There are developments in the works for housing development near the University of Akron that could stimulate the local economy. Since happy news is often hidden within mostly sad news of world events, it is important to note that there is as much promise as there is complication. There is as much hope as there is despair. This news could not have come at a better time for Akron and for the state of Ohio, which due to the recession and the waiting period that trickle-down economics usually brings for economic recovery, is considerably depressed. Still, so long as we stamp a smiley face on what's going on and only fend for ourselves, what is there to worry about? That seems to be the attitude of people today and it is reflected in our political culture. This happy news brings with it the promise of hope and change we can believe in, but there are still problems that we cannot avoid, cover up, or make light of. People who can still manage to make it to the movies today want to escape away from their troubles, let alone focus on someone else's so they don't want to deal with theirs.The author does not mean to depress further upon writing this, because this plays a big part in what he plans on writing about.
In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, Hollywood made films that dealt with subjects that dealed from a distance to the American experience, and also managed to make films that poked fun of those who are rich, and made a few populist dramas, romances, and comedies that dealt with the issues of the day at hand. But, to a certain extent, as much as those films were appreciated, they wanted to see a more realistic view of what they were going through on the movie screen. In 1940, John Ford brought such a view to Hollywood with The Grapes Of Wrath.
Based on the John Steinbeck novel, it tells the story of the Joad family, who lost their home and their economic livelihood in the Dust Bowl and searches for new means of income in a nation affected by Depression. The family is led by Tom Joad, played by Henry Fonda, who recently got out of prison to see his old life that he remembered in pieces. The family is supported by Ma Joad, played by Jane Darwell in an Oscar winning role. They navigate through work camps, temporary places to live, and temporary work experiences. Amidst every small opportunity, the Joads refuse to fall under losing hope. We are reminded of their strength and working-class principles in the scenes where Ma Joad says to her husband, who loses hope, that we are the people, and when Tom Joad says that he sees himself as apart of one collective soul of humanity and that he feels connected to everyone who gets a bum rap by society. The film speaks to us today through these lessons, especially in the scene where Tom Joad says, after hearing about how a group of rich men sacrificed the common good to save their financial skins and legacies with government approval, that the government cares more interest in a dead man than a live one.
In our nation where the working class gets little to no respect, and the basic of our economy- the teachers, nurses, public workers, construction workers, and everyone who benefits from collective bargaining and through the support of their unions are penalized by rich men who would rather confirm their own sheltered views on the world on a populace that cannot afford it and depend on the assistance and support of many programs that help their economic livelihoods, the message of this film speaks to us at the basic, gut level that a government's primary responsibility is to care for all its constituents and that it is morally irresponsible to let those who are the actual backbone of our economy to suffer for another group of people's financial sins. This film is not a rosy film meant to escape and distract and deflect away from our circumstances, but a film that asks us to look at our problems honestly and bravely. After all, a society cannot be civil unless it approaches its problems honestly, bravely, and without hesistation.
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