HIST1410 12:2 - Dennis Dickerson PDF

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Dennis Dickerson...

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HIST1410 12/2 THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND WORLD WAR II The Great Depression  Only 9% of women were employed in 1930  No unemployment insurance o The 25% unemployment rate of the Great Depression essentially translates to 25% of households without income (because most households had one source of incomethe male)  What happens to the authority of the male head of the family when he fails as a provider?  Guilt, shame, embarrassment  The New Deal o “Countervailing power” (John Kenneth Galbraith)  “The capitalist system could not have endured without these modifications, ameliorations, and reforms.” WWII  U.S. emerges from the war strong and happy; not significantly affected (as other countries involved in the war were); employment rising; **one of the only nations (if not the only nation) to grow and prosper significantly as a result of the war  Death tolls o Great Britain (350K) o China (10M) o Japan (3M) o Poland (8M) o Germany (6.5M) o Soviet Union (24M) o U.S. (429K)  Post-Pearl Harbor: o 16M men leave home and join the armed forces o 20% of Americans change their residence during 4 years of the war (many move to the WestPacific coast states double population between 1940 and 1950) o initiates longest period of economic growth in American history (after 11 years of depression) o by 1960, over 65% of Americans owned homes o 20M jobs are created 1945-1965, most of which are taken up by women  After 1945: o Rejection of interwar isolationism (that had previously characterized the United States)  Takes the lead in creating United Nations, IMF, World Bank, etc.  Admits 750K displaced individuals from Europe  Spends $17B on Marshal Plan  Articulates Truman Doctrine; joins NATO

U.S. commands 50% of world’s manufacturing capacity and 60% of monetary reserves Standard of living increased 20% during WWII”the good war” 

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