Literary Analysis 2

If I could do this piece over again I would because I don't think I evaluated the difference between gender issues revolving around the Great Depression. I should have focused more own how women were left to take care of their families alone and how they were given second choice to males for job availablity. This was also difficult for women because they had been so dependent on men since it was a male dominate society. I should used man's role in society to show how women were left with much worse conditions. I enjoyed writing about "Women on the Breadlines" but I feel that if I would have spent more time on it I could have written a better paper.
Alteration in Behavior

“Women on the Breadlines” by Meridel Le Seur depicts the changes in human behavior of the female sex caused by the great depression. The characters are forced into life situations that completely change who they are and how they think. It was like “being a slave without the security of a slave” (Le Seur1732). This means that the women are forced to labor heavily without the security of a home, a meal, or a future. Due to their gender and the hopelessness of the situation, it caused the women to withdraw from social services and grieve inwardly about their destitute state.

Women spent the majority of their time in the unemployment office waiting for scarce jobs. They would sit their hours upon hours on the brink of starvation praying that something would turn up so they could get a bite to eat. Starvation changed the way women would normally behave. Some people became weak and depressed while others became enraged and mindful of their own existence. One young lady in the story became so fed up with being without work and unable to provide for herself that she got into a confrontation with the unemployment clerk. She rampaged and wept for any job because she had been without work for eight months. This stir caused nothing but harsh words from the clerk, who informed the young lady that her persona was not suitable for any job. This chain of events led the young lady out to the streets to sell her body as a last result. She was so completely crazed by starvation that she had no where else to turn. She was forced to make the best with what she had, which was only herself.

After all the dedication to equality, women were forced to look towards men for assistance in their time of need. This state of helplessness caused some women to readjust their beliefs about equal opportunity. Other women were forced as a last result to beg men for their protection. Women were ashamed to ask other women for help, so they would turn to men. They roamed the streets looking for men to pity their lowly state. Some women earned free meals and shelter from the cold. Others used flirtation as a way to seek entertainment to get into a ten- cents movie. The female gender was forced to use their sexual appeal to survive.

Although it might have been helpful for some women to receive a handout from men, other women were being deserted by their husbands and left to take care of their children alone. They would work day in and out, only sleeping a few hours a night, to support their kids. Most of them had to bury their children due to diseases amongst the streets. The story talked about named a woman named Mrs. Gray, who had worked herself to the bone. She was left by her husband with six children to support. She fought for several years trying to keep one of her sons from loosing his arm to tuberculosis. He eventually died with two other siblings due to malnutrition and hunger. The other children she birthed became drifters, and she didn’t even know if they were alive anymore. Her family life was destroyed by poverty and she didn’t have a future ahead of her because she had no money to spare. “Her eyes [were] bloodshot like a beaten hound(s), fearful in terror (Le Seur 1732)”. She awaited death with as much dignity as possible, but it was too depressing for other women to even look in her direction. They were tormented by her tragedy. The responsibility of children made the plight of the Great Depression much harder on women, because they were they primary caretakers.

Due to situations such as Mrs. Gray’s, women became fearful of their ability to take care of a family so they decided to remain single. Since men were not dependable as caretakers and children were dying of starvation and disease, most women determined it was better to not bring a child into this world. They felt there was a better chance for survival without baggage. These women would normally desire to have a large loving family, but the consequences of the Great Depression would not allow this to happen.

The story stated that the narrator was too ashamed to get in breadlines or take handouts. This was common to many women in this era because they were humiliated. They preferred to hide in a shack of some sort for days without eating rather than to ask for assistance from social services whereas men would freely stay in shelters and eat at charity diners. This behavior resulted from depression and low self esteem from this horrible state of poverty. Women seemed to take things to heart more than men, probably blaming themselves for their situation more than society.

The women in this story were gravely affected by society’s economical standing. That caused a decrease in job availability which made it impossible to lead a normal life. Women were forced into the streets like savages fighting for food and comfort. The hopelessness of this era left women embarrassed and incapable of raising a family. “Women on the Breadlines” truly portrayed the dreadful life forced upon women at this time in history.




Works Cited
Le Seur, Meridel. "Women on the Breadlines". Heath Anthology of American Literature.
Ed. Paul Lauter. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006. 1728- 1732.