5. The Great Depression was one of the most wrenching events in American history. It affected much of the world, though it was manifested in different ways in different countries. In the U.S., artists and writers used the occasion to express a sense of the life of the people, the spirit of the nation,a nd the depth of the problems facing the country. The editor notes that American confidence was shaken by the crisis, but the editor also notes that the cynicism of the age was less evident in the works of writers and artists.
The Great Depression was marked by massive unemployment as over a quarter of the workforce was without work in 1932, and even those who were still working experienced pay cuts, reduced hours, and continuing uncertainty. The Great Depression started with the stock market crash in 1929. This came after a period of massive buying of stocks as people rushed to get in on the perceived economic boom of the late 1920s, a boom that proved illusory. In the months before the crash, there was widespread speculation. The fear generated by the Depression came not just from the loss of jobs but from the suddenness with which the country went from prosperity to uncertainty.
The writings gathered here were produced by people reacting to the changes they saw around them. Kromer writes from the perspective of one of the new class of travelers, the hoboes who sought work by riding the rails: "Great god, but I am miserable. I cannot stand this much longer" (230). LeSueur writes as a woman facing another new phenomenon--the breadline where people waited for a charitable handout. She sees the new era as a return to a more primitive past: "We are in a jungle and know it. We are beaten, entrapped" (237). LeSueur also writes about her own radicalization as she begins to fight back by marching and demanding change.
The sort of fear that the Great Depression brought to the country remains strong to this day as somet...