After mopping up some leftover material from the 1920s, we’ll spend this week considering the causes and effects of the Great Depression. Beyond exploring the factors leading to the crash of 1929, we’ll devote some time to surveying the political response to the Depression, particularly the New Deal supplied by the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt. We will consider the successes and limitations of FDR’s program, and we’ll plot out the major historical events that send the world once again into a cataclysmic outburst of violence. Digital History is solid enough on this period, though you should consult other sources as needed or desired.
Major questions for the week will include:
- What were the factors that produced the Crash of 1929?
- How did President Hoover respond, and why were his efforts inadequate?
- What did the Depression mean for the lives of ordinary Americans?
- What were the major components of Roosevelt’s recovery program in 1933-34, and what were their successes and limitations?
- What were the major components of Roosevelt’s “Second New Deal,” and what were their successes and limitations?
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