Cinderella Man and the Great Depression
James J. Braddock once said, " I have to believe that once things are bad, I have to change them". The movie Cinderella Man is about Braddock rising from a poor, unsuccessful boxer to the heavyweight boxing champion of the world. The historical background to his life and career was during the same time period as the Great Depression. James Braddock was not always the boxer he is now known to be, in the 1920’s he had lost one third of his fights and people referred to him as a “bum” which is the lowest name you could label a boxer at the time. Despite a broken hand and the hatred the crowd brought upon him, Braddock never hesitated to do his best on the rink. However, when the
Great Depression began, Braddock lost his money, job, and for an amount of time, electricity.
Braddock's character represented the ups and downs that were occurring in the United States at the time. Following his struggles the viewer can get a glimpse of how most Americans lived at the time of the Great Depression, see their everyday battle for food, jobs, shelter, and see how ordinary people coped with the economic downturn.
At the beginning of the movie Braddock was living in a stylish house, had stocks and he was earning good money as a boxer. On October 29, 1929, when the Stock market crashed Braddock's and his family's life drastically changed. He not only lost all his investments but because of his physical injuries Braddock could not fight in the ring any longer. Braddock spent little time dwelling on the fact that he had just lost his job and instead covered the cast that secured his broken hand and made his way to the docks the next morning in hopes of being one of the few lucky men to be chosen. Money was tight, but when his son came home with a stolen salami Braddock didn’t think twice to return the salami that could be very useful for the family to its oblivious owner. Not only his morals remained intact during the very difficult times, but also his family life was surprisingly
Great Depression began, Braddock lost his money, job, and for an amount of time, electricity.
Braddock's character represented the ups and downs that were occurring in the United States at the time. Following his struggles the viewer can get a glimpse of how most Americans lived at the time of the Great Depression, see their everyday battle for food, jobs, shelter, and see how ordinary people coped with the economic downturn.
At the beginning of the movie Braddock was living in a stylish house, had stocks and he was earning good money as a boxer. On October 29, 1929, when the Stock market crashed Braddock's and his family's life drastically changed. He not only lost all his investments but because of his physical injuries Braddock could not fight in the ring any longer. Braddock spent little time dwelling on the fact that he had just lost his job and instead covered the cast that secured his broken hand and made his way to the docks the next morning in hopes of being one of the few lucky men to be chosen. Money was tight, but when his son came home with a stolen salami Braddock didn’t think twice to return the salami that could be very useful for the family to its oblivious owner. Not only his morals remained intact during the very difficult times, but also his family life was surprisingly