FREE America's Great depression Essay (original) (raw)

Many people believe different stories about what caused the great depression. Some of these include the stock market crash of 1929, hoarding money, the gold standard, and sticky prices and/or sticky wages. It's because of these that America went through its poorest time ever.
Although there were several reasons why the great depression started, this is the most cited one. However, this crisis did not actually cause the depression. The stock price of a company is only a reflection of the current information of the future income of that particular company. So when that current information changes, such as when interest rates go up, stock prices go down and they begin to tumble. A stock market crash might however cause people to sell their assets and hoard money.
People hoard money because they are afraid of going broke so they sell all of their assets for money, such as stocks going down. For example, they want to have their assets accessible in a transferable form, like money. Hoarding money is not the same as putting money in a savings account, because that is like lending money to someone else to spend. Just hoarding cannot cause a recession or depression. As long as prices and wages go down to compensate for the loss of money in the economy, then there will be no problems. This can even bee seen as a good thing to some, who don't hoard, but would benefit from the lower prices. For a country with a gold standard, the hoarding of money could be disastrous. .
During this time period, America had a 100% gold standard for its money. In other words all cash was backed up by a government promise to exchange it in a specific amount of gold. During this time, one ounce of gold was exchangeable for $20.00. Since the amount of money in the economy is directly related to amount of gold available, the money supply is not very flexile. This also is not a problem as long as prices and wages drop to compensate instantly for the loss of money in the economy.

1. The Great Depression

The Great Depression did not just happen there were many factors that contributed to the depression like the United States international credit system, economic dependency, and international trade policies. The big struggle for the American people was the grueling journey of the depression that would last 11 years. ... The depression would hit America like the black plague. ... The great depression is a very important chapter in our history. Through the great depression we learned many great lessons and as a country we came to realize how fragile what may seem like an invincible economy can be...

2. The Great Depression

The Great Depression of the 1930s was a result of many economic changes in America. ... This crash led us into The Great Depression. ... The Great Depression has greatly impacted the American society. ... The economy has changed drastically since The Great Depression. ... The Great Depression was one of the worst time periods in American history....

3. Great Depression

This paper is an effort to explain how the great depression affected the American culture, to include what the problems were in the economy and what led to the biggest economic downfall in United States history. ... So the average American was living quite content, but had no savings if something was to happen like, The Great Depression. ... The Great Depression was a worldwide phenomena, more than 1300 banks closed in 1930 and 3700 more within the next two years. ... At this time The Great Depression had psychological effects and health effects on our nation. ... In 1939,...

4. The Great Depression

The Great Depression The Great Depression was one of the longest depressions in the history of North America left Americans shaken. ... While the hard times lasted the whole decade even before the great crash of the stock market American citizens were having trouble with making a living. ... My grandmother, a survivor from the great depression says "we had to gather food from were ever we could find it, we were starving". ... Depression set in throughout every American's heart, spreading like a wild fire. ... The Great Depression was a test of survival, many made it many did not. ...

5. The Great Depression

The Great Depression When Franklin D. Roosevelt took office, America was going through what was known as the Great Depression. ... Farm families are an example who suffered during the Great Depression. ... The Great Depression was not the first or only depression Americans had seen, but it was the worst. ... That is why many people think Hoover led America into the depression. ...

6. The Great Depression

Great depression Thesis- The year of the 1929 began a time period of horror in America. ... Political views also changed during the Great Depression. ... The young people of America's employment future looked hazy due to the Depression. ... The Great Depression has definitely left it's mark on America. ... Those words said by Roosevelt as president, are the words that began to pull the United States Of America out of The Great Depression, and into what our country is today....

7. Great Depression

Great Depression was the worst and longest economic collapse in the history of the modern industrial world. ... During the Great Depression there were rapid falls in the production and sale of goods and a rise in unemployment. There were many factors to the cause of the Depression. ... Another one of the factors to the Great Depression was what the government had done or had not done to ensure that this would not happen. ... In 1933, at the worst point in the depression, more than 15 million Americans, which was about a quarter of the nations working class, was no longer employed. ...

8. Great Depression

Franklin Roosevelt influenced Americans with his Fireside Chats. ... Almost 30% of the people during the great depression were unemployed. ... The Chrysler building was created during the great depression. ... Fads and fashion was coming along very strong in the great depression. ... Sports were a major fad for men during the great depression. ...

9. Great Depression and US Capitalism

The Great Depression was by far the most severe economic upheaval endured by American Capitalism. Thus, no event of the twentieth century had a more profound impact on American life than the Great Depression of the 1930s. ... However, although this was the case, there were great underlying problems produced by American Capitalism, which was revealed by the Great Depression. ... In addition to all the previously mentioned problems, the Great Depression also revealed that America had a weak government. ... All in all, the Great Depression revealed many underlying problems that laid in the natur...

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