The mass destruction and death of WWI caused people to question Enlightenment ideas of human progress, and to doubt the future.

People questioned traditional beliefs about the world and its people.

At the same time that many soldiers were losing their lives in battle, a mysterious illness was spreading throughout the world.

Between 1918 and 1919, the influenza epidemic – called the Spanish Flu – hit the world, killing more people than WWI (approximately 20 million).

Events like the flu epidemic made people feel frightened about living in the world.

During this time of uncertainty, people looked for answers and explanations.

Sigmund Freud – founder of modern psychology – said that the unconscious mind controlled people’s actions and explained confusing events in life.

Albert Einstein – founder of the Theory of Relativity – The idea that motion, space, and time can only be measured relative to some other object or observation.

These theories gave people some explanation of why things were happening in the world.

New art forms also emerged during the Postwar Era.

Pablo Picasso created a new style called cubism – influenced by African art and used geometric shapes.

Salvador Dali – surrealist – painted objects that seemed to be unrelated.

The main form of entertainment during the 1920s and 1930s was the motion picture.

Playing and watching sports also became popular in the U.S. and Japan.

Baseball

Golf

Tennis

As the economy improved after the war, people began to purchase more consumer goods (clothes, food, etc.)

The price of luxury items (like cars) dropped drastically.

“Buying on credit” became popular – buying something and making payments instead of paying for the entire item up front.

The expanded use of credit caused people to live in the moment instead of worrying about the future.

The “proper” social norms changed. Women wearing short hair,

short dresses/skirts & dancing at Jazz clubs – these women were known as “flappers”.

Young people rebelled against authority.

Much of the economic well-being of the 1920s was provided by industry.

Meanwhile, farmers were suffering.

Farmers had borrowed money to expand their farms and now couldn’t pay their debts.

Many countries practiced economic protectionism – protecting domestic interest by limiting trade.

Market speculation, or risky investment in the stock market, was practiced by millions of Americans in the 1920s.

Stock prices soared, and investors made large profits.

On October 29, 1929 – Black Tuesday – investors on the New York Stock Exchange panicked after hearing troubling economic news.

Investors rushed to sell their stocks, and stock prices dropped rapidly.

This caused people to rush to the banks to withdraw their money.

Banks demanded that borrowers repay their loans immediately, but most borrowers didn’t have the money.

Thousands of banks and individuals were forced to declare bankruptcy.

The stock market crash marked the beginning of the Great Depression.

Prices and wages fell, business activity slowed, and unemployment skyrocketed.

Even though prices fell, people had no money to buy anything.

Herbert Hoover was President during the Great Depression.

People blamed him for the depression, despite his efforts to restore the economy.

In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President and immediately created a relief program to address the problems of the Great Depression.

The New Deal

Under the New Deal, the federal government provided relief to struggling people.

Programs:

Social Security Act – provided unemployment and old-age benefits.

Agriculture Adjustment Act – provided assistance to struggling farmers

Civilian Conservation Corps – sent young men to work camps to do reforestation and conservation work

Did not completely end the Great Depression, but did provide some help.