"The Forgotten Man" by Maynard Dixon

 

Even though "The Forgotten Man" depicts the face of one individual, it illustrates exactly what happened to millions of people during The Great Depression. The man is obviously sad, head down, and sitting on the side of the road. The man's features are hidden by the shadows. The scene is enhanced with people passing by who are faceless, almost non existent other than their legs and feet. The man seems tired, with one foot out, kind of like when you walk or run for a long distance and you can't bare to sit properly. Many of  Dixon's pieces show grim images of men without work.

Everyone in the world today can either relate or sympathize with what is going on in this painting. Dixon gives the viewer a front row seat of what life was like back then and causes us to contrast and compare it to what is happening today. Just like the forgotten man, many people today have lost their jobs, are homeless, and feel like there is no hope. People are upside down on their mortgages, graduating and can't find a job, and taking pay cuts. Just the other week hundreds of employees from Novell right here in Provo, Utah were let go. We can see the current affects of our own depression happening right in our own backyards.

The future of the Nation's and World's economy seems to be an uncertainty. Dixon's painting that was illustrated more than 80 years ago on a piece of canvas also shows that history has sort of repeated itself. I don't think Dixon intended to forecast what was going to happen in the future, but it does cause us to reflect and think about it. As we look at ourselves and our own lives, are we the ones sitting on the curb or are we the ones that are passing "The Forgotten Man" by? I watched a piece on KSL5 the other night about homeless shelters and how full these shelters have become with homeless people. I see people begging for money or work on almost every corner. For me, I think we are all sitting on the curb. I think everyone is a little uncertain, a little sad, a little down. We sometimes find ourselves in the shadows of the economy, and I think we feel that the people around us are walking by like everything is OK in their lives. The fact is that we are "The Forgotten Man" and the people walking by at the same time, it's just we are to prideful or scared to admit it.