Paul Simon wrote the following poignant lyrics for his song “I Am a Rock”: “Hiding in my room, safe within my womb,/I touch no one and no one touches me./I am a rock,/I am an island./And a rock feels no pain;/And an island never cries.” This lyric communicates utter loneliness, which can logically only lead to depression. Not only do famous songs contain the theme depression, literature and contemporary reality do as well. John Steinbeck’s modernist-era Of Mice and Men, America’s historical Great Depression, and, sadly, the contemporary tragedy at Newtown, Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary School echo the theme depression.

“Guys like us that work on ranches are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family, they don’t belong no place” (Steinbeck 13). as George said to Lennie. Back then there were slaves and they were very depressed and lonely always forced to do work even through the great depression as the worst times. Emotional depression plays a key role in the novella as demonstrated by Curly’s wife’s behavior. She flirts with other men and has promiscuous behavior because she’s lonely. She appears to be depressed. As she says in the novel “I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely” (Steinbeck 86). “S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that? S'pose you had to sit out here an' read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain't no good. A guy needs somebody - to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got anybody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick.” (Steinbeck 80). Crooks is isolated because he is African American. "Well, we ain’t got any," George exploded. "Whatever we ain’t got, that’s what you want. God a’ mighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an’ work, an’ no trouble. No mess at all, and when the end of the month come I could take my fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever I want. Why, I could stay in a cathouse all night. I could eat any place I want, hotel or any place, and order any damn thing I could think of. An’ I could do all that every damn month. Get a gallon of whisky, or set in a pool room and play cards or shoot pool." Lennie knelt and looked over the fire at the angry George. And Lennie’s face was drawn in with terror. "An’ whatta I got," George went on furiously. "I got you! You can’t keep a job and you lose me ever’ job I get. Jus’ keep me shovin’ all over the country all the time. At this time George and Lennie are extremely poor and barley have money to eat“ (Steinbeck 89).

The great depression was an economic slump in north America, Europe, and other areas of the world that began in 1929 till about 1939. It was the longest and most severe depression ever experienced by the westerner world. The great depression began in the United States, but it quickly turned into a worldwide economic slump owing to special and intimate relationships that had been forged between the United States and the European economics after world war one. The depression hit hardest the U.S. The United States, economic distress led to election of the democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt to the presidency in late 1932. Roosevelt introduced a large number of changes in the American economy.

The tragedy that happened in Sandy Hook Elementary was connected in a huge way to depression simply because of how the tragedy ended. Many children and adults lives were taken away from Adam Lanza. After killing all together 26 people (20 children 6 adults) he then took away his life himself. Reporters had talked to Adams former classmates and they had said Adam was very to himself quiet never spoke to others. He had a mental disturbance, typically with lack of energy and difficulty in maintaining concentration or interest in his life this led to lioness for him which then led to depression and being a depressed person you want to see people around you depressed and feel the pain you feel. This was shocking news to America that young children who have not experienced life yet to get killed by a depressed person. I can say that America was sad and watching the breaking news was devastating to America. Parents of those kids who were killed will now not get to see their kids grow up right before their eyes. When I had heard the horrible news I thought to myself, how could someone so selfish do such a tragic thing to those innocent people/little kids? I felt really bad for those kids parents because loosing someone you love is not easy.

The meaning of depression is a condition of general emotional dejection and withdrawal; sadness greater and more prolonged than that warranted by any objective reason. George, Lennie, Crooks, Curly’s wife and Adam Lanza were all affected with depression. Also, The Great Depression impacted a lot of Americans because during the time of when the book was based on it was very hard to make money or to even live somewhere. It also made people crazy and sick enough to do horrible things to others that they would never think of doing. The great depression impacted everyone’s lives.