Assignment
5 - Blog Portfolio Entry: A Digital Exhibition
WWI
World War I was a turning point for America economically.
With war orders flooding in from Europe, American manufacturers grew rich, and
American industrial might began to lead the world. The international financial
system set up its capital in New York during this period, and the war
catapulted America into a leading role in economic and military affairs.
Progressive Era
Progressivism is an umbrella label for a wide range of
economic, political, social, and moral reforms. These included efforts to
outlaw the sale of alcohol; regulate child labor and sweatshops; scientifically
manage natural resources; insure pure and wholesome water and milk; Americanize
immigrants or restrict immigration altogether; and bust or regulate trusts.
Jazz Age
In 1920's
America- known as the Jazz Age, the Golden Twenties or the
Roaring Twenties - everybody seemed to have money. The nightmare that was the Wall
Street Crash of October 1929 was inconceivable right up until it happened.
The 1920’s saw a break with the traditional set-up in America. The Great War
had destroyed old perceived social conventions and new ones developed.
The young set themselves free especially, the young women. They shocked the
older generation with their new hair style (a short bob) and the clothes that
they wore were often much shorter than had been seen and tended to expose their
legs and knees. The wearing of what were considered skimpy beach wear in public
could get the
Flappers, as they were known, arrested for indecent
exposure. They wore silk stockings rolled just above the knee and they got
their hair cut at male barbers. The President of Florida University said the
low
cut gowns and
short skirts "are
born of the devil
they are carrying
the present generation to destruction". I say
everything turned out okay!! What do you think?
Great Depression
It isn't easy to give a brief summary of the Great Depression. It was,
without a doubt, the longest and most severe economic downturn in American
history. Widely held to begin with the stock market crash of 1929, the
Depression lasted until the advent of American involvement in World War II.
Unemployment skyrocketed during the Depression years, reaching levels as high
as one third of the population. Output shrank tremendously, falling by ten
percent a year from 1929 to 1932. Nearly half of the commercial banks of the
United States failed during the Depression. Crop prices fell by over fifty
percent. People went hungry because so much food was produced that production
became unprofitable. Others were unemployed because they had produced more than
could be sold.
Huge numbers of Americans had their lives upset by the Depression. Tens of
thousands of migrant farm workers travelled the nation looking for employment.
Homelessness, poverty and general despair characterized much of the nation.
It was times of economic hardship such as these that gave rise to the dream of
- and need for - Greenbelt.
WWII
It was the bloodiest, deadliest war the world had ever seen. More than 38
million people died, many of them innocent civilians. It also was the most
destructive war in history. Fighting raged in many parts of the world. More
than 50 nations took part in the war, which changed the world forever.
For Americans, World War II had a clear-cut purpose. People knew why they
were fighting: to defeat tyranny. Most of Europe had been conquered by Nazi
Germany, which was under the iron grip of Dictator Adolf Hitler. The war in
Europe began with Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939. Wherever the Nazis
went, they waged a campaign of terror, mainly against Jews, but also against
other minorities.
In Asia and the Pacific, Japanese armies invaded country after country,
island after island. On December 7, 1941, Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor,
Hawaii. The next day, the U.S. Congress declared war, taking the U.S. into
World War II.
Austin Minton
Recourses:
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/world-war-ii-overview
https://www.google.com/
