ABSTRACT
Was Tobacco Road (1933 / 3,182) a serious exposé of rural poverty, a sentimental family drama, or a vulgar farce that wallowed in sex and violence? Yes. Kirkland’s play about “poor white trash” wrestled with contemporary ideologies about racial “degeneration,” and commentators accused the quality of the Broadway production—and the audiences for that production—of degenerating over the course of its long run. This chapter examines how Tobacco Road both reflected and influenced American culture during the Depression, raising questions about the politics underlying the spectacle of poverty in a play that earned millions. The response of African-American critics and the revival of the play with an all-black cast are also discussed in relation to the play’s construction of whiteness.
