Unit 8: Early Thwetieth Century America (1920-1940)

Early Twentieth Century

America

Unit 8

Mass media and communications

Radio: Radios broadcast jazz music to new
audiences in America. Young Americans were
enthusiastically listening to modern music
because it was fast, had a beat, and didn’t sound
like their parents music. In politics, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) used radio to gave his
famous Fireside Chats between 1933 and 1944. In
these discussions, FDR explained his reform
programs to the American people, helping them
understand his vision for brining America out of
the Great Depression. Entertainment
programming brought live radio dramas such as
The Shadow, which would later inspire a new
drama called Batman. Sporting events were also
carried live on the radio and into the homes of
Americans. Baseball became the national pastime
during this era.

Movies: Provided escape from Depression-era
realities. People went to the movies to forget
their troubles, relax, and be entertained.

History Rule: Popular

culture reflects the

prosperity of the era.

Part 1

Dropdown

Which type of music was popularized by radio in the 1920s? ​

Select answer

Multiple Choice

Which method of communication did Franklin D. Roosevelt use to reach the American people in his Fireside Chats?

• Telephone

• Radio

• Newspapers

• Television

Mass media and communications

Newspapers and magazines: Shaped cultural
norms and established our modern consumer
culture. They also sparked all sorts of fads.
People turned to newspapers and magazines to
learn the latest styles, to find out what was
happening with their favorite movie stars, and to
get the scores for the most recent professional
sports games, like baseball and football. THey
also found out what was one sale, where to get
the latest devices and innovations (like radios),
and learned how to buy things on credit.

History Rule: Popular

culture reflects the

prosperity of the era.

Part 1

Multiple Choice

All of the following contributed to popular culture during the 1920s and 1930s EXCEPT —

• movies

• magazines

• radio

• traditional values

Challenges to traditional

American values

Tradition

Challenge

Religion

Role of women

Immigration
(reactions against)

Rise of the new Ku Klux
Klan (KKK) and the Red
Scare

Prohibition

Smuggling alcohol and
speakeasies

​Darwin‘s Theory of Evolution (Origins of the Species); the Scopes Trial (1925)

​Flappers; 19th Amendment

Multiple Choice

In 1925, John Scopes was put on trial because he was accused of —

• using intimidation and violence against immigrants

• smuggling alcohol illegally into the United States

• creating the Ku Klux Klan

• violating a Tennessee law that prohibited teaching evolution in public schools

Multiple Choice

Which values were challenged by the Scopes Trial in 1925?

• Religion

• Science

• Women's suffrage

• Credit expansion

Drag and Drop

How did Prohibition challenge traditional values of the American culture during the 1920s and 1930s?​

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It encouraged the development of speakeasies.

It attempted to discourage Americans from drinking

It encouraged women to break from their traditiona

It encouraged the repeal of the 18th Amendment.

Dropdown

Which amendment had the greatest impact on women during the 1920s? ​

Select answer

Flappers

Multiple Choice

During the 1920s, the term "flappers" was used to describe women who —

• did not advocate for women's rights

• challenged traditional roles and values

• dressed conservatively

• primarily cared for their children and families

The Harlem Renaissance

● After WWI the Great Migration of
African Americans continued into
the 1920s as millions left the South
and settled in the big urban areas
in the northeast, upper midwest,
and the West Coast. African
Americans created vibrant cultural
communities in these urban areas,
and especially in the North.
● One of the most prominent
areas of black life was Harlem in
New York City. At the peak of the
Harlem Renaissance, it was filled
with vibrant music and art,
delicious food, and fine
entertainment.

● A number of important poets and writers emerged in that community,
including Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Zora Neale Hurston, Anne Spencer.
● The jazz produced in the 1920s and 1930s in Harlem, New York and other urban
areas with large black populations became popular worldwide.

Drag and Drop

African Americans created vibrant cultural communities in these urban areas, and especially in the North, called the ​

Placeholder

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Harlem Renaissance

New Deal

Radical Reconstruction

Great Migration

The Stock Market Crash

The United States emerged from World War I
as a global power. The stock market boom and
optimism of the 1920s were generated by
investments made with borrowed money.
When businesses failed, the stocks lost their
value, prices fell, production slowed, banks
collapsed, and unemployment became
widespread.

A “boom” period is a period of economic
prosperity. It is characterized by consumer
demand for goods and services, a low rate of
unemployment, lots of people investing
in the stock market, and an increase in prices
(inflation).

Buying stocks with borrowed money is called “buying on margin,” and
it can be risky. If the stock drops in value, you would have to repay the
loan immediately.

Part 2

Drag and Drop

During the 1920s, why did so many individuals borrow money to invest in the stock market? ​

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They thought the boom would make them rich.

They wanted to prevent banks from closing.

They wanted to help boost a slow economy.

They wanted to put more money in circulation.

Causes Stock Market Crash

1. Over speculation on stock market

-purchasing on margin (buying stock with loans)

2. Too many small investors (increased demand for stocks and caused stock
prices to rise artificially)
3. Too many people using credit (expansion
of credit)
4. Business failures (led to bankruptcies)
5. Bank deposits were invested in the stock market (risk)
6. Overproduction by American factories (too much stuff)
7. Reduced demand for American products

-too many products, not enough buyers, so prices fell

8. Overpriced stocks rapidly lost value (causing panic)
9. When the market crashed, people panicked and rushed to withdraw their
money from banks causing banks to run out of money and close. People lost everything.

Drag and Drop

Which title best describes this list? ​

Placeholder

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Causes of the Stock Market Crash of 1929

Effects of the Stock Market Crash of 1929

Effects of World War I

Causes of World War I

Multiple Choice

All of the following are causes of the stock market crash of 1929EXCEPT —

• overspeculation

• business failures

• banks ran out of money

• limited expansion of credit

Tuesday, October 29,
1929 the stock market
crashed. This day is
known as Black Tuesday.
.

Consequences of the stock market
crash of 1929

1.The crash signaled the beginning of the Great Depression
although serious flaws in the economy had existed for years.

2.

People lost investments, which led to financial ruin, and many
committed suicide.

3.

Bank runs: Clients panicked and, attempting to withdraw their
money from the banks, discovered their funds were lost.

4.

There were no new investments.

5.

Massive unemployment

6.

Workers demanded action

Consequences of the stock market
crash of 1929

Bank
run

Consequences of the stock market
crash of 1929

Consequences of the stock market
crash of 1929

Causes of the Great Depression

The Great Depression in the United
States began in 1929 and lasted for
about ten years, ending in 1939.
The Great Depression was caused
by severe weaknesses in the
nation’s agricultural, financial, and
industrial sectors, resulting in
widespread hardships.

Part 3

Causes of the Great Depression

1. overproduction of industrial and agricultural

products

2. purchasing items on credit, placing Americans in

an unstable financial position

3. unequal distribution of wealth, making it

difficult for many Americans to make purchases

4. an agricultural depression that had plagued

farmers throughout the 1920s

5. widespread collapse of the nation’s banking

system in the late 1920s and early 1930s, leading
to severe contraction in the nation’s supply of
money in circulation

6. high protective tariffs that produced retaliatory

tariffs in other countries, strangling world trade
(Tariff Act of 1930, popularly called the
Hawley-Smoot Act)

Part 3

More information about the Federal
Reserve here:
https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutth
efed.htm

More information about the Hawley-Smoot
Act here:
https://www.history.com/news/trade-war-g
reat-depression-trump-smoot-hawley

Causes of the Great Depression

Multiple Choice

How did the Hawley-Smoot Act impact the Great Depression? ​

• It led to high protective tariffs, which slowed world trade

• It caused a decrease in the nation's supply of money in circulation.

• It led to investments being made with borrowed money.

• It caused Americans to panic and withdraw their money from banks.

Results of the Great Depression

⚫ The Great Depression caused widespread hardship.
⚫ Unemployment and homelessness
⚫ Collapse of the financial system (bank closings)
⚫ Decline in demand for goods
⚫ Political unrest (growing militancy of labor unions)
⚫ Farm foreclosures and migration

Multiple Choice

Which of the following items saw an increase during the Great Depression?

• Medical care

• Wages

• Unemployment

• College enrollment

New Deal (Franklin Roosevelt)

The New Deal had many long-term
effects on the United States
government and society. As a result of
the New Deal, the role of the federal
government changed, transforming
American politics, the economy, and
society.

Franklin D. Roosevelt
Democrat
President 1933-1945

New Deal (Franklin Roosevelt)

⚫

This program changed the role of the government to a more
active participant in solving problems.

⚫

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first president to have entirely
African American advisors who served in a “kitchen cabinet.”

⚫

Roosevelt rallied a frightened nation in which one in four
workers was unemployed. (“We have nothing to fear, but fear
itself.”)

⚫

Relief measures provided direct payment to people for
immediate help (Works Progress Administration—WPA).

⚫

Recovery programs were designed to bring the nation out of
the depression over time (Agricultural Adjustment
Administration—AAA).

⚫

Reform measures corrected unsound banking and investment
practices (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation—FDIC).

⚫

Social Security Act offered financial safeguards for American
workers, the elderly, and the financially disadvantaged

⚫

African Americans were discriminated against in these
government programs.

Franklin D. Roosevelt
Democrat
President 1933-1945

More information about the Social
Security Act here:
https://www.history.com/topics/g
reat-depression/social-security-act

Works Progress Administration

An artists sketches W.P.A. workers

Works Progress Administration

Adult education program of the
W.P.A. ca. 1930

Match

Match the following

• Corrected unsound banking and investment practices

• An agency designed to provide direct payment to people for immediate

• Offered financial safeguards for American workers and the elderly, and financially disadvantaged people

• A recovery program designed to bring the nation out of the depression over time

• Franklin D. Roosevelt’s plan to bring America out of the Great Depression?

FDIC

WPA

Social Security Act

AAA

The New Deal

• FDIC

• WPA

• Social Security Act

• AAA

• The New Deal

Legacy of the New Deal

⚫ The legacy of the New Deal influenced the public’s

belief in the responsibility of government to deliver
public services, to intervene in the economy, and to act
in ways that promote the general welfare.

Multiple Choice

What has been the long-term impact of the New Deal programs?

• Decreased role of the government to solve economic problems

• Reduced credit for farmers and the unemployed

• Expanded credit for farmers and the unemployed

• Increased role of the government in solving our nation's economic problems

Two View of the New Deal

Let’s Leave Out the Joker

The Sower (as Millet)

A.

B.