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Spaces and exchanges
CALIFORNIA DREAM! To what extent is California a dreamland?
Google X research lab in Mountain View, California
The Grapes of Wrath, by John Ford 1947
Living the dream at Venice Beach
1- What clues are given in Picture 1 about
working conditions at Google?
2- What elements in Picture 2 show the these
people are settlers?
3- What aspects of the American dream can you
see in Picture 3?
4- How can we tell from the pictures that
California has been a magnet for newcomers?
1. We can guess from the photograph that working conditions are very good. The
employees have access to a park with comfortable chairs and sports facilities.
2. The main indication that these people are settlers is their obviously temporary
accommodation comprising tents, rudimentary shelving and washing facilities. The people
are clearly from an earlier generation as their clothes would indicate.
3. Picture 3 clearly shows the warm climate, the sun shining and people enjoying
themselves suggesting they have the time and money to do so.
4. We can tell that California is attractive because of the climate and we have the
impression of people with money and time to relax enjoying an advanced lifestyle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkAfjRolNCI DAILY LIFE IN THE 1930S
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-rBhbkvtm0 The dust bowl
File 1 A- On the road to the land of plenty
CULTURE FILES
Read and write
1. The word which suggests escape is ‘flight’ (line 1).
2. The dangers that the convoy faced between towns concerned mechanical breakdown.
3. The main indication is the fact that so many cars are travelling to California. We can also
say that wages were high in California (line 29).
4. The garage owner suggests that California is not big enough for everybody, that there are
police patrols and finally that he has seen people returning.
Look and write
5. We can see the mother and the father in the front driving the vehicle while the children
are sitting on the furniture.
6. It is clear that this is a photo from the 1930s because of the very basic and old-fashioned
vehicle and the clothes worn by the family.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOuAZLA_jWQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYFJmm0aK-8
File 1 B- The mother road
Read and write
1. 1928 is mentioned because it was the start of the Great Depression which made
the exodus to California necessary.
2. The authors are: Steinbeck, 1939, The Grapes of Wrath, and Kerouac, 1957, On
the Road.
3. Both authors use the road trip theme, both were controversial authors.
4. The other references are the song ‘Get Your Kicks on Route 66’ and a TV show,
‘Route 66’.
5. The nickname probably comes from the idea that it gave birth to a new life.
Look and write
6. We see many symbols in the picture including the desert with cacti, the cowboy
with his lasso, the large grain farm and the typical American 1930s vehicles.
Spaces and exchanges Notion focus # 1
File 1 : Moving west
A- On the road to the land of plenty
The Dust Bowl
Migrant Mother Dorothea Lange
The Grapes of Wrath
B- The Mother Road
The Grapes of Wrath
Route 66
File 2 - California dreaming A- Sixties folk rock
California dreamin’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kcmwXUdDCE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ53_yJ7tKw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXscyaCitTk Top 10 songs about CA
1. The song talks about the approaching winter (the leaves turning
brown and about a grey sky).
2. The singers would like to be in L.A.
3. The singer appears to have a girlfriend and that prevents him going
back to L.A.
4. The song explicitly talks a lot about climate, for example, ‘a winter’s
day’ and ‘cold’, but implicitly, the phrase ‘California
dreaming’ (repeated 5 times) suggests homesickness.
5. The clothes, hairstyles and psychedelic background reflect the era.
(the 1960’s)
File 2 - California dreaming A- Sixties folk rock
The clothes and hairstyles of the musicians are very ‘sixties’ plus the title is written
in a classic 60s font.
Although only together for three years they had a lot of hits which are still being
played today.
They were influenced by their folk background but were trying to write for the
commercial market.
They were also influenced by jazz and musicals.
B- 40 years later: interview with Michelle Phillips
C- The dream lifestyle
1 2 3 4
1. The three pictures show people relaxing in a pleasant climate and pursuing outdoor activities. 2. We see a contrast between physical leisure with the surfers and mental activity in picture 2 where they are playing chess. 3. Surfing, swimming and biking are linked to the outdoors. The game of chess and indeed the cycling could be transferred to a colder climate. 4. We can see the classic symbol of the surfboard and picture 1 shows us the American small entrepreneur making money from tourists.
1. Climate encourages either an indoor or an outdoor lifestyle. When it’s cold we prefer to be indoors to keep warm but in hot weather we tend to live more outdoors. 2. Answers to include: the fact that given the choice we usually find people prefer to be outdoors…
Spaces and exchanges Notion focus # 1
File 2 : California dreaming
A- Sixties folk rock
B- The dream lifestyle
A hackathon (also known as a hack day, hackfest or codefest) is a design sprint-like event in which computer programmers and others involved in software development, including graphic designers, interface designers, project managers, and others, often including subject-matter-experts, collaborate intensively on software projects
Living the dream
File 3 Living the dream A- Dream becomes reality
Read and write
1. Teenagers head for California in order to work in the tech industry.
2. The parents vary in the degree to which they support their children. One parent
expresses a combination of sadness at their son’s departure and pleasure that he
is succeeding in being independent.
3. Woodstock emphasized togetherness and solidarity. The teenagers attending
tech hackathons experience the same emotions.
Look and write
4. The winners in the photograph are young and successful. They are also
exclusively male and it is true that one does not hear of many woman dotcom
millionaires, which is to be regretted. Only a small percentage of the population
as a whole can succeed in this way.
Living the dream A- Dream becomes reality
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69V__a49xtw
Living the dream B- Silicon valley – the series
1. Steve Jobs is criticized as being a ‘poser’, in other words he had a good public image not
backed up by his capacities.
2. Silicon Valley as the ‘cradle of innovation’ can take a start-up company and introduce it to a
world-wide audience.
3. The downside is the vulnerability of people in the face of large money offers which can
sometimes even lead to attempts on their own lives.
Living the dream C- The employment line
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSP7gqR9YOg
1. Mary Ann was attracted to the agency by its claim that it would find a job that suited
her and that it really cared about its work.
2. The walls were decorated with Art Nouveau posters and a sculpture based on coastal
artefacts and scenes.
3. Mary Ann was disappointed because the woman only seemed interested in academic
qualifications.
Living the dream C- The employment line
1. Document A emphasises the positive aspects of California but both documents B and C
suggest that sometimes people can be disappointed either by the money offered for their
ideas or the fact that California is often just as interested in academic qualifications as are
most places in the world.
2. Answers to include: the fact that young people lack the experience to distinguish between
false hopes and reality and that the modern media concentrate on success stories.
Spaces and exchanges Notion focus # 3
File 3: Living the dream
A- Dream becomes reality
B- Silicon Valley the series
C- The employment line
FILE 4 Is West really the best? A- Maroon 5: leaving California
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfd6gP9uXAY
1. The singer’s partner is returning to the east of the USA.
2. He claims he can put right the things that have persuaded her to leave.
3. He says that he will be badly affected by the move: ‘I won’t be alright’.
I s West really the best? B- Entering and leaving
Look and speak
1. In the pioneering days people hoped for money and success represented by the biblical
metaphor ‘milk and honey’.
2. According to the second picture, people find that taxes are high and that government
regulation is intrusive.
3. America has developed from a frontier culture into a heavily populated bureaucratic
country. The number of people has increased so success is harder for any one individual.
I s West really the best? B- Entering and leaving
Look and speak
1. In total fifteen companies have relocated abroad.
2. Most relocations have been received by Texas and Colorado.
3. We can guess that companies relocate to find cheaper labour or premises, in other words
to reduce costs.
Read and speak
4. The author wants to get away from the traffic and the stress caused by his journey to
work.
5. He also mentions the difficulty of visiting his family and the cost of living.
6. If he stayed in LA he would continue living in an unreal environment in an overcrowded
city.
7. The tone is mainly ‘relieved’ because he says he had to ‘be rid of the stress and anxiety’
(line 3) and he says, in lines 17-18, ‘this couldn’t be my life for the next twenty years’.
I s West really the best? C- Moving out
I s West really the best? D- Packing up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jol-4xa8EJ8
1. The documents tell us that many people moved to the west coast in search of a better life but that many are now returning east for economic and personal reasons.
Spaces and exchanges Notion focus # 4
File 4 : Is west really the best?
A- Maroon 5 Leaving California
B- Entering and leaving
C- Moving out
D- Packing up
Notion recap
To what extent is
California a dreamland?
Great living conditions Venice : the dream lifestyle Sixties folk rock ? The Silicon Valley The brain drain
Leaving California Dream and disenchantment Relocating elsewhere
A magnet which attracts A dream destination Route 66 the Mother Road A place of social progress
