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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What type of protest does Horace Cayton discuss in Honor and Humiliation?

2. Corn farmers often switched to what agricultural product in the midst of the Depression?

3. In Three o'Clock in the Morning, Wilbur Kane's mother was bitter about the invasion of what?

4. What psychiatric complaints did Dr. Nathan Ackerman's patients most often bring to him?

5. According to Emma Teiller, why did armed men enter a relief house in her neighborhood?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to Elizabeth Wood, how did public housing develop the stigma it has today?

2. How were the prisons affected by the Depression?

3. In the Depression-era Midwest, how did corn prices lead to corn being burned and pigs being slaughtered?

4. What was the most controversial component of the New Deal?

5. How did Neil Schaffner's theatre troupe have to change their business model after the Crash 1929?

6. What humiliation did Ward James face seeking relief in the 1930's?

7. How does Alf Landon recall his 1936 campaign against Roosevelt in the book?

8. How does Max Shachtman explain the decline of Communism's popularity in America?

9. What role did Elsa Ponselle play in the forming of the Teacher's Union?

10. How did Jack Kirkland become famous during the Depression?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The federal government went through a series of processes in its attempt to react to the 1929 crash of the stock market and to stem the sinking of the national economy. Write an essay about these attempts at governmental assistance and how they did or did not succeed:

Part 1) How did the Hoover administration react in the immediate aftermath of Black Tuesday? Discuss what sort of governmental initiatives went into place, and whether the administration succeeded in stemming the decline or allaying fears in the general populace. What unrest cropped up at this time?

Part 2) Discuss the first steps taken by the Roosevelt administration upon its arrival into office. What, specifically, was the NRA? What powers did this administrative body offer Roosevelt to place limits on the private sector? Why was the NRA preemptively shut down soon after its creation?

Part 3) How did the Works Progress Administration prove to be more effective at stemming destitution than simple relief? What did this desire of Americans for work programs say about the country's work ethic? What were some material results of the WPA?

Essay Topic 2

The Franklin Roosevelt administration was a hothouse of young minds and genius fiscal conservatives. Write an essay about the crucible of ideas that this administration fostered. What initial ideas came out of this group, and how were they killed out of the gate? What politicking occurred within the administration, in terms of currying favor with the President? What actions did FDR take that alienated huge swaths of his supporters?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about the tactic used by union supporters in the 1930's Rust Belt. How did they effectively shut down plants, stopping the introduction of scabs and limiting the union-busting? What kind of press did these strikes get, and how was Governor Frank Murphy of Michigan leveled by these events? What effect did the passage of the Wagner Act have on the ability of workers to unionize?

(see the answer keys)

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