During the duration of (1929-39), The Great Depression was considered one of the worst economic disasters. By 1933, it had reached it’s breaking point and soon 13-15 million Americans were unemployed and almost half of the country's banks had failed forcing many companies to lay off their workers because they couldn’t afford to pay them and they were in danger themselves. In Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, the setting takes place during the Great Depression that lasted several years, causing the phase to be harsh and cruel. Many people were left with hopelessness and sorrow. The book displays many examples of the strident time period that occurred during the 1930s like sexism, racism, feminism and discrimination. Good TS
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However, Steinbeck clearly announced the differences between the characters and how it affected the plot in many ways. Racial Discrimination was one of the biggest issues among generations during the Great Depression. One of the characters in the story, “Crooks” named after his crooked back, was the only African American who lived in the barn with all the rest of the guys at the time. Crooks was a stable worker at the barn who cared for the horses. Due to his skin color, though, he was easily isolated and had a room to himself. The racist acts towards the hard working man was always brought to his attention, but he didn’t say anything because he knew that if he did, he would be kicked out of the barn or probably even killed. Even Curley’s wife, who is barely respected herself threatens Crooks by saying, “You know what I can do” after Crooks allegedly wasn't being polite (Steinback, 98).Racism was not considered illegal during the 1930s and thus nobody in the story had respect for Crooks except for Lennie who didn’t count because of his disorder, so he obviously didn’t know better unless someone guided him. An article by the name of “Blacks and the Great Depression” stated that, “Blacks usually suffered worse, pushed out of unskilled jobs previously scorned by whites before depression” (Sustan, 1). This explains the troubles and hardship that Crooks went through as an African American during the
Almost …show more content…
However, Steinbeck clearly announced the differences between the characters and how it affected the plot in many ways. Racial Discrimination was one of the biggest issues among generations during the Great Depression. One of the characters in the story, “Crooks” named after his crooked back, was the only African American who lived in the barn with all the rest of the guys at the time. Crooks was a stable worker at the barn who cared for the horses. Due to his skin color, though, he was easily isolated and had a room to himself. The racist acts towards the hard working man was always brought to his attention, but he didn’t say anything because he knew that if he did, he would be kicked out of the barn or probably even killed. Even Curley’s wife, who is barely respected herself threatens Crooks by saying, “You know what I can do” after Crooks allegedly wasn't being polite (Steinback, 98).Racism was not considered illegal during the 1930s and thus nobody in the story had respect for Crooks except for Lennie who didn’t count because of his disorder, so he obviously didn’t know better unless someone guided him. An article by the name of “Blacks and the Great Depression” stated that, “Blacks usually suffered worse, pushed out of unskilled jobs previously scorned by whites before depression” (Sustan, 1). This explains the troubles and hardship that Crooks went through as an African American during the