Dance

The Dance Marathon was a phenomenon in the lower classes. In a test of endurance, couples competed and winners received cash prizes. In the 1930s, the dance marathon evolved from its original focus on endurance records to a monetized part of show business. Depression-era marathons lasted up to six months, with ten-minute hourly breaks for dancers. If one partner’s knees touched the floor, the couple was disqualified. Entering a dance marathon was often an act of economic desperation by the participants.

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~~~Dance is significant in The Grapes of Wrath, especially in the Weedpatch.  But Rose of Sharon got scared by a brown woman.  (308)  That woman warns Rose of Sharon that "If you got sin on you--you better watch out for that baby... I seen it. Girl a-carrying' a little one, jes' like you.  An' she play-acted, an' she hug-danced... she dropped that baby, dead" (310).  Although a dance does not cost anything to Rose of Sharon, Steinbeck refrains her.