Of Mice and Men - Background Research

Of Mice and Men – Background Research

The Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timings of the Great Depression varied across different nations, but in most countries it started in 1930 and lasted until late 1930s or mid 1940s.
The Wall Street Crash was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United Sates began in the late October 1929 and it signalled the beginning of the Great Depression. The American mobilization for World War II at the end of 1941 moved approximately ten million people out of the civilian labour force and into the war. World War II had a dramatic effect on many parts of the economy, and may have quickened the end of the Great Depression in the United States.
By 1932, unemployment had reached 23.6% in the US and it rises to 25% in the early 1933. Hundreds of thousands of Americans found themselves homeless and began congregating in shantytowns; these are slum settlements of plywood, corrugated metal, sheets of plastic, and cardboard boxes. So in response, President Herbert Hoover and the Congress approved the Federal Home Loan Bank Act, which is to lower the cost of home ownership; it is established to charter and supervise federal savings and loan institutions.
The New Deal was a series of domestic economic programs enacted in the United States between 1933 and 1938to help America eventually recover from the Depression; The New Deal focus on the ‘3 Rs’: Relief, Recovery, and Reform. Relief is for the unemployed and poor; Recovery of the economy to normal levels; and Reform of the financial system to prevent another depression. Many historians distinguish between a “First New Deal” that happened between 1933-1934 and a “Second New Deal” that happened between 1933-1938. The second one is more liberal and more controversial than the first one. The “First New Deal” dealt with diverse groups, from banking and railroads to industry and farming, it is to help all of those who demanded help for economic survival. The Federal Emergency Relief Administration provided $500 million for relief operations by states and cities, while the short-lived Civil Works Administration, the CWA gave localities money to operate make-work projects in 1933-1934. The “Second New Deal” in 1935-1938 included the Wagner Act; this is an act that guarantees basic rights of private sector employees to organize into trade unions, engage in collective bargaining for better terms and conditions at work, and take collective action if necessary. The “Second New Deal” also included the Works Progress Administration relief program, the Social Security Act, and new programs to aid tenant farmers and migrant workers. The Fair Labour Standards Act of 1938 is also included in the “Second New Deal”; this is an act that sets maximum hours and minimum wages for most categories of workers. As a result of the act, the unemployment rate of the workers in job creation programs counted as unemployed decreases from 24.9% in 1933 to 9.9% in 1941, which is a huge difference.

“The American Dream”
“The American Dream” is a national ethos of the United States. It is a set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and also an upward social mobility (the movement of individuals or groups in social position; it may refer to classes, ethnic groups, or entire nations) achieved through hard work. James Truslow Adams, an American writer and historian said in 1931, “Life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.” The Americans now often use his words as the definition of the American Dream. The idea of the American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of Independence, which proclaims that “all men are created equal” and that they are “provided by their Creator with certain unchallengeable Rights” including “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The American Dream regarding to home ownership has a little concept before the 1980s. In the 1980s, the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher worked to create a similar dream, by selling public-housing units to their tenants. Her Conservative party called for more home ownership: “HOMES OF OUR OWN: to most people ownership means first and foremost a home of their own.” Some calls this Thatcher’s approach to the American Dream but others argue that, “a reflection and reinforcement of the American Dream ahs been emphasis on individualism as extolled by Margaret Thatcher and shaped by the ‘enterprise’ culture.”

Racism
Black people were treated unfairly in the USA in the 20s and 30s. White and black people would be required to eat separately, go to separate schools, use separate public toilets, hotels, bars, hospitals, parks, telephone booths, different sections in libraries, cinemas, restaurants, different ticket windows and counters, train, buses, and water fountains, etc. In some places, in addition to segregated seating, it could be forbidden for stores or restaurants to serve different races under the same roof. Public segregation was challenged by individual citizens on rare occasions but had minimal impact on civil right issues. Segregation was also pervasive in housing; state constitutions had clauses giving local jurisdictions the right to regulate where members of certain races could live. Black people are not allowed to vote and only whites could vote in the Democratic Party. Many blacks were killed for attempting to exercise their right to vote, for being members of political organizations and for attending schools. The Anti-miscegenation laws prohibited whites and black people from marrying each other. However, in some states it is also prohibited the marriages between whites and Native Americans or Asians. The Ku Klux Klan, known as the KKK, is a white supremacist group who terrorized black political leaders to counter the Republican Party’s power base. The KKK used violence and intimidation to prevent blacks from voting, holding political office and attending school.