Agree with Prompt 1
The Man
The Great Depression
Movies are an innovate technique to learn about history,
because they are interesting and thought-provoking. After watching Cinderella Man, I strongly
agree with this statement: “A person can learn quite a bit about life in
America during the Great Depression just from watching the film, Cinderella
Man”. By watching Jim Braddock experience unemployment, applying for relief
money, and a rare second chance, I feel as if I fully understand living in the
1930’s, during the Great Depression.
During the Great Depression, 15 million Americans were
unemployed and almost half of the countries banks had failed. At the beginning
of the movie, Jim Braddock, a professional boxer, was shown living in a nice
home and making cash from fights. Mae Braddock, Jim’s wife, is shown in
colorful clothing, makeup, and a perfect bob haircut. As the Great Depression
starts to affect the Braddock family, Mae’s clothes become dull and their
beautiful home is downsized to an apartment.
Once Jim’s hand is broken and he has a bad fight, they provoke his
boxing license.
American’s became extremely desperate during this time,
and whether a hard or lazy worker, a job was hard to find. The movie fully
projects this theme when Jim goes to the docks every morning with hopes of
being picked. There was a random selection of around 9 men every day to unload
ships that arrived at the dock, so every morning dozens of men would crowd
around the gate hoping to be picked. It became hard for Braddock to support his
wife and three children with only 2 days of a work a week, if he was lucky. This
was historically accurate with the times.
Once
the electricity was cut off and the milkman stopped delivering, Braddock feared
for his family’s lives. Braddock was not a man of taking what wasn’t his, so
when he appeared at Madison Square Gardens asking Joe Gould to help him, Gould
gave Jim thirty-five dollars knowing it was life or death. In the movie as well
as real life, the money was used to pay the milkman, utility company, and rent,
which left Braddock broke only a couple days after. He promised his children
that he would never send them away, and without asking him, Mae sent the
children to live with realities. Jim swallowed his pride, and applied for
relief money, something Jim, as well as many Americans, believed they would
never do. The majority of American’s were desperate and also applied for help;
it was their last resort. Due to a
cancelation in 1934, Jim Braddock had the opportunity to fight John Griffin.
Braddock knew this fight was the one thing that could save this family, and he
fought whole-heartedly. Braddock fought hungry, giving him even less of a
chance to win, but it was a third round knockout that sent Braddock home with
the winning cash.
Second chances during the Great Depression were few and
far. Jim fought for the children and for Mae, and if it hadn’t have been for
Jim’s hardships, the fight most likely wouldn’t have been his. Jim Braddock stated: “So they matched Lasky
and I, there was no talk about the heavyweight championship fight because they
figured Lasky’d lick me. When I beat him I hit him with everything, I mean,
wherever his kisser was. I had to punch there, a left hook, a right cross, it
was one of them nights.” Jim Braddock was a man of courage and determination,
and did everything in his power to change his family’s living conditions. Even
though most didn’t get the chances Jim did, the movie shows how hard the
depression affected everyone, and if given an unlikely second chance, that they
would fight for it with all they had.
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| Standing in line for relief money. |
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| Baer vs. Braddock June 13, 1935 |
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