Of Mice and Men BACKGROUND By John Steinbeck

A Thematic Unit of Classic American Literature Steinbeck’s fictional masterpiece, Of Mice and Men, is an essential element in the archives of American Literature. The description of the Salinas Valley in Northern California, the colloquialisms of the time and the accepted level of intolerance on a local migrant farm all help paint a vivid canvass of characters struggling with the concerns of isolation and the American dream. Often called the voice of the voiceless, John Steinbeck dramatically articulates a piece of American reality we often choose to ignore. Of Mice and Men reminds us of that unattainable dream and the lonely struggle to capture it. RATIONALE

The Voice of the Voiceless John Steinbeck The Voice of the Voiceless John Steinbeck (1902-1968), born in Salinas, California. He worked his way through college at Stanford University but never graduated. Steinbeck first became widely known with Tortilla Flat (1935), a series of humorous stories about Monterey paisanos. Steinbeck's novels can all be classified as social novels dealing with the economic problems of rural labor, but there is also a streak of worship of the soil in his books, which does not always agree with his matter-of-fact sociological approach. After the rough and earthy humor of Tortilla Flat, he moved on to more serious fiction, often aggressive in its social criticism, to In Dubious Battle (1936), Of Mice and Men (1937) and a series of admirable short stories collected in the volume The Long Valley (1938). In 1939 he published what is considered his best work, The Grapes of Wrath, the story of Oklahoma tenant farmers who, unable to earn a living from the land, moved to California where they became migratory workers. He died in New York City in 1968.

The Salinas Valley, Northern California BACKGROUND geography The Salinas Valley, Northern California The Salinas Valley, in the Central Coast region of California, lies along the Salinas River between the Gabilan Mountain Range and the Santa Lucia Range. Agriculture dominates the economy of the valley. In particular, a large majority of the salad greens consumed in the U.S. are grown within this region.

The Great Depression BACKGROUND history The Great Depression was a dramatic, worldwide economic downturn beginning in some countries as early as 1928. The beginning of the Great Depression in the United States is associated with massive bank failures and the stock market crash on October 29th, 1929, known as Black Tuesday.

Leading Causes Heavy Real estate losses in Florida Mass Consumption: Living above means Uneven Distribution of Wealth Uninsured banks Stock Market Crash Farming Depression (1920-1935) Cheap land (Banks allowed buyers to put 25% down on an acre that cost $15.00) Over production on wheat (five million acres) The Dust Bowl

The Great Depression Hardest hit were farm commodities such as wheat, cotton, tobacco, and lumber. The collapse of farm exports caused many American farmers to default on their loans, leading to closure of small rural banks that characterized the early years of the Great Depression. Moreover, a severe drought ravaged the agricultural heartland of the America beginning in the summer of 1930. Franklin D. Roosevelt, elected in 1932, primarily blamed the excesses of big business for causing an unstable bubble-like economy. Democrats believed the problem was that business had too much power, and the New Deal was intended as a remedy, by empowering labor unions and farmers and by raising taxes on corporate profits. However the Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Reserve, and Social Security won widespread support which continues to this day.

The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl itself was restricted to a 97-million-acre piece of high, level land in the southern portion of the Great Plains: Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

The "Drouth" From 1932-1936 the annual rainfall didn’t exceed 12 inches Low wheat prices and yields drove farmers from their lands Dust clouds lifted and settled over millions of acres Farmers and farmhands moved into California as migrant workers Seventy severe dust storms recorded in 1933

Dust Was Everywhere Atlantic Monthly, 1930s “Dust in the beds and in the flour bin, on dishes and walls and windows, in hair, eyes, teeth, and throats…” People in Cimarron County remember hanging wet blankets across their windows and laying wet cloths over their faces when they went to sleep. Ceilings collapsed under the weight of the accumulated dust mounds.

Migrant Workers Migration - movement of people from place to place for permanent settlement Drought in the plains forced owners off farms

"Oakies" Migrant farm workers Homeless/farmless due to drought and “Dust Bowl” Poor mid-western farmers despised and abused in California

Migrant Workers Do we have migrant works here in Pennsylvania? What crops are grown? Trace an indirect connection you may have with Migrant Workers. Are there really migrant workers in PA?

Effects of the Great Depression Factories and Mills closed Manufacturing cut in half Unemployment rose from 3.2 % to 24.9% Banks ran out of money “The Banking Crisis” F.D.R. Mortgages foreclosed Homelessness; poverty “Riches to Rags” For Sale

Your Great Depression Imagine the country suffers a depression, once again. What do you imagine you would do for work, shelter and food?