The Lamp at Noon

In the short story “The Lamp at Noon” by Sinclair Ross, the characters Ellen and Paul both struggle to survive the dust and drought year after year during the great depression, but soon realize they are faced with unbeatable odds. The characters are torn apart by these harsh elements of nature and their own inability to cope with the changing conditions. This story resembles some very sad but very real aspects of how early farmers …

…food to feed his family and animals. Paul describes the harshness when he says “In here safe and quiet---you don’t know how well of you are. If you were out in it---fighting it---swallowing it.” (pg 114) The three attitudes of loneliness, isolation, and harsh environment which the author develops are among the strongest elements present in this story. These elements resemble real aspects of what early farmers living conditions were like during the Great Depression.