The Great Depression - Essay Example

The Great Depression was one of the worst economic happenings in the history of America. No part of the social fabric of America was unchanged by the grinding, traumatic poverty that millions found themselves entwined in. Mary Heaton Vorse writes of participating in a sit-down strike against General Motors in Michigan. Her writing is hopeful, vigorous and triumphant. She recounts singing, unity, and solidarity with those around her. She was involved in righting one of the great injustices of the day.

Even during the depression, corporations such as General Motors were turning a profit and she was determined to get her fair share of the profits. The amazing thing about her experience is that she was not just acting in her own self-interest. She worked for the good of her friends and neighbors. Meridel Le Sueur writes of the exact opposite experience. She tells of sitting despondently in a YWCA office waiting for domestic work to come her way. Her story is about fear, loneliness, and anxiety.

Women go mad sitting day after day waiting for the work that will feed their children. However, it never comes, or comes too infrequently.The different responses these two women have to the crisis of the Great Depression say much about the human spirit and resiliency. They show that social connections and friendships can help ease the burden of suffering. Going it alone is often a dangerous and unsuccessful strategy.