Steinbeck's Inconvenient Truth About the Economy

The BBC recently printed an insightful article about Steinbeck's work as it related to the Great Depression. They made predictable comparisons with our "global economic crisis" of today and brought up the question are the arts flourishing or dying during this time?

My interest lies more in Steinbeck's critical attitude toward the United States at the time of his writing The Grapes of Wrath. This era is very interesting to me (cue Woody Guthrie strumming "Do-Re-Mi") and an artist's reaction tells a lot about the general population's inner feelings.

Steinbeck's denunciations of the type of society which led to the Great Depression and the historical ramifications they hold for today are frightening.

"He carried on a kind of lover's quarrel with America, and warned against
runaway materialism, institutional imperialism, intellectual hypocrisy, and
rampant greed - all inevitable and regrettable by-products of an advanced
industrialised capitalist society."

Steinbeck followed in a long tradition of artists who both proclaimed their deep romance with their nation and denounced its unfortunate actions. He believed that the country was sowing the results of its decadence.

Whether you believe the Roaring 20s and other causes of the Great Depression could be compared at all to mortgage-backed securities, credit card culture, irresponsible lending, and irresponsible spending, Steinbeck's words written in 1966 are quite chilling:

"If I wanted to destroy a nation, I would give it too much and I would have it
on its knees, miserable, greedy and sick."

More to come...