In American society today, childhood is viewed as a time of learning, exploration, and a chance for a child to make his or her mark on the world. However, before the Great Depression, the childhoods of working-class children were viewed in a different light. Working-class children felt obligated to provide for their families, which prevented them from receiving an education and striking out on their own, while middle-class children had greater educational prospects due to the difference in wealth. The Great Depression brought hard times for all Americans and expanded the working class while shrinking the middle class. Because working-class children had close ties and responsibilities to their families and faced more poverty than the middle class, they were less likely to move out of the working class because they were committed to working for provide for the needs of their family or children without family. had to support themselves and had fewer educational opportunities. In the context of child labor in the Carolinas, photos and depictions of children working in factories show how working class children were not given the opportunity to branch out and have a childhood as defined by today's standards. . Although the pamphlet's creators fought for better child labor standards in textile mills in the Carolinas, they simultaneously show how working-class families depended on multiple members to provide for the family: at “Chester, South Carolina, a supervisor told me frankly that manufacturers [across] the South have evaded child labor laws by letting young minors help their older brothers and sisters” (McElway, 11 ). Children were used because they were cheap labor and were exploited in many ways because they were so... middle of paper... ......d by a difference in wealth. The difficulty of supporting a family, let alone earning more money to rise above the working class, led children born into working class families to feel "stuck" because they didn't have the extra time or money to spend on their studies. . Instead of being able to learn and grow during their childhood, working-class children were focused on surviving themselves and their families. This contrasts with the middle class where children had the opportunity to receive an education before later working. Horatio Alger argued that anyone can change their circumstances by doing a little extra work and improving their behavior, but Ragged Dick was an unrealistic character. Children born into poverty often face a cycle in which guidance and luck cannot even help them escape the working class because they are committed to their family..