Migrant Farm Workers

The Lost Dreams and Hard Life of the Migrant Worker Imagine living in rural California in the 1930's, having no family, no one to love, and no money. Then consider traveling twenty miles by foot to get a job as a farmhand, but upon arrival not being treated any better than the animals on the ranch. This was the brutal reality that most migrant farm workers had to face on their journey of survival and struggle. Despite being a vital part of the United States agricultural industry, migrant farm workers are often overlooked in society. These individuals were picked from the poorest sections of society and promised pay for labor that did not require education. However, along the way they were subjected to an endless cycle of exploitation and feelings …show more content…
Yet it is almost impossible for these individuals to achieve their dreams of having a better life. The Cornell Professor, Kevin Attell, explains further in his esteemed article, “Against the exposition of the itinerant laborer's lonely life of moving and working, Steinbeck counterposes the dream that George and Lennie share. As mentioned above, it is not just any dream, or even simply the dream of a better life” (Attell). As reflected in Of Mice and Men, farm hands had dreams of having a better life. The characters in the book’s dream, along with their real-life counterparts, are not merely a fleeting aspiration or a simple desire for material wealth, but a coping mechanism to justify their lonely and miserable life. Their endless dreaming and hope for the future that would never be, made them go into a stagnant life that one cannot escape from due to the realities of being a migrant worker. The goal of every itinerant laborer was to achieve their version of the American Dream that they had been chasing for …show more content…
marginalized people for dignity, respect, and a sense of belonging in the brutal reality that they are trapped in. It shows the human want of stability and a place to call home that the workers longed for in the pursuit to achieve their own version of the American Dream. The laborers not only held on to hopeless dreams, but lived incredibly lonely lives. Migrant farm workers live incredibly lonely lives. Due to the constant solitude traveling, lack of trust in any of their peers, and no one to trust whatsoever. They continue to live their sad and pathetic lives with the hope that someday they will break free from the nomadic system. Yet, the loneliness of their lives consumes their entire being and makes them commit to the life of solitude and depression. This sentiment is shown in the devastating quote from Of Mice and Men, “Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They have no family. They don't belong in no place” (Steinbeck 13). In order to succeed in this world, many believe that one needs a support system to encourage them and form a sense of

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