When Scout asks her father if they are as poor as the Cunninghams, how does he respond? Through Atticus, what does the reader learn about the Great Depression and how it affected different classes of people in different ways?

In "To kill a mocking bird," by Haper Lee. Atticus responded by saying "not exactly. The Cunninghams are country folks, farmers and the crash hit them the highest."

Explanation:

The Great Depression was a period of great economic recession and hunger in the 1930s. By the end of 1920s, The American economy collapsed caused by the Great Depreesion. The stock market which crashed on october 29, 1929, caused alot of panic. And by the fall of 1932, Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 89percent of its value. Americans began withdrawing their remaining fund in mass because of their loss of faith in the banking system. Many businesses failed during this period leaving millions of people jobless.

To kill a mocking bird setting is rural and the Great Depression hit the rural area the hardest. during this era, natural disasters and weevil infestations destroyed southern fields and the regions economy. In To kill a mockingbird, two farmers were greatly affected by the depression. they are the Cunninghams (A family of white farmers) and the Robbinsons (An African American family).

Therefore Atticus was explaining to Jem and Scout that the crash hit the Cunninghams the hardest and that their hardship affects the towns economy.