The causes and far-reaching effects of The Great Depression are examined. Discussion includes its impact on both American cultures and nations around the world. The role of World War II and the New Deal in overcoming the Depression are explored.
Huge numbers of Americans had their lives upset by the Depression. Homelessness, poverty and despair characterized much of the nation in those days. Many of those who could not provide for their families, in larger cities as well as smaller towns, committed suicide to put an end to their troubles.
The fundamental weakness and contradictions of the world economy was the actual cause of the Great Depression. The international economy was in shambles because of the cost of war and the American economy was indirectly damaged by this; however, October 29, 1929 is the official beginning of the Great Depression because of the stock market crash of 1929. Paper fortunes had vanished but money was the foundation of American life. People usually took loans from banks so they could start businesses but because of the Depression, they took out loans so they would have e...
2.Gusmorino, Paul. "Main Causes of the Great Depression" (May 13 1996) Gusmorino World 30 July 2005
Economic historians usually consider that the start of depression is the sudden collapse of US stock markets on October 29, also known as Black Tuesday. And among the problems involved in assesing the causes of depression none is more intractable than the responsibility to be assigned to the stock market crash. The rise of mass unemployment is considered as a result of the crash, however the crash is not the sole event that caused the depression. The Wall Street Crash is usually seen as having the greatest impact on the events that followed and consequently is widely accepted as pointing the devastating economic circumstances that led to the Great Depression. True or not, the consequences were terrible for almost everybody. Most academic experts agree on one aspect of the crash: Billions of dollars of wealth vanished in one day, and this immediately depressed consumption.
"The Great Depression." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. History: Government and Politics. Detroit: Gale, 2009. Student Resources in Context. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.
During the 1920’s, America was a prosperous nation going through the “Big Boom” and loving every second of it. However, this fortune didn’t last long, because with the 1930’s came a period of serious economic recession, a period called the Great Depression. By 1933, a quarter of the nation’s workers (about 40 million) were without jobs. The weekly income rate dropped from $24.76 per week in 1929 to $16.65 per week in 1933 (McElvaine, 8). After President Hoover failed to rectify the recession situation, Franklin D. Roosevelt began his term with the hopeful New Deal. In two installments, Roosevelt hoped to relieve short term suffering with the first, and redistribution of money amongst the poor with the second. Throughout these years of the depression, many Americans spoke their minds through pen and paper. Many criticized Hoover’s policies of the early Depression and praised the Roosevelts’ efforts. Each opinion about the causes and solutions of the Great Depression are based upon economic, racial and social standing in America.
The Great Depression often seems very distant to people of the 21st century. This article is a good reminder of potential problems that may reoccur. The article showed in a very literal way the idea that a depression can bring a growing country to its knees. The overall ramifications of the event were never discussed in detail, but the historical significance is that people's lives were put on hold while they tried to struggle through an extremely difficult time.
The Great Depression shattered the American Dream in one swift blow. Families fell into poverty, parents could no longer provide for their children. It seemed that all of America had just gone downhill. The roaring twenties bred cockiness in our nation. We were growing richer by the second, and everyone seemed to be making it big in the cities. Because of that cockiness, average people went broke as the roaring twenties quickly faded in the Great Depression, and “the dust-blown interior of the United States was full of families... whom poverty had forced off their land and into a life of wandering. Their poverty was total; they had nothing”
As our economy began to falter in December 2007 and plummeted into the current recession in September 2008, many Americans thought back to the horrors and hardships of the Great Depression. The Great Depression proved a difficult time for America, a time nobody wanted to ever see again. Sadly, many of the children from the Great Depression have lived to witness a time with many similarities, and yet many differences, to the economy crash of 1929.
...tter poverty. The depression affected millions of Americans and I got to really feel what they went through when I watched the movie Cinderella Man. Jim Braddock the main character of the movie went thorough tough times; he lost his job, couldn’t support his family and witnessed loved ones being lost to the Great Depression. Going through all this just made him a stronger man. This gargantuan mess was all created because of the Stock Market crash of the 1930’s. This was a time when the huge stock market fell to the ground. The crash hurt so many American families including Braddock. Even though the Great Depression ended a while ago there are similar things that happened in the Great Depression that are happening in 2010. The Great Depression ruined many people, America needs to learn from their mistakes and make sure ruination like this never happens again.
The great depression was a difficult time for our country. Many lost their jobs, lived in poverty and became homeless. Many farmers couldn’t afford to keep theirs farms. Women had a hard time finding employment as well as men and children couldn’t go to school or be supported by their parents. To give an overall view, unemployment rose to twenty five percent and half of banks failed, leaving the United States in a devastating economy.
The Great Depression is often to be known for starting on October 1929 on the day the stock market crashed. In reality that was not the only thing that caused the Great Depression. Although this was a major contribution when the stock market crashed, banks foreclosed and it caused a major panic when people tried to get their money. People in America were not able to get their money because the banks didn’t have it. Many people believe that, “The crash, and its aftermath of unemployment, bank closures, bankruptcies, and homelessness, was caused by fundamental flaws in the prosperity of the 1920s.”(Shindo 295). When the crash happened industrial output began to decrease until it was the same amount of production in 1932 as it was in 1913. Gale stated that, “ By 1929 farmers’ earnings amounted to only one-third of the national average.’’(Gale 82). The Great Depression was a very devastating time in American history.
"Great Depression in the United States." Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2001. CD-ROM. 2001 ed. Microsoft Corporation. 2001
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 brought an end to the United States flourishing and opulent economy during the late nineteen-twenties. The crash caused the greatest economic disasters to ever hit the United States, and led many to lose everything they had and no possibility of ever gaining it back. Simple luxuries and basic necessities were no longer available for most individuals. They were the things of the past and as time went on it only seemed to completely disappear from their grasp. This catastrophe would later be known as The Great Depression. The man responsible and credite...