ipl-logo

How Did The Great Depression Affect The Traditional Family

1474 Words6 Pages

KAA UPOL
May 2023
Linda Škodová

How did the Great Depression affect traditional family life in the USA in the 1930s?
This paper presents an argument that the general idea of a family was changed in the aftermath of the Great Depression. The essay is structured into paragraphs with each paragraph presenting supporting evidence for the argument. The data for this paper was collected through secondary sources and newspapers from the era found on online databases. Since each family was affected differently and some not at all, this paper only focuses on the ones who were hit the hardest and therefore their life was significantly changed throughout the era.
First, what we need is to look at how the typical household looked before the Wall Street …show more content…

Despite the huge percentage of unemployed people, the number of women in the workforce rose higher. Women were taking up jobs to support their families when their husbands lost jobs or if they could not afford to support their families anymore. While women in America were able to work before Great Depression , it was still an idea that was not fully supported by the public. If a husband lost his job and the only provider who could now bring money home was a woman, then the traditional family type is completely turned upside down. Since this situation was probably happening in a lot of households throughout the United States, the typical gender role in the family was significantly changed and therefore changing the concept of a family …show more content…

The typical American family has a nice house with a big garden, which is something entirely impossible during the Great Depression. It was already mentioned that people everywhere in the USA were losing their jobs and since many of them could not afford to pay their bills the only possible outcome was to lose their homes. Family either being homeless or moving across the country goes directly against the stability of families that America was proud to have before.
A major change in the well-being of the family is also mentioned in a book by historian Harvey Green. He mentions that the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash also saw a rise in domestic abuse percentage. Since the families were mostly struggling to survive, this proved a huge strain on the psyche of the population. That is not to say that domestic abuse never existed before or after this period, but only that this era saw a massive rise in this because of the situation in the country. Men at home who could not find work or who could not bring home enough money were taking out their frustrations on

Show More
Related
768 Words | 4 Pages

Great Depression DBQ Write Your Essay Here: (Be sure to BOLD your document #’s and highlight outside information) After the stock market crash of 1929, America went into a severe financial crisis known as the Great Depression. During this Great Depression, about 75% percent of American Families lived in poverty, and 25% of people lost their jobs and became unemployed. During this time, many banks went out of business too because people demanded their money back due to the Stock Market Crash. This caused a huge economic banking emergency.

Read More
807 Words | 4 Pages

The people living through the Great Depression’s toughest challenge was finding a job to help provide for their families survive the harsh demands of the business world. Industrial companies were in decline and the stock market crashed. Their struggles only persisted and hope for new opportunities were

Read More
1279 Words | 6 Pages

The Great Depression was a devastating period in United States History, the economy collapsed, and a staggering 25% of the population was unemployed. During this time, there were large wage disparity gaps that were very prevalent, there was no middle class, you were either wealthy or you were poor. It was hard for family life to continue, parents had to take up two and three jobs to make sure their kids were staying safe, and well. Most of these jobs were odd-jobs, and were temporary with no sense of security. It was a struggle to find work, and no job was too demeaning for you to do, because you may not find work again.

Read More
1280 Words | 6 Pages

Americans believed in family unity and traditional values. Families would spend time together by listening to the radio and playing games. Families would work together to help each other out as much as possible. Money was tight, and this put pressure on many families. Due to the increased daily pressures and struggles, families broke apart under the stress of the Great Depression.

Read More
461 Words | 2 Pages

The Great Depression was a huge tragedy that took millions of people in the U.S. out of work. It was the biggest economic fall in America's history. The story “Digging In” by Robert J. Hastings, the video “Growing up in the Great Depression”, and the poem “Debts” by Karen Hesse showed the problems people encountered during the Great Depression. It affected people negatively by making the prices raise and people made less money so it was hard for them to pay their rent or bills. Also, many people were unemployed and did not have enough money to get food.

Read More
625 Words | 3 Pages

When people buy something, they usually focus on what they want rather than what they need. In the 1920’s, people were more focused on luxuries than necessities. Soon after many purchases were made on credit, money and jobs weren’t as easy to come by anymore. This time span of over 10 years was known as the Great Depression, and its effect on the hardworking people of America was unforgettable.

Read More
675 Words | 3 Pages

Christian Stagliola Mod: F. History 1/12/23 5.4 Essay Rough Draft The Great Depression of the 1930s was a significant economic and social crisis that greatly affected the American people and the government. Millions of Americans lost their jobs and savings and were forced to rely on charity or government aid to survive.

Read More
1502 Words | 7 Pages

The Great Depression was one of the most devastating economic crises in the history of the United States. It began in 1929 after the stock market crashed, setting off an economic spiral. Lasting for a decade it caused widespread unemployment, poverty, and social unrest. The economic collapse had devastating effects that had impacted everyday American life, including individual families, to the national economy, and even the government. During this period of time the American people faced a range of challenges including, unemployment, homelessness, starvation, and social inequality.

Read More
2024 Words | 9 Pages

During the great depression, the United States faced one of the hardest economic crises the nation has ever seen. Before this, the economy was rapidly expanding, and people all over the country were investing in the stock market. However this was not sustainable, by 1929 many investors had seen the stock market to be overvalued leading them to mass sell their shares (History.com). This resulted in an economic collapse that affected millions of Americans. First, it puts a halt to the workforce causing many people to be unemployed, and unable to put food on the table, people even lose their homes and life savings.

Read More
1742 Words | 7 Pages

The Hard Times which took place in the United States not only affected the stock market itself and the banking system but it also left its mark on the day to day lives of Americans. During the Great Depression, middle-class Americans were drastically affected in several ways. Families from different ethnic, religious, regional backgrounds reacted to the depression in various manners. In 1933, the average household income dropped to $1500 which is 40 percent less than that in 1929 family income of $2300.

Read More
992 Words | 4 Pages

In what ways did the Great Depression affect the American people? After a decade of economic prosperity, what seemed like an era that defined the concept of the American dream, quickly came to an end when the stock market on Wall Street collapsed in 1929. The aftermath of the events that occurred on Wall Street would put its heavy mark on the years to follow among the citizens of the United States. Banks closed down, unemployment rose and homelessness increased. It was a widespread national catastrophe that had its impacts on both poor and rich.

Read More
644 Words | 3 Pages

This significantly impacted both children and parents, as they were forced to give up their homes and live in shelters or on the streets. The Great Depression had a lasting impact on family life in the United States. The Great Depression was a dark time for many, including those affected both directly and indirectly. It was a time of suffering for those who lost their homes, businesses, and livelihoods.

Read More
526 Words | 3 Pages

Extreme poverty was really big during the Great Depression. During the time, there weren't many nice houses like everyone would want to live in. In the second and fifth picture, it illustrates what people had to call "home". Many houses were taken away from them during the Great Depression and was never given back to them. Most of the houses that the people lived in after the Great Depession weren't safe at all.

Read More
726 Words | 3 Pages

The majority of people made under 2,000 dollars a year (Document 9) which was considered the bare minimum to live off of, the buy all of the basic essentials. These people didn’t have any money to spend on luxury items and couldn’t buy on credit. During this time, some companies priced their goods at a higher price than the majority of people made in a year, like boats that were priced anywhere from 10,000 dollars to 35,000 dollars (Document 8). With nobody to buy from them, these businesses were left without a profit and began going bankrupt. An average family before the depression with two people working full time jobs only made around twenty dollars a week (Document 7).

Read More
1136 Words | 5 Pages

The Great Depression was a challenging time for the American economy, society, and its citizens. In the early 1930s, the stock market crashed, leading to mass unemployment, poverty, and hardship. During this time, women faced particular challenges in the workforce, as they were often seen as secondary earners and excluded from many of the better-paying jobs. As a result of the economic crisis, many women were forced to find work outside of the home to help support their families.

Read More

More about How Did The Great Depression Affect The Traditional Family

Related Topics

Open Document