Jane Yoder:
As I was reading I initially thought about the struggles that people had to overcome during the great depression. It must have been so taxing on the people during this time when people lived strictly for "survival, just survival" (129). Jane often went without the necessary food and clothing. She lacked the the necessary coats and blankets to keep her warm in the winter. She also seemed to fear loss and debt as she said "I’m terribly afraid of debt. If I have one fear, it’s the rich get richer when you buy on time” (126). She was alway afraid of debt, and the money conditions that she had were very challenging. They had to budget every dollar that they had. Another important piece of text was when she said "We're middle class, not upper not lower either" (128). This shows that she has a distinct view where she stands in society. This was interesting to me because I feel that her living standards are much lower than the middle class today. This brings me to my question of weather social rankings in society have been changed over time? This connects to our conversations in class about the great depression and what it does to people. Overall this story was really interesting because it truly expressed the hardships of most families during the depression.
Peggy Terry and her mother:
Initially as I read this I thought, once again, about the hurdles that people had to jump in order to survive during the great depression. It is really hard to relate because the time that we live in now is completely different, yet I can understand the everyday struggles that all of these people must have had to overcome. Discrimination was not a factor at this time because everyone was in the same situation, unemployed and broke. She decided it as “Many, many people, colored or white, I didn’t see any difference, ‘cause there was just as many white people out of work than were colored” (138). This was a really important factor because it shows that regardless of race people were struggling. Another interesting quote from this section was when she said "The majority of the people were hit hard, they were mentally disturbed your bound to know, cause they didn't know when the end of this was coming" (138). This is important because it, once again, describes a vast amount of people rather than only a few. People were scared because they had no way ensure that they would be fine. This is a horrible feeling that no one should experience. They knew that it wasn't their fault, yet they still needed to do everything they could to survive. The last piece of key text that I found was "I think that is the worst thing that our system does to people, is to take away their pride. It prevents them from being a human being"(145). This was really important because it shows that even though they were poor and relying on soup kitchens, they knew that they needed to keep a positive outlook and keep pride in who they are. This connects to my family because we have helped out at soup kitchens, and we have donated to charity for underprivileged people. My question is how does the amount of homeless people today compare to the number during the great depression?
As I was reading I initially thought about the struggles that people had to overcome during the great depression. It must have been so taxing on the people during this time when people lived strictly for "survival, just survival" (129). Jane often went without the necessary food and clothing. She lacked the the necessary coats and blankets to keep her warm in the winter. She also seemed to fear loss and debt as she said "I’m terribly afraid of debt. If I have one fear, it’s the rich get richer when you buy on time” (126). She was alway afraid of debt, and the money conditions that she had were very challenging. They had to budget every dollar that they had. Another important piece of text was when she said "We're middle class, not upper not lower either" (128). This shows that she has a distinct view where she stands in society. This was interesting to me because I feel that her living standards are much lower than the middle class today. This brings me to my question of weather social rankings in society have been changed over time? This connects to our conversations in class about the great depression and what it does to people. Overall this story was really interesting because it truly expressed the hardships of most families during the depression.
Peggy Terry and her mother:
Initially as I read this I thought, once again, about the hurdles that people had to jump in order to survive during the great depression. It is really hard to relate because the time that we live in now is completely different, yet I can understand the everyday struggles that all of these people must have had to overcome. Discrimination was not a factor at this time because everyone was in the same situation, unemployed and broke. She decided it as “Many, many people, colored or white, I didn’t see any difference, ‘cause there was just as many white people out of work than were colored” (138). This was a really important factor because it shows that regardless of race people were struggling. Another interesting quote from this section was when she said "The majority of the people were hit hard, they were mentally disturbed your bound to know, cause they didn't know when the end of this was coming" (138). This is important because it, once again, describes a vast amount of people rather than only a few. People were scared because they had no way ensure that they would be fine. This is a horrible feeling that no one should experience. They knew that it wasn't their fault, yet they still needed to do everything they could to survive. The last piece of key text that I found was "I think that is the worst thing that our system does to people, is to take away their pride. It prevents them from being a human being"(145). This was really important because it shows that even though they were poor and relying on soup kitchens, they knew that they needed to keep a positive outlook and keep pride in who they are. This connects to my family because we have helped out at soup kitchens, and we have donated to charity for underprivileged people. My question is how does the amount of homeless people today compare to the number during the great depression?
