Our Mission:
Hello there. We are here to talk about how the recurring themes of poverty and unemployment in John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" relate to the current issues of America today. In our site, the reader shall come to see how the book exemplifies 1930's depression-era America and how the people in those days lived, enveloping themselves in the culture, economics and lifestyle that many had to live. We wish to expose the viewer to the harsh reality that America has faced before and how it's slowly showing itself again. What we say is that, do not look at this site as if you know the issue first-hand, what we ask is that you go in as if you know little of the issue; this will better help you to understand the real struggles of our forefathers.
Poverty: Then and Now
In the Great Depression era, the United States had an unemployment rate of over 20%, causing one of the greatest economic recessions of the 20th centuries. In 2009, the United States saw an unemployment rate that peaked at 10%, again causing one of the greatest recessions of the 21'st century. During these recessions, many businesses would slash wages for their workers while at the same time not giving their workers enough spending power. While today, unemployment is now at levels before the recession, poverty is still a massive issue for the country as a whole with as many as 14.5% of Americans living in poverty. It is with these low wages that many Americans are forced to live in squander. It is with these low wages that many of our fellow Americans suffer because of these low wages.