IMAGES OF THE GREAT DEPRESSIONIMAGES OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION

Class of 2010

While suffering from the Great Depression many lost jobs leading to those families also losing homes. It was a time where families had to work until their very last bit of energy was gone. All members of the family would equally share the responsibility and learn to give up more as the days went by. In this picture two men are sitting next to each other reading a news paper trying desperately to find a job. Both of them seem tired and worried because it might not be possible to make it another day without a working pension. They are both enjoying their "daily ration of bread". It seems as if both men are savoring every last bite knowing that this could be all that they could eat today and are possibly saving some for their families back at home, if they have a home. Both men are wearing coats trying to stay warm. Without a job these men spend day to day worrying about their tomorrow and continuously search for possible companies to hire them. Before FDR was elected President Hoover expected local communities and charities to pick up the slack of the government and help those in need. While FDR was in office he learned that this was not the way to go and it was necessary to help men such as these two with government hands. FDR found it to be much more effective when the government stepped in creating different groups supporting either temporary relief or permanent reform.

--Taylor

This image most symbolizes the Great Depression for a few reasons. Although the location is cited as Tennessee, an area not greatly affected by the Dust Bowl that swept over the Southwest, it shows that there was much more to the Great Depression than the dust storms: all of America was changed by the >>> Great Depression. The poor, wooden house and the ragged, dirty clothes that the family is wearing show how much the Great Depression affected people: families had to leave their homes because they couldn't pay off their mortgage (this family probably had more to deal with: because they are listed as a "poor, migrant farm family", they could have been farm laborers who were fired by the owners because of machinery coming into play, or they possibly owned a farm and were drowning in debt from the banks and their closing). People were losing their jobs left and right and could not afford their own house, clothes, and even food and drink. Possibly the most important aspect of this photograph is the "federal government resettlement official" conversing with the family, trying to find out what went wrong and what could be improved. The official's conversation with the family touches on how the government at this time, 1935, was trying to change American society and itself for the better. 1935 was the first year of Franklin D. Roosevelt's Second New Deal, which tried to focus more on reform than the President's First New Deal did. The picture shows the horrors and terrors of the Great Depression and how the government was trying to better American society.

--Abbie

This picture of the poor migrant farm family depicts the Great Depression perfectly because it portrays one of this era’s greatest aspects. In this picture, this misplaced family of eight is talking with a government official about their situation. During the Great Depression, many families were jobless, poor, and lost—as shown in this picture. As a farm family, these people had to face the fact that their crop prices were dramatically falling. And obviously coming from an area dependent on farming, this family was one of many that suffered severely throughout this time; therefore, this picture could easily represent the Great Depression best. In this picture, it looks as though this family has been mobilized there on the side of the road for quite some time now; they look dirty and unhealthy, yet they their expressions show that they feel as though they’re getting used to living in that spot. The area does not seem unfamiliar to them. They aren’t yelling at the government official or kicking their feet into the ground. They are simply talking with him, some even smiling. These small smiles represent their last bits of hope. Families like this one were at the brink of losing all hope because escaping the horrors of the Great Depression seemed nearly impossible at the time. Maybe, just maybe, the resettlement official in this photo would help this lost family find a new place, a place more “homey” than the side of US route 70.

---Sam

This photograph most symbolizes the Great Depression to me because of the way the people in it are circled around the stove. I assume these people are a family and they are gathered around the stove for heat because it is winter and they don't have enough heat to live comfortably. This, to me, is similar to the way everyone wanted money during the Great Depression, but there was not nearly enough to go around-there is only one little stove and a family of seven to warm. This room is large enough to act as somewhat of a kitchen, a bedroom, and perhaps a dining room as well. There is at least one more room on the left, but even so, this family is living meagerly.

---Eleonore

This picture is titled the “South” which suggests where it takes place. In the south, agriculture was a main factor. During the depression farmers were suffering because their was a low demand for crops- to much was being produced which caused farmers to lose their property,, their houses, etc. causing them to suffer greatly.

The fact that the focus of this image is a black young boy represents how minorities were affected during the great depression. Blacks were discriminated against and were “the last to be hired and the first to be fired” which made the depression especially hard for them.

The fact that the boy is SLEEPING and holding his hand over his HEART suggests that he is using his DREAMS as hopes that one day the hard time will end. It seem as though the dogs which represent nature are protecting the child while he sleeps. Though government form like banks, and the economy, got Americans into the mess of the depression people must rely on nature (the dogs) as a security and protection in society.

Since the dogs and boy are similar and both laying on the porch with their eyes closed, it portrays how EVERYONE/EVERYTHING is being effected by the great depression and not just certain people. The shadows create the dramatic affect that is portrayed in images like “the migrant mother” in After the Fact- The Dust Bowl Odyssey

---Helen

This photograph is one of Dorothea Lange's. I feel it is a very honest representation of the Great Depression. It shows that it affected people- young and old and  was unavoidable if you lived in the area in which the Dust Bowl was affecting. It is honest in its use of cars and the clothing. It does not look as posed as the Migrant Mother did. Although the people are just sitting, you can tell that the people have been traveling and are tired. In the picture are 4 different families so it shows that people made the move in groups and when they stopped they had to set up their own camp and fend for themselves. I feel this picture is an honest representation of the Great Depression.

---Allison

I chose a photograph entitled “Migrant Mother” by Dorthea Lange for two reasons. Firstly, I think that the photograph displays vivid emotion and can provide insight into the time period. Lange captures the distress and depression of the periodic droughts during the Dust Bowl. This migrant mother, Florence Thompson, along with her three children, is living in a migrant camp with limited resources (often with no food and bad shelter). She is a low-income parent, trying to stay afloat during an off-season of farming, representing many others going through the same turmoil. However, as Davidson and Lytle expressed, the photographers, authors, and artists of the time were trying to get a point across and to send a shockwave to the government, prompting them to help the needy. Therefore, even a photograph can contain a level of bias. The authors also point out that one cannot let a part stand for a whole. Although it can be accepted that this photograph portrays the emotions and hardships that many were experiencing during the time, we cannot look at it as a representation of the entire period.

So, although we cannot take the picture at face value (we have to look at the context surrounding it) and we cannot let one picture stand for the entire time period, I believe that Lange’s photograph embodies a lot of the sentiment and disorder circulating the country at the time of the Depression and Dust Bowl era. ---Grace

During the Great Depression many people moved to the west so they could find jobs because their farms were taken away. The farmers were not making enough money to pay the banks back, so the banks took over the farms. Many Americans heard there were lots of jobs so they headed west to make money. When they got to California many migrants had to stay in camps; these camps did not have clean environments. In these camps people suffered from diseases and infections because in environment was dirty and they were lacking food. This is a photo of a boy who lives in a camp in Sacramento, California. Although, it is not noticeable, this boy suffers from dysentery; which is an infection that causes severe diarrhea. The boy comes from a family with scarce food. Also, he is very dirty and very skinny which shows that he does not receive very much food. In this picture there is a box spring with junk on top of it and clothing on the floor.

---Alexis

This picture taken by Dorothea Lange is an example of what I thought the depression symbolizes. It’s one of the more realistic pictures out of the bunch because they don’t seem to be dramatically posing as if they were going to die that very moment. I believe that it was a hard time for a lot of people and conditions were nowhere near decent making it a challenge for America. This photo seems more realistic than the others is because one, there is a car in the background, which most of the Americans back then did have so it’s not like they were all walking across country. Also there are two families in the picture; it reminds me of evacuating from Katrina families traveled in huge packs.

---Victoria

In this picture there is a little boy who is standing outside a tent in California. His face is dirty and he is wearing rags. This picture shows the horrible living conditions of the Great Depression. Although this picture might be posed, since Lange took this, it still shows a reality to this type of life style. You can see all their belongings sitting outside the tent, and the water running in the background. This boy could belong to a family that moved away from their home and had to bring all their belongings with them. The boy’s expression makes the scene look depressing and dirty, just like the conditions they were living under.

---Gaby

To me this picture portrays the harsh conditions and poverty of the Great Depression the most. The thing that reached out to me most is that the father is cradling his baby. While this is touching it is also troubling. This man, the most able to work and make an income for his family, is apparently not doing so. However, this is not for lack of trying. During the Great Depression hundreds of men exactly like this one here were unable to obtain jobs even though they clearly had children to support, mouths to feed, and life to facilitate. Without money this man cannot sustain life for himself much less the helpless baby he clutches, nor to the one hiding timidly behind the door frame. He and his small family are living a poverty-stricken life: he lives in a destitute land, his feeble house has insulation of cardboard and paper, and no wife in sight. Perhaps she has already been struck down by the harsh life of The Depression, or maybe she was lucky enough to find a job. One thing is for sure though: the American Dream this family once held so fervently now dangles on a fraying string. ---Lorraine

This picture was taken in 1936 by Dorothea Lange. Out of all the pictures to me this one stands out the most. It helps explain a great part of the great depression. this picture shows some of the Okies, people who were trying to get away from the dust bowl, trying to make a new home. Many people during this time had to try and make the best of their conditions. Most people were traveling to California to start a new life. People also moved to California because people believed that there were jobs. This made them think it would be possible

to start a new life out there.   --Mary Margaret

This picture best symbolizes the life of American’s during the Great Depression because of the setting and the people in it. The setting is of an open patch of land with a shack that was probably used as that man’s home. This type of home was the most popular to the people that suffered from the depression and events like the Dust bowl incident because it was the best type of shelter that they could make for themselves and their family. The other key thing to focus on in this picture is that the husband is holding his baby. This is important because before the depression, the man was the one who worked and the wife took care of the kids and household necessities. But, during the depression everyone had to help each other and the wives and the husbands had to put in equal efforts to survive during these hardships.---Eleanor

The photo that stood out to me the most of the Great Depression was this picture of a Czechoslovakian woman and her five children. This picture stood out to me for numerous reasons but primarily because it was taken in another country. When people hear the words “Great Depression” many associate this disaster with America. However, this economic catastrophe not only devastated the United States but also affected other men, women, and children all over the world. When America’s stock market crashed and banks begin to close the American economy immediately suffered, and due to the economic crisis that was occurring in the United States the other people across the Atlantic also felt the after shock. America before this decade was a major producer of new technology (cars, radios, etc.) and other things that were consumed by other nations across the waterways and vise versa. Because of this continuous trade cycle, if one portion of the assembly line is not working properly it will cause problems for the rest. The hardship and oppression of the Great Depression is definitely evident in this photo by Margaret Bourke-White. This woman lives in a one room hut with her five young children in the small village of Uzals, Czechoslovakia. Times are so desperate that she and her children all sleep on a bed platform just above the cage for the family goats. The Great Depression was a great economic calamity that hit even the smallest of towns and villages on the planet.

--Lindsey

Dorthea Lange was a well known photographer who photographed life during the Great Depression. This photo that I have chosen is one that is largely recognized throughout the nation after the Drepression and that is still very well known today. It shows a mother, Florence Thompson, holding her children in front of what looks to be a tent. The photo caption states that she is a migrant mother, so she was traveling with her children to try to find somewhere to live where there were opportunities. I believe that this photo symbolizes the Great Depression mainly because it shows the pain and suffering that everyone experienced during these hard times. Even the children look depressed, tired, maybe even hungry. The depression hit everyone very hard, not just the rich and the very bottom of the poor. This photo truly captures the essence of the hard times people faced in the 1930s

--Emily

This photograph most symbolizes the great depression to me because it shows this difference between normal life and life during the Great Depression. It is of a daughter of a sharecropper in Missouri in 1936. The scene could appear normal if it weren't for the obvious signs of poverty. The room is very dirty and the pots and stove are black from dirt and overuse. The little girl is covered in dirt and so are her clothes. The walls are covered in newspaper, most likely hiding crumbling walls. The family seems to be attempting to be normal, the girl has clothes and a hat, the walls are covered and the newspaper that they are using as curtains is even cut to have scalloped edges. If the setting wasn't covered in dirt and the house not covered in newspaper it would look perfectly normal: a little girl standing in her wallpapered kitchen with nice curtains, smiling for a picture. The fact that the image is so close to appearing normal yet so obviously displays the poverty, shows how dramatically the Great Depression affected everyday lives.

---Malinda