Blunt+Social+Commentary

=Blunt Social Commentary=

The best way to describe the most popular literature in the 1930's could be summed up in three words.

Blunt social commentary.

On the surface of the greatest books like //The Grapes of Wrath, The Great Gatsby,// and //Brave New World//. They have subtle imagery and symbolism that states the authors contempt with the American lifestyle ranging from right before to the end of the great depression.



Now to look a little deeper we will start with the earliest of the aforementioned books The Great Gatsby. Now this book was written a few years before the 1930's but is so perfect to show how the reckless behavior of society led into the great depression. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald exemplifies how during the roaring 20's people did not care about money or the live of others. This can be seen in the character of Curley. Curley's behavior and attitude is still childish and rude. He does not need to worry about money because his father owns the ranch he works on and he only cares about himself. He is a perfect example of the spoiled rich who refused to admit when everything had gone wrong, from the beginning to the end of the Depression.

//The Grapes of Wrath// is considered by many to be the greatest of all of John Steinbeck's novels. In it he tells the story of a family trying to survive during the Depression while living the rough life of sharecroppers. In the book //Of Mice and Men// George is by far one of the smartest characters. Yet it is not the intelligence of years of study and reading textbooks, but the intelligence of being able to read people and knowing what moves to make next. It is easy to see that Steinbeck understands the common from his time as working as a ranch hand in both books. Both state the obvious fact that having to being a common person during the depression was much more difficult then being wealthy.

In //Brave New World//, a supposed Utopian society has been set where natural childbirth has been all but outlawed. Instead children are produced in an assembly line fashion each set with a class that they must be in for the rest of their life. In order to keep the children under control they are physically, emotionally, and mentally manipulated to believe that they are happy with the way their life is. In comparison every Government in the world was looking for a way out of this awful depression they were in. Some went to extremes with multiple new deals like the Franklin Delano Roosevelt administration, to a completely new Government being established in Germany. Many feared, with society so desperate to be happy again that they would allow Governments to take control completely without any checks. The closest example of this that we can get in //Of Mice and Men// is that of the Boss. Although he is in charge of the ranch, he has no idea what goes on with the workers.

1930's Literature in Comparison
Novels and books in the 1930's, unlike other humanities, were mostly bleak rather than happy and upbeat. Like Lennie, most of them starts out having a dream, goal, or aspiration, giving readers a sense of hope. In the end though, the was usually at least one character that dies, often the main character. I think the authors of this time were trying to make a statement. They were, as Tyler said, making a blunt commentary on the bleakness, sadness, and difficulties of the time. It seems like authors were trying to let readers know that life doesn't always have a happy ending for everyone.

-Kayla