Stock Market Crash as the Cause of the Great Depression Essay -- Ameri

What Was the Exact Cause Of The Great Depression? The United States Great Depression leads many people to believe different stories about what actually caused it. The Stock Market Crash in October of 1929 is often referred to as the beginning of the Great Depression, but did it actually cause it? The answer is that it was the spark that lit the flame of the Great Depression. The Great depression was a financial decline that started in 1929 and lasted through most of the 1930s. Its pinpoint was in North America and Europe, but plagued countries around the world (especially developed countries). Unemployment and homelessness sky rocketed and construction practically stopped in many countries. Industrial production declined by 50%, international trade plummeted 30%, and investment plunged 98%. The Great Depression was more severe and lengthy in the United States than in other developed countries. The unemployment rate rose higher and remained higher longer than in any other western country. As it expanded, the depression, for many Americans, was a hard time. (Garraty 3, Nardo 29-31) By the fall of 1929 most Americans had reached the peak of success, wealth and happiness. Just a year before, President Hoover predicted that the day when poverty in the United States would be totally eliminated was slowly but surely arriving. James Horan refers to the era as, "a time of plenty". This was because the country was at the height of a great industrial development which begun after the end of the Civil War. Mass production was in "high gear". The middle class was very satisfied after receiving a large amount of goods. "It was a lavish era of silk shirts and two-car garages."(Nardo 29) The stock market was very successful; there were pl... ...eople with nothing but each other. The Great Depression was definitely a terrible problem in the United States. Like every other problem, there is a root cause, and for this problem it was the crash of the stock market in 1929. This paper corroborates that the crash of the New York stock market in 1929 was the exact cause of the Great Depression. Works Cited Dudley, William. The Great Depression: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1994. Garraty, John A. The Great Depression. San Diego. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1986. Nardo, Don. The Great Depression. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 2000. Problems of the Great Depression. [Online] Available http://www.bergen.org/AAST/projects/depression/problems.html, November 25, 2006. Stock Market Crash of 1929. [Online] Available http://www.stock-market-crash.net/1929.htm, October 9, 2006.

Definition of the political system Essay

The claims of superiority, often evident in the attitudes and actions of the west, is based on their acceptance of democracy and the ideals which it suggests. Democracy is the fundamental basis that western countries use to claim themselves superior to other countries in the world. Western countries believe that democracy is the only fair form of government and are often critical of countries that have different forms of government. One of the ironies of these facts is that most citizens of democratic countries do not know what the word democracy means and what it represents. â€Å"A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but wont cross the street to vote in a national election.† Bill Vaughan The Oxford dictionary defines democracy as government by the people, direct or representative. In Canada we have a representative democracy that allows us to pick our political leaders, but because of the laws and institutions that are in place it is unlikely that we will ever have a â€Å"pure† form of democracy. Some of the important questions, which all Canadians need to ask themselves, include those at the heart of this essay: Why do we call ourselves a democracy, do we only have democratic rights every four years when we are asked to vote? When we chose those who will represent us do we have any control over their actions after they are in power? What possible means do the people have in controlling politicians and government decisions? These and other questions need to be addressed in order to determine the nature of our democracy and perhaps our attitudes toward it. Representation is an essential element of modern democracy. In comparing populations of modern countries to the 5th century B.C.E. city-state of Athens, where the first democracy originated, the first difficulty encountered by modern democracy becomes clear. The citizen assembly in Athens was the most innovative and important idea in the development of democratic politics. The small population of Athens, however, allowed for a gathering of all men over the age of 18. Modern cities and states could never gather all men and women over 18 in one area to discuss and vote on every aspect of a political agenda. The modern solution, representative democracy, ensures that one person who voices the opinions of the majority represents a large number of people in the government. Unfortunately in  modern politics this does not usually work the way it was intended to. In theory representative democracy is a logical and practical way to deal with large populations and limited time. But with political corruption being a widespread problem, the voice of the majority is not always heard and their interests are not always fought for. Instead our political system is corrupted by influence and alliances and this is one of the principle reasons why modern western countries will never have a pure form of democracy. During the Golden Age of Athens, democracy was the prided of all Athenians and they believed in only the purest form of democratic institutions. â€Å"The most pure democracy, is that which is so called principally from that equality which prevails in it, for this is what the law in that state directs: that the poor shall be in no greater subjection than the rich, nor that the supreme power shall be lodged with either of these, but both shall share it. For if liberty and equality, as some persons suppose, are chiefly to be found in a democracy, it must be so by every department of government being alike open to all?as the people are majority and what they vote is law† Democracy in Athens included people being given positions of power at random by drawing names or by election by peers. Modern democracy has become a means to pick our so-called political elites, those that have devoted their lives to politics. The elite are people we pick who have the real power in the institutions of representative government. The question that needs to be addressed is whether we have any control over those in power after we have put them there. Are there laws and institutions in place to prevent a group from gaining so much power that they are hard to challenge? I do not think there are. In some ways the people do have democracy only when they can vote every four years. That is one of the few times that the public is a real threat to any party. Canadians do have a lack of total control over actions of the government, the essential element of pure democracy. Majority rule in the  legislature is an element of the Canadian government that allows for a party to be in a position where few things threaten its ability to govern how it wants. If a party in Canada holds the majority rule in the House of Commons they are given the opportunity to place members in the senate. Also if the party holds majority in the House of Commons for long enough they will be able to create a majority in the senate. The Prime Minister of the party that hold a Commons majority is able to pick the governor general (a political figurehead), and they have almost absolute power and influence over the various institutions of government. This is why, in democratic countries like Canada, it is necessary to have institutions or laws that will keep the government in check. A government that holds the majority fears few things when it comes to the public. It can easily be seen that demonstrations have little effect on the government nor do many attempts by the public to get the governments attention. There are two very important things that the governments do fear and have little direct influence over, the Supreme Court of Canada and the media. Both of these institutions cater to the rights of every Canadian. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over disputes in all areas of the law, including constitutional law, administrative law, criminal law and civil law. One of the main functions of the court is to interpret the constitution as it pertains to the rights of Canadians. The Supreme Court is often called on to assist the government in interpreting the constitution during the creation of new law. Because the Supreme Court is based around fundamental human rights the government must abide by its rulings without question. And when it comes to the Supreme Court there are few instances of corruption, which is one of the bigger problems in politics. The Press, or Fifth Estate, is the second important check on government power. The press is the voice of the people, and although susceptible to manipulations of government, it is vital in keeping the public informed. The press are members of the public who appeal to the public and don’t necessarily care what the government thinks. The laws surrounding freedom of speech and freedom of the press allow the public to have some access to the truth. In my opinion the press has become a modern substitute for the  Athenian assembly where all Athenians were invited to every assembly to hear arguments on all aspects of political decisions. Although in modern democracy every citizen is not given the right to vote on every political decision, the media allows for the public to hear arguments from both sides about all issues. If one desired, one could find information on every issue up for debate in the House of Commons on any given day. When Democracy first started in Ancient Greece in a relatively small city-state of Athens it was enormously different than the democracy we know today. The basics of democracy: rule by the people, equality, and majority rule, have continued to be the foundation of modern democracy. We have maintained the basic principals of pure democracy but we have made some mandatory alterations to adopt democracy to the modern world. Sir Winston Churchill once said, â€Å"democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.† But most importantly, at the end of the day, democracy attempts to create social equality.

Edgar Allan Poe Biography - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 878 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/06/26 Category Literature Essay Level High school Tags: Edgar Allan Poe Essay Did you like this example?   Edgar Allan Poe was a distinguished American writer of short stories and poetry. He was a controversial literary editor as well as critic. Poe was best known for his Gothic literature and his association in the American Romantic Movement. His creation of â€Å"detective stories† influenced many authors today. Poe was a literary genius and possessed natural talents to write, even at a young age. The tragic occurrences during his childhood and early years, shaped him to be one of the most acclaimed men in American literature. Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the second child of three siblings: William Henry Leonard Poe the eldest and Rosalie the youngest. Both his parents, Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins and David Poe Jr., were actors. Although they struggled financially, Poe’s mother was a well-known and praised actress. A few months after Poe was born, the family moved to New York (â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe† TheFamousPeople.com). Soon after, David abandoned his family when Poe was only two and a half years old (Meyers 5). The apostasy of Poe’s father was most likely due to his feelings of jealousy towards his wife’s successful career, heavy drinking, short temperament, and lack of responsibility to take care of his children (Meyers 5-6). g Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Edgar Allan Poe Biography" essay for you Create order Left alone to take care of two sons, Poe’s mother pregnant at the time carried many hardships. Residing in New York, Elizabeth struggled to provide for her children and sustain the family financially (â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe† TheFamousPeople.com). Additionally, she had to deal with the constant moving to cheap houses and the demands of her career. As a result of the misfortunes in her life, she gradually became severely ill. Poe would be a witness of the gruesome scenes of his mother slowly dying. He observed the strained and bloody coughs, the abrupt hemorrhages, and his young mother’s body laying on her deathbed. On December 8, 1811, she died of Tuberculosis at the age of twenty-four, leaving her young sons and a daughter behind (Meyers 6-7). After the death of his mother, Poe was separated from his siblings. Rosalie was adopted by a Richmond merchant, William Mackenzie, and his wife, Jane Scott Mackenzie. William Henry was taken in by their biological grandparents. Lastly, Poe was taken in by the Allans: John Allan, his godfather, and Frances Valentine Allan, his wife. Subsequently, Poe would acquire the middle name of â€Å"Allan† (â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe† TheFamousPeople.com). Tragically, two weeks after the passing of his mother, several people died in a devastating fire at Richmond Theater where Poe’s mother would perform. The whole city mourned together, along with Poe, to remember those in the accident and one of the finest contributors to the theater†¦ Elizabeth (Meyers 7). Considering that Poe lost his mother at a very young age, he possessed great affection for his foster mother and father. Poe was praised as a child and would be exhibited to guests to recite poetry. He attended the finest schools and was brought up as an Episcopalian. In addition, he would visit luxurious resorts with his foster parents and never lacked materialistic things. Despite being raised like a son, Poe was never officially adopted by the Allans. Thus, always felt a void in his heart for a sense of family and paternal figures (Meyers 9). By alternately being spoiled and scolded, Poe was a confused child. When he was punished at school for being disobedient, he was forced to wear a vegetable around his neck to face humiliation (Meyers 9). He later moved schools and was separated from his foster parents to study abroad in England. Around the same time, the United States was at war with Great Britain. At his new school, he would describe the claustrophobic environment as well as the dismal daily routine he had to endure. Additionally, many teachers would characterize him as a brilliant young boy, but would heavily criticize his parents for spoiling him. They would explain how the Allans allowed Poe to acquire considerable amounts of money, thus, become mischievous (Meyers 12-13). In 1820, Poe entered the school of Joseph Clarke. After years of study there, Poe eleven years old at the time wanted to publish a manuscript volume of poems. However, Clarke advised him not to continue with the publication because he did not want to adulate Poe’s egotism. (Meyers 14-15). Although Allan supported Poe financially, he discouraged his literary talents in his teenage years. Tensions between the two, developed into a problematic relationship. Allan condemned of Poe’s ambition to become a writer. He believed Poe was not appreciative of his well-being and seemed compelled to take him out of his will. Instead, his foster father wanted him to pursue the family business. As a result, Poe would write poems on the back of his father’s important work papers to persevere his natural calling for writing (â€Å"Edgar Allan Poe† Biography.com). Poe’s childhood was an occurence of unfortunate events. With the abandonment of his father, the death of his mother, the separation from his siblings, the movement of schools and homes, the discouragement of his writing, and the long-lost sense of belonging, all contributed to shape Poe to the writer he is recognized today.