The Great Depression Essay - 858 Words

The economic crisis of the 1930s prompted a major reassessment of the relationship between the state and the economy in the United States. Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal (1933–1941) expanded welfare provision, orchestrated a massive program of public works, introduced a swath of new agencies, and greatly empowered organized labor. This was a period of highly noticeable political and ideological adjustment, but it was an adjustment characterized by paradox, ambivalence, and uncertainty, particularly in relation to the politics of consumption. The collapse of the U.S. economy following the Wall Street Crash in October 1929 was sudden and shocking. By mid-1930, the economy was at a virtual standstill. As David Kennedy explains, when†¦show more content†¦Alan Brinkley reports that by the mid-1940s, the New Deal state, having largely retreated from the more radical proposals to restructure the U.S. economy it had countenanced in the early 1930s, was committed to a consumer-oriented approach. This strategy involved combining modest use of Keynesian fiscal management with a commitment albeit limited in comparison to those of Scandinavian and some western European nations to the welfare state. Thereafter, doubts about the capacity of the market and of large-scale capitalist institutions to deliver prosperity which had been significant during the early New Deal did not resurface for a generation, with the onset of malaise and stagflation in the 1970s (Anthony, pp. 87). The Great Depression was an age of fear and insecurity. Innovations in consumer credit and the rise of the chain store meant that in the 1920s, more Americans than ever before had experienced the benefits of mass production. When it came, then, the Great Depression delivered a particularly hard blow to middle-class Americans who were encouraged by social engineers and by the burgeoning marketing and advertising industries, were increasingly defining themselves in terms of their ability to consume. Rather than rebelling, however, the dominant response to the collapse of the consumer culture of the 1920s was a mixture of self-blame, escapism, and conformity, notes Robert McElvaine. What is remarkable about the 1930s, in fact, is the degree to which patternsShow MoreRelatedThe Depression Of The Great Depression1223 Words   |  5 Pagesfar-reaching consequences as the Great Depression. This experience was the most extended and severe depression of the Western world. It was an economic downturn that began in 1929 and lasted until 1939. 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You would think the United States would have learned from their mistakes but it seems we are going down the same road once again without even taking a step back and realizing it. When people talk about the Great Depression not a single person will have anything good to say about it. It caused families a great deal of pain that they will never forget. WithRead MoreThe Great Depression1368 Words   |  6 PagesAfter WW1 the Great Depression had a very late impact on the major film companies in France, when it did, it unfortunately caused several film studios to go bankrupt, then in the late 1920’s to 1930’s many small film companies and groups emerged giving birth to the tendency called poetic realism. Because the large companies who made films with a focus on making money were gone the filmmakers and artists were able to concern themselves with the art of film, they often took poetic innovations thatRead MoreGreat Depression7197 Words   |  29 PagesGreat Depression From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia {draw:frame} Dorothea Langes Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, age 32, a mother of seven children, in Nipomo, California, March 1936. The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression) in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s