Government In Cannery Row

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Recommended: Government role in public policy

The Government is a source of help for many people. Sometimes this grand of a government fails on us. Then people begin to struggle. However sometimes the government takes over our lives to help us. Not like a National Socialistic take over of our lives, but a socialistic. However, there are also many different types of ideologies that the government controls its people. The people of Cannery Row have created a socialist atmosphere to replace the government that has failed them.

Socialism in America began in Chicago IL, June 15-21, 1897. This ideology was founded at a joint convention of the new combined American Railway Union. This was due to the two Railway Industries combining with each other, Eugene V. Debs and the Brotherhood of the Cooperative Commonwealth (Davenport). This caused a monopoly for the Railway Industry, which is how a Socialistic government does. The government takes over industries, with no competition the government controls prices and regulations. This is like Lee Chong’s store, he was the monopoly of the town stores in the Cannery Row. Lee Chong controlled prices of his merchandise that he sold in town. It did not matter if something was more expensive then it should be it was the only store in the town with produce, merchandise, and goods.

Socialism began as the 19th and 20th centuries progressed. “Socialism is a socioeconomic belief that stresses the importance of communal involvement in property and wealth distribution” (Socialism:). This explains exactly what Cannery Row does on a day-to-day basis. The community, the government, of Cannery Row distributes its wealth to help out the people of their town, but not very much so in distributing property. If the people of Cannery Row are dirt poor they kin...

... middle of paper ...

... during the Great Depression and after. The town’s people that had money, those people were the government officials of the town. They controlled the town in a Socialistic environment. This benefited the town greatly as town’s people being a mock government of the United States during hard times. The town’s people had health care, welfare, and were about to take out loans with horrible credit history. Thanks to Socialistic characteristics the town of Cannery Row continued without catastrophic problems.

Works Cited

Davenport, Tim. "Socialist Party (1897-1946): Party History." Early American Marxism website. N.p., 19 Sept. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2011. .

Socialism: History of Socialism. Dulcinea Media, Inc., 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2011. .

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