Chapter 15 Flashcards
rugged individualism
success comes through individual effort and private ownership
breadlines
long lines of poverty-stricken women and men in line for bowls of soup and bread
shantytowns
collection of makeshift shelters built out of packing boxes, scrap lumber, and corrugated iron
gross national product
the total value of all goods and services produced in a given year: fell below $56 billion at the height of the depression
bull market
a market with an upward trend in stock prices
margin buying
practice of purchasing stocks with borrowed money
bear market
a market with a downward trend in stock prices
Who was President during the Great Depression?
Herbert Hoover
Why did financial experts issue warnings about business practices during the 1920s?
- agricultural crisis
- mass production
- debt from credit purchases
- rapid buying and selling of stocks
What was Black Thursday?
October 24, 1929; a large number of investors sold their shares, jolting investor confidence and causing prices to plunge
What did the President blame the depression on?
World War I
How much money did stockholders lose in 1929?
$30 billion
List 4 events that signaled the beginning of the Great Depression.
- the crisis in the banking industry
- business failures
- stock market crash
- massive unemployment
How did unemployment during the depression affect men and women differently?
- men: depressed attitudes, alcoholism, and suicide rates were high
- women: forced to work to earn money for less wages
How did unemployment during the depression affect the lives of American workers?
- homelessness
- racial discrimination
- hunger
In 1933, unemployment had risen to what?
15 million
business cycle
the regular ups and downs of business in a free enterprise economy
What effects did the depression have on the U.S. economy?
- unemployment
- business failures
- people withdrew their money from banks and banks closed
- people lost their homes