WHICH COUNTRY HAS THE LARGEST PUBLIC DEBT? AFTER THE MOST DEVASTATING WAR IN HUMAN HISTORY THE USA EMERGES AS THE WORLD’S BANKER. EXPLAIN WHY. UNLIKE COUNTRIES SUCH AS BRITAIN AND FRANCE, THE US HAS VIRTUALLY NO WAR DAMAGES. WHAT IS LAISSEZ FAIRE? EXPLAIN IN YOUR OWN WORDS.

Unit 1: USA 1917-1929

Reaction to the WarThe Treaty of Versailles Who were the Big Three at the conference?

Germany as the bad guy and her reparations Read Source B on p. 8. Is it pro or against the

treaty?

Why were people interested to build and international organization such as the League of Nation?

Explain the term isolationism. Why would many Americans prefer this policy? Why do governments levy taxes on imported

goods? What is the danger of imposing high tariffs on imported goods?

HW: answer p. 9, Q 1, 2, 4, 5

ImmigrationThe open door policyWhy does a country like US need immigrants? What impacts people perception of

immigrants? Limit on immigrants from certain parts of

Europe.The Sacco and Vanzetti case.Read some of the reasons given on p. 11 for

curtailing immigration from certain countries.

The ProhibitionWhat is prohibition and do some countries

practice the policy of prohibition even today?Why was 18th Amendment to the Constitution

approved? What were the basic reasons behind it?

Why do you think it was a failure from the very start?

Al Capone

Red Scare

The Fear of Communism: immigrants, trade unions, socialists

PatriotismEconomic Problems: how does the return of

millions of people from the war affect the labor market?

Violence

Why did organized crime profited from the prohibition?

Do you know any other activities that organized crime is involved with presently?

Describe the major obstacles that low enforcement agents were encountering while doing their jobs.

The gang warSt. Valentine’s Day Massacre

Name the three main reasons for the failure of Prohibition.

Reason 1Reason 2Reason 3

Mass ProductionWhat advantage does mass production have

over traditional way of making things?Henry Ford and principles of mass production: 1. one type only2. division of labor3. moving assembly What other industries grew thanks to the auto

industry (think of the suppliers and the service industry as well as tourism)

The Boom! Radios, cars, fridges, washing machines- they all are now

available to the average worker. And those who cannot afford can pay in installment. Being in debt is no longer something to be ashamed about.

The shares and the stock market

In this time of great prosperity people also starts to speculate- buying shares

What are they? Explain in your own words. The stock market- is it all about greed? Borrowing money to buy more stocks.

But not all is well

Not everybody profited from the boom.What were some of the older industries that

did not prosper in that era? Describe the situation that farmers were

experiencing.

The Roaring 20’s

Why were the 1920’s so exciting?Wealth- more money to make, more to spendNovelty- new musical styles, new stuff

(radios, fridges, record players)

Novelty- new musical styles, new stuff (radios, fridges, record players)

MobilityLeisureChanging morals and values

LO: Reason for it, the power of advertisingWhat is consumerism in a nutshell? What

does it depend on? Advertising becomes omnipresent. Where

could you find them at that time?

Entertainment!

LO: New forms of entertainment. The reason for the growth

The Jazz Age, CharlestonThe movies: the explosion of the movie

industry with the pianist or orchestraThe arrival of the talkies

The immorality of the 20’s? Too sexual for many.Smoking and drinking womenGlorification of crimeKissing on the screen

The Flappers

How was a flapper different from a traditional woman?

Would a flapper create a negative reaction even today?

New Woman

LO: the change of the role of women and the reason behind it.

The effects of the war Read President’s Wilson plea for women’s rights on p. 184. 19th Amendment gives finally women right to vote in 1920. Which country was the first one that gave women right to

vote? And which one was among the last one to do so?

Open-mindedness

LO: The significance of radio, motoring. How intolerance restricted education.

10 millions of radios by 1929. Motoring in the US. Collision of people of different race, politics,

and religion, morality, The Christian fundamentalists.

Monkey Trial

The rejection of the theory of evolution Not until 1967 was it allowed to teach the theory of evolution to students. John Scopes and the trial of the theory of evolution What is the situation today in modern America?

Racism

LO: Jim Crow laws. Racist attitudes Ku Klux Klan

Lynching

Migration North for better living conditions

Tom Shipp an Abe Smith case

The Ku Klux Klan

In 1915 W. Simmons reforms the organization that was suppressed in the 1870’s.

America as WASP nation. A stand against all non American (blacks, Jewish, immigrants,

Catholics, Communists)

Integration or Separation?

LO: Principals of integration and separation. NAACP vs. Separatists.

Du Bois M. Garvey