Ma's Lifestyle
By: Seana Gosselin
Clothing
Starting out on the Joad's journey to California Ma wore a faded flower-print dress, a gray Mother Hubbard, and bare feet. Like many mothers suffering through the depression, fashion was not a concern to them, where as providing food for their families was the priority. To save money many people would use their cotton picking bags as clothing, which were said to endure a lot of wear. Using their resources was extremely important during these hard times.
Housing
As the Joads made their journey West, they mainly lived in their truck and often slept in tents along the way. Once they reached California, they stopped at many different hoovervilles, government camps, and boxcars. It varied with different levels of comfort, some places had running water and some did not. Ma rarely complained about the living conditions and always tried to keep the family spirit positive.
Food
During the Joad's family migration West, Ma and the rest of the family found it hard to supply food. One of Ma's biggest worries throughout their journey was not knowing if there would be food to feed her family tomorrow. Basically, they lived off a diet of boiled potatoes, salted pork chops, and fried dough.
Work
The Joad family worked mostly on the farms picking peaches, or in the fields picking cotton. Ma also worked very hard, both physically and mentally, in taking care of all her children in order to maintain healthy living conditions for her family.