The Great Depression Research Paper

725 Words2 Pages

The Great Depression was a period of worldwide economic depression exemplified by the mass unemployment in the Unites States. The drastic shift in American culture had long lasting psychological and social effects on citizens. From the roaring 20s , a decade of luxury, exorbitance, and superficial prosperity , america had slowly transitioned into a period of hardship,despair, and gloom
Through economic suffering , the Great Depression had a psychological effect on citizens consumer confidence and influenced many social changes .
The great depression drastically changed how people viewed money. In the period leading up to the Great Depression many Americans engaged in a practice called installment buying . Splurging on many of the technological wonders invented in the twenties ( automobiles, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners ) , americans were simply living off credit. The popularity of installment plans created a culture of poor financial judgment . This culture spilt over into the stock market and soon the stock market infiltrated the minds of those looking for a get rich fast formula. Risky business practices such as buying shares stocks “ on the margin “ allowed stockbroker to purchase stock for only a fraction of the price borrowing the rest for the bank. Buying on the margin and increased speculation eventually caused artificially high stock prices and eventually a panic erupted. On Tuesday October 29, commonly known as Black Tuesday ,the stock market had collapsed . This had a domino effect because those who bought on margin could not pay back their money and eventually spiraled a collapse in the banking system, leading incomes to fall , creating a ripple effect that shook the world. When the Great Depression had increasi...

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...nsaw ) were adopted and caused those unsuccessful to live in the outskirts of town : called hoovervilles.
The Great Depression brought about a myriad of changes including an increase in social programs and increasing government particiaption in the economy. One of the cornerstones of FDR’s new Deal Program is to aid in direct relief, those immediately affected by the economy. Through the NEw Deal , FDr particiapted in decifict spending and created many social programs that still exist today. Also , he passed many laws that reformed the banking practices and agricultural prices.
In conclusion, the Great Depression had a profound effect on American society as a whole. It curbed how americans viewed money , caused mass unemployment and poverty .. But ultimately , it caused the government to respond to underlying problems such as agriculutre , banking , and welfare.

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863 Words | 2 Pages
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2275 Words | 5 Pages
The US government’s role in the Great Depression has been very controversy. Different hypothesizes argued differently on the causes of the Great depression and whether the New Deal introduced by the government and President Roosevelt helped United States got out of the depression. I would argue that even though not the only factor, the US government did lead the country into the Great Depression and the New Deal actually delayed the recovery process. I will discuss five different factors (stock market crash, bank failure, tariff and tax cut, consumer spending and agriculture) that are commonly accepted to cause the depression and how the government linked to them. Furthermore, I will try to show how the government prolonged the depression in the United States by introducing the New Deal.
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1412 Words | 3 Pages
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1508 Words | 4 Pages
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1180 Words | 3 Pages
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The Great Depression Research Paper

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