[esum0209]

Hi

"Life did get better for many Americans in the 1930s. How far was Roosevelt responsible for this or was it due to other factors?"

I don't know how to answer this question, can u give me advice? especially what are the other factors

this is a question of my igcse depth study on USA

Thanks

[MrJohnDClare]

This is a really hard question.

It starts off really asking you whether life got better - and you think: well - it's about different groups. Some groups - like middle class workers in modern industries - propsered, and were buying new cars and gadgets and rich. Some groups - black Americans, farmers, workers in old industries - fell behind the average (despite the New Deal).

But then it asks you how far Roosevelt was responsible for this. I know it's aboutthe new Deal, but in asking this, it rather assumes that you have answered the first part 'Yes'.

One possible way to approach this, at GCSE level, would be to merge the two together and answer it all at once as though it were simply a 'how successful was the New Deal' question, like this:

Quote

Section 1: FOR
1. Restored confidence (fireside chats).
2. Ended banking crisis.
3. The ‘Alphabet Agencies’ combated unemployment and homelessness, created jobs, supported business and farming.
4. TVA.
5. Social benefits of the Second New Deal.

Section 2: AGAINST
1. Limited help to Black people and farmers.
2. Unemployment was reduced, but stayed high.
3. The attempt to reduce funding in 1937 failed.
4. America stayed on the Gold Standard, which continued to damage exports.
5. Interest rates stayed high, which held back industry.
6. Needed World War II and Lend-Lease to get the economy going again
7. What about all those 'other factors which Roosevelt didn't affect - inventions, science, 'new industries'.

Jut make sure all the way through you kee mentioning how these made life better or worse, and how much they were or were not down to Roosevelt.

[esum0209]

Thanks very much Mr John DClare, I'll give it a try.

[MrJohnDClare]

This iconic photo from 1937 - by Margaret Bourke-White and called 'At the time of the Louisville Flood' - sums it up.
It shows a poster boasting 'The World's Highest Standard of living', and ahowing a white family enjoying it, whilst poor black queue up to receive charity.

[Princess Amoora]

Studying iGCSE I have come upon the same exact question and it left me in complete confusion when I had to answer it. However to do it properly you have to take the line "life did get better for many Americans in the 1930's" as a statement. They aren't asking you to contradict a known fact as it trully did get better for many Americnas. What they are asking you is HOW FAR Roosevelt himself is responsible for this, or if there are other factors that made life a bit easier for Americans.

So what you have to write in your essay answer is an analysis of the importance of Roosevelt's new deal in improving people's lives in comparison to other unkown factors that you have to find out about and research. You'll have to say what played a bigger role; Roosevelt or these unknown factor (possibly the outbreak of WW2)