1. What were the political and economic causes of the Great Depression?
2. To what extent was Wall Street’s crash responsible for the Great Depression?
3. How effective was Hoover at battling the Great Depression?
4. How effective was the New Deal at combating the problems of the Great Depression?
5. What was the political impact of the Great Depression?
6. Describe the criticisms of the New Deal.
7. Compare and contrast the Great Depression in Canada and the United States?
8. How did the Great Depression affect various groups of Americans?
9. How was popular culture affected by the Great Depression?
52 comments:
BAM!! hahaha.
So I just realized, Hoover was Republican and FDR was a Democrat... G.W. Bush is a Republican and Obama is a Democrat... That is a super weird coincidence/repetition... Dont you think?
so mr. o, for the first question, could the buckets just be economic and political for a two bucket essay?
Ashley,
It would be fine as a two point essay, but you should be prepared with enough information to deal with the question if I simply ask you about one of them.
just so im clear on this, on question 7... Canada faced similar conditions as the US but their banking was a little different?
For the effectiveness of the New Deal question... could we just pic one of the historians (Best,Biles)and write from their point of view... but what would be good 3 points? The economic, social, and political effects of the New Deal from the point of view of a historian?
Mr. O,
Regarding the question "Describe the criticisms of the Great Depression," should we include the criticisms of Hoover? I'm just wondering because the buckets we came up with at the morning study session mainly pertained to FDR. Also, I am a little confused as to what the buckets should be for the question "What was the political impact of the Great Depression?" Could a whole bucket be the way FDR changed the interaction between the executive branch and big businesses?
Thanks,
Tess
why was the run for the banks so long after the actual crash??
I am a bit confused on the question, "What was the political impact of the Great Depression?" Should this be more focused on the overall change in style from Hoover's lack of involvement in the crisis to the changes FDR made through the New Deal? Or should the response focus more on programs within the New Deal itself?
jamie-
i think that mr o had said what seemed the most logical way to argue that would be through relief, reform, and recovery. then you can use both historians in saying that recovery didnt come from teh New Deal. hope this helps. :)
Well, I was going to enter the blog until someone else answered a question, but I guess Haley saved you. As for your question, Haley, Canada had a more nationalized banking system that was linked to the British banks.
As for Jamie, Haley is quoting me accurately.
Tess-Whoops, that should read New Deal. I'll fix it. So no, but you should know the criticisms of Hoover.
Also, business interaction is important especially the end of the Mellon philosophy, African American movement, the re-emergence of the Democratic Party would all be key points.
Connor-Because the banking problem was only partially caused by the stock market crash. These banks were unregulated and overextended. Don't forget the foreclosure crisis of the Dust Bowl.
Maxine-I'm not sure we have the three buckets yet, but see the answer to Tess as a starting point.
Mr. O, have you put up the notes from the day you were gone on docushare yet?
In the question, "How effective was Hoover at battling the Great Depression" does anybody have tips/advice for three buckets. I have come up with his laissez-faire policies for one perhaps, and/or actions taken....???
This is Natalie by the way....sorry, my username is kinda odd
Ok, so now I am thinking out loud but perhaps for a third bucket on the same question could be the results of the Hoover administration....??
Natalie,
For bucket one I discussed how some of Hoovers public works/reforms were good, such as the Hoover Dam and the RFC. For bucket two, however, I discussed how some of Hoover's reforms didn't do enough economically. I looked at things like the Agriculture Marketing Act, Grain/Cotton Stabilization Corporation, how Hoover thought the depression was a European Problem, and how he mostly relied on volunteerism, not mandates. Finally, for the last bucket I talked about how Hoover lost sight of the American people. For that bucket you can talk about the BEF, how slums were named "hoovervilles," and how the African American votes changed from republican to democrat. I'm pretty sure those were the buckets Mr. O gave us.
Hope that helps!
Tess
Thanks Tess! That helps immensely!
Any suggestions on how to attack "What was the political impact of the Great Depression"...?
Natalie,
Tess has a a good structure with some good details. Make sure you have enough depth. As for political, look at my response to Tess at 10:34 pm. Good luck.
When comparing and contrasting the Great Depression in Canada and the US, would your buckets be leadership, industry and farming, and maybe criticisms? I'm not really sure how to form good buckets for this question.
Mariah--
I used similar buckets that included those parts but they are a tad broader. First I used causes-which can include how main causes of the Canadian depression were that pulp and paper industries disappear, unemployment, etc. which differs for the U.S. (see the first quesion for U.S. causes) Secondly, you could use problems which could include natural disasters in both countries (dust bowl and droubt) and high unemployment and poverty, etc. There are lots of ways your could take this bucket and it has a lot of potential for good details. Lastly, you could use government response which could include the various leaders from both countries and different programs set up within the different countries. Now these are just some ideas that I came up with that you can ponder. I hope that helps.
Yes, that helps so much! Thanks a bundle!
Where could we find more information for the pop culture question?
Hi gang,
Sorry I haven't been around as much today. With it being Mother's Day, I have to be a bit careful. :-) A couple of items:
1) The Canadian notes are up on docushare. We were having some technical difficulties.
2) I liked Natters answer on Canada. The broad buckets are helpful.
3) KB-You should have quite a bit from your lecture notes on culture (movies, theater, radio, New Deal programs under the WPA) However, I am adding a couple of link below that might be helpful.
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display.cfm?HHID=481
http://www.wwcd.org/policy/US/newdeal.html
does criticism include only bad criticism?
Just curious, in natalie's points about the Canadian depression, how do the causes differ from the problems? was the disappearance of the pulp and paper industries a cause or a problem? same for unemployment?
For the political economic causes question, is it okay to just do a two bucket essay (political and economic) or would it be better to do something like long term short term?
Meghan - look at Mr. O's comment on the 28th at 10:06
Cristine,
Usually criticism is considered negative.
Kb-I interpret problems as being effects of the depression.
Meghan,
You can do a two bucket essay, but economic might need to be split into two parts.
I have received two emails from students requesting a postponement of the test. These students mentioned that they are expressing the concerns of many. Here is my response.
I will put this as kindly as possible. We will not be moving the test, as it was already moved to Monday from Friday in order to accommodate student needs. As for not knowing what you are being tested on, the blog questions have been up for more than three weeks, most of them are covered heavily in American Pageant (although perhaps not as heavily on APNOTES, and the blog is awfully quiet tonight. I will not address individual situations, but as a class, there have been multiple opportunities to ask questions. I will be available until ten tonight and in my classroom in the morning.
Hey mr. O.
What were some of the gov't programs that got people going west/encouraged people to cultivate.
So for the compare/contrast question would it be better to do a critics point instead of causes?
This is Kathleen by the way...
Brett,
The Homesteading Act during the Civil War started the real push into the West. It basically gave people free land. This approach was modified over ht next sixty years, but land remained free or cheap to anyone who wanted it. Additionally, the government was pushing propaganda that said that rain followed the plow and that the products would be massive. Also, immigration policy during WWI encouraged Mexican workers to come farm the land in order to feed the Allied powers. Finally, the tariff rates were relatively low post WWI which led to additional shipments of food to Europe.
Kathleen,
If I were setting up a Canada vs U.S, I would probably do a causes, effects (including gov't response), and the critics. However, there are lots of good ideas out there.
For the question, "How was popular culture affected by the Great Depression?", could the buckets be: escapism, reality based, and entertainment illuminating the problem? Or has anyone else come up with buckets that might fit the question more?
Hey Mr.O
So i was just filling up my buckets to question one of the political and economic causes of great depression and I was trying to figure out where the dust bowl would fit? Would political causes be like the government encouraging people to move west? I guess i'm not sure how to fill the political bucket.
Question on number 9 anyone -
So i have a bucket with sports and one with the WPA/grapes of wrath but i still have radio/hollywood/music and i don't know how to group these last three.
so would those be the political causes or is there something better?
Connor and Maxine-Both of your buckets are fine. As for what to call it, Connor, how about entertainment.
Merideth,
I wouldn't necessarily pick events, but trends. Overspeculation could be applied to both the economic and political world. The government with its laissez faire policies encouraged that economic overspeculation in both areas. In fact, if anything the gov't encouaged overspeculation.
Brett,
Yes, those are political causes of the Dust Bowl.
I'm confused - did Mellon's approach to taxes benefit the US or help cause the depression?
On effectiveness of the New Deal...For three buckets I have relief, recovery, and reform. However, I am tad unsure how to organize witin the buckets....any suggestions?
The sun will come out tomorrow. Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there'll be sun. Tomorrow, tomorrow...
KB,
Both. Depends on who you ask. Ron Paul and Barack Obama would disagree on that one.
Nat,
Hit the problem, the New Deal programs, and then, did they work.
With regards to political impacts of the great depression, i have several ideas such as more executive power, or shift in votes, but I don't know how to set up nice large buckets.....Help! :O
Natalie-
Mr.O responded on May 9 at 10:34 with some ideas. I have the laissez faire government under Hoover as one bucket at the involvement of the government under FDR as another; but I am not sure if that is a very good way of setting up the buckets.
Mr. O,
Thanks for the pop culture links, they helped a lot. and thanks for clearing up the mellon controversy... i called up obama and asked him to defend his opinion.
Maxine and Natters,
I would address this in a number of ways.
First, it kills the Mellon approach to business/gov't leading us towards a more keynesian model. Both conservatives and Democrats believe in intervention, just in different ways. Also, it propels the Democrats into the majority party for the first time. Look at the '36 election, FDR's 4 terms, and then the Democrats really don't lose control of Congress until 1994. With blacks, women, and labor, the Democrats set up a pretty effective coalition. Finally, I would address the issue of it changing the way people interacted with the gov't. Under the New Deal, we come to expect a lot more out of the national gov't. List some of those social welfare expectations. Prior to that, most people's involvement with the federal government was the Post Office.
Can someone help me break up question 2 to what extent was Wall Street's crash responible for the Great Depression into three buckets?
Lisa,
I was about to sign off for the night, but what the heck. Deal with Wall Street's role and the ripple effect in point one. Then, break the five causes of the Depression into two additional buckets. How you do that is up to you, but the basic point is that Wall Street was bad, but fundamentals of the economy were worse.
Poof...Mr. O'Donnell has turned into a pumpkin.
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