A Global Collapse

Drawing on statistics, stories, and the voices of those who lived through the Great Depression, this chapter paints a picture of life during the 1930s. It illuminates some of the underlying causes of this economic disaster and describes the transition in America from a decade of relative prosperity to one of substantial austerity. It then provides a global perspective on the Depression before funneling down to an examination of how it unfolded nationally and regionally in the US, with sensitivity to the differing experiences of rural versus urban Americans. With an eye toward the grassroots mobilization that accorded ordinary people some measure of agency, the chapter reveals the extensive activism that ultimately led to dynamic political change after 1933. Finally, it considers the ways in which the administration of President Herbert Hoover responded in the first years of this economic collapse.