The Great Depression affected American society and culture in profound ways. Students should consider How did ordinary people respond to the Great Depression? The effects of the Depression were worsened by the Dust Bowl, a result of natural drought combined with unwise agricultural practices that led to the dislocation of farmers who could no longer make a living from agriculture in the Great Plains.

This inquiry set focuses on how ordinary people experienced the Great Depression. The sources focus on a relatively narrow topic - food - to expose much larger trends (like poverty, hunger, and government policy) of the 1930s.