Social Security And Disability In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

On August 14, 1935 in Austin, Texas, President Franklin D. Roosevelt inked his signature on the Social Security Act. It was originally implemented to resolve problems with unemployment, old age insurance, and public health and welfare. The Great Depression was the catalyst for the creation of the Social Security program, and the basic structure was very similar to Germany’s social insurance programs from the 1880s. Today, social security is mostly used for retired senior citizens starting at the age of 62. At 62, American citizens can begin to collect, but will only receive 35% of their monthly benefit due, rather than the maximum amount of 50% when they reach the full retirement age of 66. (cite) In addition, social security is dispersed to about 14 million disabled people under the age of 62, who can no longer work in the labor force for various reasons. The people who qualify as disabled are just a small percentage of those collecting compared to senior citizens, and are often not mentioned when social security issues are brought up because of their minute effects on social security distribution.

A defining characteristic represented in Steinbeck's novel, Mice and Men is ableism. Lennie exhibits ageism when he targeted by George, for forgetting something. “George scowled over at Lennie. ‘So you forgot alwready, did you? Jesus christ crazy bastard!’” This quote on page three proves how in even the start of the book, Lennie is facing verbal abuse for his inability to remember things. Those facing ableism are generally not as smart or knowledgeable as those who aren't.

It was 1937, and the Great Depression was almost over; unemployment was higher than ever. Many people were seeking jobs and in the novel, Of Mice and Men, Lennie Small was one of them. The author John Steinbeck’s portrayal of Lennie helps one understand what it is like to be mentally challenged. Steinbeck does this by highlighting Lennie’s strength, naiveness, and caring nature. Steinbeck succeeded in teaching the reader of the social aspect of being mentally challenged.

“Man is the unnatural animal, the rebel child of nature”, H. G. Wells. Throughout Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, the majority of the characters are given bestial qualities, such as cold-heartedness and a very uncompassionate mentality. Unlike the others, Lennie and George seem to be compassionate and caring towards one another. The most prominent difference is how Lennie’s disability gives him a childlikeness and an ability to see the world without judgement and fear. More suitably, Lennie seems to have a very strong connection with nature, he is consistently around animals whether they are dead or alive. Because Lennie has a learning disability, he would normally be mistreated and not be able to be hired to work in this time period but, he

In 1930’s the Great Depression triggered a crises in the nation’s economic life. The Great Depression left millions of people unemployed and penniless. People consider leaving their farms behind to work in the cities factories to send money home. But as they grow into their new lifestyles the aging parent would stay behind to keep their dream of landowner ship. The seniors would be left in the hardest times of need living off the land. President Roosevelt’s New Deal was created to help jump-start the economy by providing unemployed workers with jobs and benefits packages for temporary relief. One of the many steps taken to alleviate the burden on the American people was the passing of Social Security Act on August 14, 1935 and its amendments by Congress and the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The Social Security Act of 1935 [H.R. 7260] was a bill that was signed on August 14, 1935 by President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. The act was established to help the elderly, disabled, or families who have lost a parent or spouse. The Social Security Act also known as SSA, was created to provide disadvantaged populations federal benefits. The act has a total of eleven titles ranging from the topics of the elderly, unemployed, child welfare, public health, and the blind. This paper will uncover what the Society Security was and how it contributed to the society. This paper will also cover the historical background, such as what problems led to the creation of this policy and if it was fixed by creating this act.

A landmark change in providing for the elderly came in 1935 with Franklin D. Roosevelt 's Social Security Act. While this provided aid to people with disabilities and mothers with children, aid was also mainly intended for the elderly. The premise of the act was that an individual would pay into the government through the years that they worked and upon retiring that person would receive benefits. Elderly Americans relied on this system to help pay for expenses that they might incur after they reached an age where they could no

In the late 1930’s novel, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck follows the lives of two men and how they live on one another to endure the hardships nurtured from the Great Depression. George and Lennie, the main characters, venture together along the rolling hills of the western United States, looking out for one another and being there for each other even in the hardest times looking for work to pursue their lifetime dream. Lennie, a strong bold man and a hard worker, is handicapped with a mental disability while George, on the other hand, is a slim, but strong man who has taken care of Lennie ever since his Aunt Clara had perished. Both the men have big dreams of living on a beautiful farm together and raising farm animals such as chickens,

The Social Security Administration is a great government administration that provides retirement and disability benefits to a large portion of the U.S. population. It was created by Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR). He created many new administration during the great depression to combat poverty such as the Works Progress Administration. Unlike the Works Progress Administration, on the Social Security Administration fights poverty through planning for the future rather than the now. The Administration themselves views themselves high as well, on their website they stated that the Social Security Administration is “one of the most successful anti-poverty programs in our nation's history”. The SSA could not have come at a better time than when it did during the great depression. It was crucial to the nation's future as to whether it would fall back down to its knees right as it got back up. The SSA protected us with retirement benefits which allow and help us plan for our retirement safely ensuring that we will have money when we can no longer work. This need for a retirement plan is exemplified by FDR’s speech to the N.Y. state legislature where he states “No greater tragedy exists in modern civilization than the aged, worn-out worker who after a life of ceaseless effort and useful productivity must look forward to his declining years to a poorhouse.” This is arguably the most useful part of the SSA.

In the novel, “Of Mice and Men”, by John Steinbeck, the main focus is on George and Lennie. These two gentlemen have a bond like no other. George is skinny, short, and a little older, but Lennie is tall, big, and a little younger than George. These two workmen travel together, because Lennie’s aunt asked george to take care of him. Lennie’s Aunt Clara asked George to take him, because Lennie is mentally challenged, and forgetful. At times George would get so mad at Lennie, for making them have to go from ranch to ranch. During their gallivant to different ranches, Lennie was unaware of his own strength. Although, they meet others along the way. Thus, Lennie and George were left with each other on their journey, though it was not always pleasant.

The social security act was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt so that he could put in place provisions in order to help the elderly. The social security act a document that helps impoverished citizens, such as the elderly and physically impaired receive benefits after retirement. Citizens’ in America during the great depression where expected to work weather elderly or physically disabled. These citizens weren’t afforded the financial stability to retire so work was a necessity to acquire money. “Prior to social security, the elderly routinely faced the prospect of poverty upon retirement” (U.S SSA). This effect of the great depression led to a lot death and homes turning into singled parent homes with no income. “The widespread

This is the story about two men struggling to fulfill the American dream. “Of Mice and Men” is told by John Steinbeck and is set in California in the 1930’s. Many people go through struggles in this novel, some are physical and some are mental. Some of the characters with impairments are Lennie, Crooks, Curley’s wife, George, and Candy. One of the many characters with an impairment in the book is a man called Lennie Small.

Of Mice and Men is a story that follow two men named George and Lennie living during The Great Depression. Lennie is a man who is mentally challenged. Owing to that fact that he has this disability they have to make him feel as welcome as possible. The first example of the author

Before the 1930’s, the care for the elderly was of family or local concern. Following the economic crash of the Great Depression, some of the many “dangers” in life, including poverty, unemployment, and old age, were faced head on through the actions of the New Deal. The New Deal, created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, set up a series of domestic programs to decrease unemployment rates and salvage what was left of the economy. The poverty rate of the elderly exceeded 50 percent and the stock market crash destroyed many Americans savings, thus the Social Security Act was created. This act provided aid to dependent children, unemployment and disability insurance, and pensions for the elderly. An issue with this system was that it might seem like a welfare program rather than an insurance program. To combat this issue, the social security funds would be from payroll taxes from employers and workers. Younger generations would finance the fund and would benefit from the system once they turned 65. Although this was a much-needed system, especially after the Great Depression, many still opposed this idea. People argued that this act would cause a loss of jobs and that it reeked of socialism. The argument was rebutted when proponents of the act proved how it would act as an incentive for the elderly to retire, thus creating more job openings for younger generations. A major downfall of this act rested on the shoulders of the women and

The Social Security System is in need of a new reform; our current system was not designed for the age stratification we have at this time. The U.S. Social Security Administration Office of Policy states, “The original Social Security Act, signed into law on August 14, 1935, grew out of the work of the Committee on Economic Security, a cabinet-level group appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt just one year earlier. The Act created several programs that, even today, form the basis for the government's role in providing income security, specifically, the old-age insurance, unemployment insurance, and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) programs.” Social Security was modeled to aid the elderly citizens, however during the