled out artists for work projects?
2. How do you think the arts would have fared throughout the Depression if this project would not have been put in place? |
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| Historical Context
The Federal Art Project (FAP) was one part of the New Deal for the Arts or Federal Project No. 1 that funded artists around the country during the Great Depression. FAP artists primarily produced paintings and murals, but also worked as researchers and teachers. FAP works were quickly seen all across the country in city halls, post offices, and school buildings. The directors of the Federal Art Project created a calendar in 1939 to exhibit some of the work that had been accomplished. Many artists gained training and fame through the FAP. One of the most prolific artists funded by the project was Jackson Pollock, whose work during the Depression Era was much more representative than his later work. He, however, did not employ the same technique as the majority of FAP artists and was expressly more abstract than the mainstream. A selection titled Male and Female created before the Second World War is shown below.Attached Documents
The first document below is a mural from an Illinois Post Office. The second image was found in a Louisiana Post Office. The third document is a mural found in a California Post Office. The fourth document is the cover of a FAP designed calendar. The final image is the Pollok work discussed above. Question to Consider
1. What values do you think the post office murals were intended to instill in the public? |
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| Historical Context
Throughout the 1930's many artists, novelists, journalists, photographers and filmmakers attempted to document the unique situation of the American people during such a hard times. This "Documentary Impulse" became a popular method of expression, most commonly done with the photograph and to a lesser degree, the novel. Roy Stryker, Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans, Arthur Rothstein, and Marion Post Wolcott were prominent photographers who contributed to a significant visual record of the Great Depression.Attached Documents
The first photograph below was taken by Roy Stryker. The second photograph below was taken by Dorothea Lange. The third photograph below was taken by Walker Evans. The fourth photograph below was taken by Arthur Rothstein. The fifth photograph below was taken by Marion Post Wolcott. The final document is a Power Point slide show exhibiting 40 photographs by multiple artists. Questions to Consider
1. What kinds of themes to you see in the photos?
2. Which photos do you find the striking, touching, or telling? Discuss why these photos impressed you. |
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The Marx Brothers were born in New York City, the sons of German Jewish Immigrants who got their start as a comedy troupe on the Vaudeville stage and created an empire of films and television programs. Chico (Leonard), Harpo (Adolph), Groucho, (Julius), Zeppo (Herbert), and Gummo (Milton) began a variety act and accidentally stumbled into comedy while performing in Texas. Gummo left the group before they began making movies because he did not enjoy performance, thus the Four Marx Brothers became world famous.Attached Documents
The first image below is a photograph of the four Marx Brothers. The second image is a promotional poster for the movie Cocoanuts. The final resource below is a clip from the movie The Marx Brothers Go West Questions to Consider
1. Why do you think this type of comedy particularly appealed to Americans of the Depression Era?
2. What sort of stereotypes are played out through Marx Brothers performances? |
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| Historical Context
The proliferation of radio, used primarily by the military until 1920, affected American culture as profoundly as the movies. After war-time restrictions on civilian radio use were lifted, amateurs began experimenting with broadcasting. After years of limited broadcasts by amateurs and experimental stations, large corporations such as AT&T, Westinghouse and GE began to recognize the profit potential in radio and began investing capital. As the popularity of radio expanded, advertisers began sponsoring radio shows to appeal to consumers. Programs such as variety shows, Amos and Andy, sports broadcasts, and regionally isolated music like jazz and country-western were heard nationwide. By the end of the decade, 40% of homes had radio receivers.Attached Document
The first document is a 1920 article from Amateur Radio News that predicts the proliferation and impact of radio on society. It also alludes to the war-time restrictions. The second document below is a 1925 Radio Broadcast cover showing a man with his cumbersome radio equipment. Note the last line "Who is to Pay for Broadcasting and How." The practice of commercial broadcasting, in which a company sponsors a program in exchange for advertising, was not firmly established in the late 1920's. The final resource is from the Amos and Andy radio show begun in 1928 that became one of the most popular and longest running programs in radio history. The performers were white men using "negro dialect" and racial stereotypes of African Americans in 15 minute situation comedies. The following 1930 script from an Amos and Andy broadcast is an example of popular comedy and it illustrates patently racist nature of the dialogue that millions of Americans tuned into every week. Questions to Consider
1. What modern inventions would you compare radio in the 1920's to?
2. In the 1920's, like today, people were cognizant of the influence of media on culture. What impact do you think programming like Amos and Andy had on white people's perceptions of African Americans? How do you think this type of programming impacted African Americans? |
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| Historical Context
The Documentary Impulse extended beyond photographs and into the written word. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, published in 1939, was one of the most influential books of the Great Depression and was made into a movie in 1940. It follows the story of Tom Joad, who returns from prison to Oklahoma in the midst of the Depression to find his homeland destitute and his family on the road to California to find work. The novel details their miserable journey across the country and the hardships they endure.Attached Documents
The excerpt below is from the final chapter of the novel, where Rose of Sharon, after giving birth to a still born baby, offers her breast milk to a dying man and shows the impoverished yet, hopeful state of those burdened by the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. The poster below is from the 1940 movie The Grapes of Wrath starring Henry Fonda. The final document is a clip from the movie, a pivotal scene where Henry Fonda gives his "I'll Be There" monologue. The clip runs just under two minutes. Question to Consider
1. Why would Rose of Sharon smile after the ordeal she’s endured? Discuss the symbolism of this scene as it relates to the Great Depression. |
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| Historical Context
The epic Gone With the Wind was published in 1936 by Margaret Mitchell and made into a film in 1939 starring Vivian Leigh and Clark Gabel. The story is epic; following the life of a rebellious young woman from Georgia named Scarlett O'Hara through her experience in the South, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. It closely follows the love story between Scarlett and Rhett Butler as well.Attached Documents
The excerpt from the book below highlights the last fight between Scarlett and Rhett and follows the heroine's return to her home at Tara where she can again be reborn. The second image is the cover of Mitchell's book. The final resource is a clip from the movie Gone With the Wind, in this clip Vivian Leigh and Clark Gable part ways at Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara in a very well known scene. Questions to Consider
1. How was the story of Scarlett relevant to the Great Depression?
2. Do you think it appealed to the public because it took them to another time and place or because it empowered them to believe they could rebuild after terrible hardship? |
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