New Deal Dbq Analysis

Beginning with President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s inauguration in 1933, the New Deal was passed in the context of reformism and rationalism as the United States proceeded through the Great Depression. The American people looked to the President to instill reform policies to help direct the country out of an economic depression, and thus often sought to abandon the society that existed before the Great Depression. Roosevelt instituted New Deal policies to attempt to combat this period of economic decline, many of which were successful and appealed to the American people’s desires. President Roosevelt’s New Deal is often criticized for being excessively socialistic in nature, thus causing dramatic changes in the fundamental structure of the United

In his New Deal, Roosevelt attempted to revise a number of characteristics of society which he perceived to be the least beneficial and could be easily improved upon. One such feature was the highly uneven distribution of wealth in pre-Depression society. In a radio address, Louisiana governor and U.S. Senator Huey Long outlined a plan to mend the, “bad distribution of this nation’s wealth,” which detailed that, “no family shall own more than three hundred times the average family wealth” while, “every family shall have an income equal to at least one third of the average family income in America.” (Doc E) An extremely liberal opponent of the New Deal, Huey Long insisted that the New Deal propose many radical changes to form a new society in the wake of one that led to an economic depression. As a result of his perspective, Long realized that the New Deal needed to change the structure of the United States to avoid another economic collapse, yet may have held extremist beliefs regarding what should be done. Additionally, the economic changes enacted in the New Deal are evident in Charles Coughlin’s speech to the American public. In his 1936 radio address, Coughlin claims, “Never again will the chains of economic poverty bite.” (Doc F) Coughlin delivered this speech in mid-June of 1936, approximately

On the most concrete level, the New Deal developed a sense of identity for a generation of disillusioned men, transferring the idea of societal functions into a vastly different society than the one that existed before World War I. Robert Miller claims that as a result of working in the CCC, his feet were, “firmly planted on the steps of life.” (Doc G) Miller was enrolled in the CCC during the Great Depression, and thus would be well-acquainted with the effects of New Deal programs on developing a sense of self-identity. As a result of his perspective, Miller felt that he was secure in a life he felt familiar with rather than an uncertain future, suggesting an adherence to the status quo. Additionally, a breakage from the highly successful society of the pre-Depression years was necessary to prevent a revolution in society. In a letter to President Roosevelt, Walter Procter claimed that things were, “bound to reach a breaking point” as human nature “reaches its limits.” (Doc D) The audience of Procter’s letter was President Franklin Roosevelt, who in 1935 was still able to heavily dictate the direction the nation would follow in reform. This is significant because Roosevelt’s New Deal policies were still largely flexible and could easily be tailored to