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Essay / History of the Great Depression - 1558
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade before World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied by country, but in most countries it began in the 1930s and lasted until the late 1930s or mid-1940s. For more than a decade , America's market economy has failed to operate at a level that allows most Americans to experience economic success. While the Great Depression brought widespread unemployment, a collapse in investment and credit, bank failures, and a widespread reduction in purchases, John Maynard Keynes did well to offer specific solutions to these problems. Specifically, Keynesianism, developed by British economist John Maynard Keynes in the 1930s in an attempt to understand the Great Depression, called for expanded management – Keynes proposed that government manage investments and expectations. As capitalism failed America, Keynesianism offered the hope that no one was able to find in such harsh times. The story of the Great Depression can be told just as simply using statistics: by 1933, the nation's GNP had fallen to barely half its 1929 level. Industrial production fell by more than half and construction of new industrial facilities fell by more than 90%. Auto production fell by two-thirds; steel mills were operating at 12% capacity. Under President Herbert Hoover, more than 13 million Americans lost their jobs. Unemployment peaked at 24.1% in 1933 and did not fall below 14.3% until after World War II. The financial crisis triggered by the Great Wall Street Crash of 1929 caused the disappearance of billions of dollars in assets. Wealthy Americans – who owned almost all the country's stocks at the time – were hit by an 80% decline in the paper and credit sector, bank failures and a reduction in purchases around the world. advice. Few economists at the time saw little hope in this still-desperate and lasting economic downfall; However, John Maynard Keynes ranked among the few to offer an answer to the world's questions. Keynes' theories are sound, legitimate, intelligent and they were, and still are, most certainly viable responses to the Great Depression. Yet while John Maynard Keynes did well to propose specific solutions to these problems, these solutions are apparently more effective in theory than in practice. Works Cited “Chapter 4: The Great Depression and the Keynesian Solution”. Chapter 4: The Great Depression and the Keynesian solution. Np, and Web. April 23, 2014. Shmoop editorial team. “The Economy in the Great Depression.” Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., November 11, 2008. Web. April 22. 2014.