Women on the Breadlines

Meridel Lesueur was born on February 22, 1900 as Meridel Wharton in Hudson, Wisconsin. Her mother married her second husband, Arthur Lesueur and Meridel assumed his last name. Lesueur moved around as a child and lived in Iowa, Kansas, Texas, and Minnesota. She also spent some time living with her grandmother in Perry, Oklahoma. Meridel was born into a family of social and political activists. Her mother made a living traveling and speaking as a feminist socialist, speaking about issues important to women such as education and birth control. The influence of political and social activists in her family most likely led her to write about and speak up for people without a voice. “She said she learned early to write down what they were saying, hiding behind water troughs in the streets, under tables at home—listening. Listening to the tales of the lives of the people, her writings were grounded in these grassroots, salt-of-the-earth stories and experiences of working people, of the poor, the disenfranchised, the dispossessed.” (meridellesueur.org/biography). She had a brief acting career as a stunt actress and graced films such as The Perils of Pauline and Last of the Mohicans as an extra. After leaving her acting career behind she focused solely on her writings. She published her works throughout the 1920's until the end of the Second World War, when blacklisting of those who were involved in the socialist movement began. It was a hard time for Lesueur. During the height of the "red scare," Lesueur made her living publishing children's books, teaching writing, and holding a variety of odd jobs. (washburn.edu/reference/cks/mapping/lesueur/). By the 1970's where people were more open to accepting different political views, Lesueur's works thrived. She began to publish both new and old writings. Some she had written years before during the 1930's that were denied publication. Meridel Lesueur led a very full and inspirational life leaving behind great works that will be cherished for years to come.
Meridel Lesueur is known most for the writings she produced during the 1930's and 1940's proletarian movement. Women on the Breadlines was influenced by the silenced women during the Great Depression. Like most of her writings, she was speaking up for and trying to give these women a voice. Women living in poverty can hide in plain sight among other poor and hungry people. “A woman will shut herself up in a room until it is taken away from her, and eat a cracker a day and be as quiet as a mouse so there are no social statistics concerning her....” (Breadlines,195). Women were disappearing, voiceless and ashamed. This was more common during the times of the Great Depression because almost everyone was suffering from hunger. In this writing, she tried to show her audience that women were suffering too. They needed jobs, food, and a way to take care of their family. Charities that were set up to help people during that time, including shelters, were mostly to help men. “Yet there must be as many women out of jobs in cities and suffering extreme poverty as there are men. What happens to them? Where do they go? Try to get into the Y.W. without any money or looking down at heel. Charities take care of very few and only those that are called "deserving." (Breadlines, 196). Though these women were not looking for a hand out they were treated as such, making them ashamed of their situation. This wrongly placed shame these women had made them suffer alone instead of seeking the help they needed. “If she's proud then she starves silently, leaving her children to find work, coming home after a day's searching to wrestle with her house, her children.” (Breadlines,195). They reported daily to wait in lines trying to land a job but there were no jobs to give and still they came back day after day because they had a family to take care of. Even in more modern times American women are seen as strong and proud individuals. The women that Lesueur was speaking up for are very similar to the women of today's America. In the trying financial times during the Great Depression men went away to find work sometimes never to return, leaving the women to survive by their own devices and making sure the house and kids were cared for, even if sometimes that meant starving themselves. In today's American society, the statistic of single mothers is on the rise. These women are also left to take care of house and home before themselves and often times go unnoticed. A mother's work is never done and this writing hints at that.
In researching Meridel Lesueur, I found few websites about her as a person. There were many websites about her published works. I used two websites that I found about her, her life, and her works. The first website was called http://www.washburn.edu/reference/cks/mapping/lesueur/. This website had a very detailed biography about her life, especially her earlier years, and featured some of her works and including writing samples and quotes. This is a section of a university website that maps out the state of Kansas by its accomplished writers. The particular page I choose was dedicated to Meridel Lesueur. This is a reliable source of information because it is Washburn University's educational website, which I believe to be a creditable source.
The second website I used is called http://www.meridellesueur.org/. This website was dedicated to Meridel Lesueur as her official website. The website featured a simple biography on her life as well as books and other items for sale, upcoming events for books being released with Lesueur's works being featured, and several pictures from different parts of her life. This website focused mostly on her writings,but I would still say that this is a creditable source of information because it is the official website dedicated to her.
The intended audience of this writing was the people living during the Great Depression. The women of this time were quieted by shame. These women were ashamed of their situation like it was their fault and starved to death quietly instead of trying to get the help needed. This writing was intended to opened the eyes of the audience that not only men were struggling, that women needed help as well and sometimes more so because they were not only struggling by themselves, they also had children to feed. Even though the intended time period for this writing has long passed, this writing can still be relevant today. Women on the Breadlines could help single mothers realize that they are not alone in the struggle of motherhood in trying times, but the women of the past were struggling as well and some may find comfort or even inspiration in knowing their struggle will also one day come to a close.

References:
Meridel lesueur, kansas author, map of kansas literature. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.washburn.edu/reference/cks/mapping/lesueur/
The meridel lesueur official website. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.meridellesueur.org/
Lesueur, M. (1922). Women on the breadlines. In J. Durbin (Ed.), For the record a documrntary history of america (5 ed., Vol. 2nd, pp. 195-196). New York, NY: W.w. norton & company, inc.