Photo Essay
1- This photo by Greg Gaar, an activist for native plants of San Francisco, shows a somewhat wealthy family's Californian landscape. This is likely similar to the plot of land that the Trasks and their friends had both prior and after moving.
2- This orchid field shows what Californian soil was being use for: farming. Though this is a flower field and not an edible crop, the effect this land had on common culture was the same.
3- These poor Japanese farmers are all slaving away in the fields because they are not rich enough to pay someone to farm their land, or they are being paid to farm someoneelse's land. This was common practicing, and was only slightly less harsh than slavery.
4- This photo represents the family's need to have everybody as a strong worker to complete day-to-day farm based tasks. Often even younger children or schooled children were forced to help to allow the family to complete the harvest season.
5- John Vachon uses the poor people (mainly sharecroppers) cast aside by wealthy landowners to show that the common landowner had not respect for the working class below them and did not care if they were employed or not.
6- This was a common house for the sharecroppers entire family, however big it was. It shows the harsh conditions both economically and physically these under-paid, over-worked people felt every day.
7- This photo shows a "land baron" and allows the audience to see that a rich plot of land can be made into a flourishing farm for those who can afford to pay others to work the land so they may reap the benefits.
8- In contrast to the sharecropper house (see photo six). this is a landowners house. This shows the huge economically advantage for the wealthy to get more money and the poor to stay poor.
Overall- These photos all address different aspects of landownership, be it living conditions or location. It shows the defined classes and the jobs of these people. Additionally, the essay brings to the attention that the farm land is the most important thing in anybody's mind; farming on your land is the only way you can make any money.
2- This orchid field shows what Californian soil was being use for: farming. Though this is a flower field and not an edible crop, the effect this land had on common culture was the same.
3- These poor Japanese farmers are all slaving away in the fields because they are not rich enough to pay someone to farm their land, or they are being paid to farm someoneelse's land. This was common practicing, and was only slightly less harsh than slavery.
4- This photo represents the family's need to have everybody as a strong worker to complete day-to-day farm based tasks. Often even younger children or schooled children were forced to help to allow the family to complete the harvest season.
5- John Vachon uses the poor people (mainly sharecroppers) cast aside by wealthy landowners to show that the common landowner had not respect for the working class below them and did not care if they were employed or not.
6- This was a common house for the sharecroppers entire family, however big it was. It shows the harsh conditions both economically and physically these under-paid, over-worked people felt every day.
7- This photo shows a "land baron" and allows the audience to see that a rich plot of land can be made into a flourishing farm for those who can afford to pay others to work the land so they may reap the benefits.
8- In contrast to the sharecropper house (see photo six). this is a landowners house. This shows the huge economically advantage for the wealthy to get more money and the poor to stay poor.
Overall- These photos all address different aspects of landownership, be it living conditions or location. It shows the defined classes and the jobs of these people. Additionally, the essay brings to the attention that the farm land is the most important thing in anybody's mind; farming on your land is the only way you can make any money.