Research
Summary: For this family discussion, I read an article that dealt with the psychological effects of the Great Depression and how it impacted peoples' daily lives. The article addresses how factors such as lack of consistent education, instability in the job market, constant pressure to support one's family, and the fear of the unknown could cause families to reach severe levels of depression and anxiety. Additionally, threats of diseases and malnutrition jeopardized the farmers' (and their families') well being. It's hard to imagine getting through the physical aspects of life during the great depression, but when you add on the mental challenges that so many people faced at the time, it is hard to understand how they made it through.
Evaluation: This text is related to Grapes of Wrath because the Joad family faces many hardships on their journey that push them physically and mentally beyond their limits. Ma Joad struggles with depression and helplessness as she feels the family is falling apart and she cannot stop it. Noah Joad feels that his family does not love him and eventually strays away from them. The whole Joad family undergoes three deaths - Granma, Granpa, and their dog - which causes severe emotional strain. Rose of Sharon's husband is unable to cope and leaves her alone with an unborn child. Every single character struggles emotionally, but they are unable to experience their pain because they must be strong and continue to fight to survive.
MLA Citation: "Life During the Great Depression." N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2014. <http://academic.mu.edu/meissnerd/depression.htm>.
Philosophical Questioning
As I was reading these chapters, I developed some questions that I felt would be good to discuss and analyze deeper. They were as follows.
1) If you had to choose between economic stability (holding a job that could support your family) or mental stability (being happy and enjoying life), which would you choose and why?
2) Is it ethical to help another family when yours is in need? If you and your family were struggling in the Great Depression and someone came to your doorstep asking for help, should you give it to them even if it might hurt your own family?
3) Do you believe that poverty can lead to mental health issues? Give an example in modern times.
Reflection
The most memorable moment in my family discussion was when my father and I discussed whether mental stability or economic stability was more important. This was tough because it's easy to say mental stability because if you're happy than nothing else should matter. However, if you're happy but you can't afford healthcare and you get sick and pass away, then maybe it's not as important. Ultimately, we did not land on a decision, but discussed the importance of each. Personally, I would rather die young and be happy than be miserable with financial security. Life is about so much more than money, yet it really does "make the world go round" as this unit title says.
In this discussion, I was surprised by how much my father and I discussed question two. My dad believed that you should never turn down somebody in need no matter what the cost. He said that when you think of it in the abstract, it makes sense to put your family's needs first, but in reality if someone comes to your begging for help, you would not be able to refuse them help. However, I disagreed. I think that it's important to draw the line between when you are giving too much. Of course, I don't think that you should ever turn someone away, but I think that you can't give to the point that you yourself are at risk. If you try to feed five people in need, your child might not receive as much food and might, consequently, suffer from malnutrition and diseases that come with it. Is it ethical to put a stranger's needs before your child's? I disagreed. We debated this all over our discussion and through the next few days and still have not fully reached a consensus.
For the next family discussion, I will try to make all of my questions equally as thought-provoking. In my discussion with my father, we discussed question 2 almost three times as long as either of the other questions. Question 1 and 3 were a bit too straightforward, and did not push us to debate them or think deeper on them. However, my father and I continued to debate over question 2 for days. I think that next time my questions should be more evenly spread out and equal to each other in value.
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