The Yellow Brick Road Case Study

1001 Words3 Pages

A) Why did the dramatic 23% decrease in the price level (which is a measure of the average price of goods and services in our economy) cause a major inequity in the national economy of the late 19th century?
The dramatic price level decrease in the late 19th century, which is closely related to the “Panic of 1873 and 1893”, caused a major inequity in the national economy. During this depression unemployment skyrocketed, stock prices fell, thousands of businesses, banks, railroads and farms ceased operation, leaving thousands of people poor and on the brink of starvation. This is also a popular time for soup kitchens, prostitution.
B) Who benefitted most from this economic deflation and why? .... Who was hurt most by this deflation …show more content…

The Four main characters journey can be seen as the populist journey to Washington to acquire the power they desire, all thanks to the glowing path of the yellow brink road. In the Story the silver shoes are powerful, just like the populist want the Silver coin to be. The silver shoes carry Dorothy along the yellow brink road (the gold standard) proving it has a lot of worth. The populist movement of “Free silver” can be parallel to Dorothy’s silver slippers and is her way home. She must not loose the slipper, for they man land the hands of the wrong person. In the end, all the characters realized they had what they were missing all along which could mean that they never really needed the slippers all along. The ending scene is shows Dorothy waking up without wearing the slippers. E) Reflecting now on today's current populist movement ... Are there any similarities or differences to that movement of the late 19th century? Explain ... Does today's historic economic inequality need a populist "fix" to redistribute the wealth of our country ... If not, explain why ... If so, explain how that might be accomplished

Show More
Related

  • The PSFS building: Construction in the Midst of Depression

    1468 Words  | 3 Pages

    Schumpter, Joseph A. "The Decade of the Twenties." The American Economic Review 36.2 (1946): 4. Document. 24 October 2013. .

    Read More

  • Brickville Case Study

    436 Words  | 1 Pages

    A strength in the community system is the tight bound that is present within the community. Despite the neighborhood being run-down, the community is described as a close-knit family. Those who are against the development have formed the Brickville Community Benefits Alliance to voice their disapproval of the development. Those for the development have formed the group, Vision Brickville. Despite there being two groups, it shows that the community can unite together to support the causes that they support.

    Read More

  • Movements Throughout History Led by Farmers and the Economy

    733 Words  | 2 Pages

    The populist movement occurred in the late 19th century, formed from the Grangers movement where its goal was ta movement for people, to change the economic system where it would benefit farmers. The grange movement rapidly declined in the 1870s and was replaced by the farmer alliances. The farmer alliances were more political rather then social. The farmer’s alliance later formed the populist. The populist movement is considered to be an agrarian revolt by farmers and those concerned with agriculture, because in the gilded age many people were moving to rural areas where banks and industrial systems were superior over agriculture. The high tariffs, decentralization of currency, and decreasing crop prices were hurting the farmers. Founded by James B Weaver and Tom Watson, they wanted the government to have a stronger control over banking and industries. Populism pursued limited coinage of silver and adjusted income tax so the wealthy would be paying more than the poor. They wanted free coinage of silver because this would eventually help the farmers pay off their debts. Parallel, they wanted the government to have control over railroads, telephone and telegraph systems. They wanted to government to be more in control and involved in the economy and most of all, wanted to stop laissez faire. They aimed for a secret ballot and direct election where the president would only hold office for 1 term. Although they won several seats in congress, the Populist Party never won any presidential elections. The Democrats supported much of the Populists goals. Nevertheless, they voted Democrat William Jennings Bryan for the presidency. His goal of unlimited coinage of silver gained the support of the Populist Party uncovered injustice...

    Read More

  • America in Crisis: The Panic of 1893

    1178 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Panic of 1893 was one of the most grim and profound problems that plagued America at the end of the 19th century. The financial catastrophe began in May of 1893 when two companies – The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad and The Cordage Company declared bankruptcy after failing to fulfill payments on their loans. The joint financial failures of the companies sparked a crash in the stock market. This served as a catalyst for a surge of bank failures because many New York banks were big investors in the Stock Market. The financial disaster began in New York and soon permeated its way throughout the country. Over a six-month period, over 8,000 businesses, 156 railroads, 400 banks failed, and 20% of Americans were unemployed By July of 1893, there was massive unemployment in factories and extensive wage cuts....

    Read More

  • Fsa Photography During the Great Depression

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    The 1920s were a time of leisure and carelessness. The Great War had ended in 1918 and everyone was eager to return to some semblance of normalcy. The end of the war and the horrors and atrocities that it resulted in now faced millions of people. Easily obtainable credit and rapidly rising stock prices prompted many to invest, resulting in big payoffs and newfound wealth for many. However, overproduction and inflated stock prices increased by corrupt industrialists culminat...

    Read More

  • To what Extent the Progressive Movement was Successful

    1284 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the beginning of the twentieth century, the economy was booming, new technology flourished. The rapid industrialization brought achievement to the United States, however, it also caused several social problems. Wealth and power were concentrated in the hands of a few, and poverty and political corruption were widespread. As people became aware of these problems, a new reform group was created. Unlike populism, which had been a group of farmers grown desperate as the economy submerged into depression, the new reform movement arose from the educated middle class. These people were known as the progressives. The Progressive Movement was a movement that aimed at solving political, economic, and social problems. The Progressives were people from the middle class who had confidence that they could achieve social progress through political reform. The Progressives sought after changes and improvements in the society through laws and other federal actions.

    Read More

  • Populist Movement Analysis

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    In all the history of America one thing has been made clear, historians can’t agree on much. It is valid seeing as none of them can travel back in time to actually experience the important events and even distinguish what has value and what doesn’t. Therefore all historians must make a leap and interpret the facts as best they can. The populist movement does not escape this paradox. Two views are widely accepted yet vastly different, the views of Richard Hofstadter and Lawrence Goodwyn. They disagree on whether populists were “isolated and paranoid bigots” or “sophisticated, empathetic egalitarians”; whether their leaders were “opportunists who victimized them” or “visionary economic theorists who liberated them”; whether their beliefs were rooted in the free silver campaign of the 1890s or the cooperative movement of the 1880s; and finally whether their ideal society was in the “agrarian past” or “the promise of a cooperative future”. They could not agree on anything, over all Richard Hofstadter seems to have a better idea of the truth of populism.

    Read More

  • The Populists and Progressives

    1147 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the late 19th and early 20th century both the Populist Party and Progressive movement wanted to preserve some things, while also addressing the need for reform. Although many of the ideas and goals of these “Third parties” were initially not legislated and considered far-fetched, many of these ideas later became fundamental laws throughout American history. The Populists and Progressives were both grass roots movements, and addressed the needs of the poor and powerless, for the Populists it was farmers and for the Progressives it was urban lower and middle class workers. These two movements attempted to bring the powerless peoples issues to national politics. The Populists and Progressives wanted to preserve some American ideals of the past, such as a sense of community and the ability for farmers and workers to live happily without economic strains. Populists were more oriented to the plight of the farmer while the Progressives included women's rights, and protection of the consumer and labor.

    Read More

  • The Great Depression of Canada

    1148 Words  | 3 Pages

    What started these tragic ten years were really the events categorized under ‘economic factors’. The economy went into a downward spiral, first, with the Stock Market Crash of October 29, 1929, nicknamed “Black Tuesday” (PowerPoint). The cause of this was actually many factors all happening within a few months. Many companies went bankrupt from overproduction of goods and started stockpiling them. They assumed the economy will keep rising like it did during the “Roaring Twenties”; but when Europe started to mend from the destruction of the war, the demand for products went down. In addition, on October 29th, the value of the stocks became overpriced, and everyone wanted to sell while they were ahead. The sheer number of stocks on the market lowered their value so much, that the price afterwards was only a fraction of what it was before. However, it was not just the Stock Market Crash that overturned the economy, but the farmers also had trouble coping. In the early 1930’s, a massive drought swept through the prairies and the central US, killing off anything that...

    Read More

  • The Progressive Era

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    With the rise of big business and industrialization came several problems associated with the economic boom. The rich were getting richer. The poor were getting poorer. The gap between the "haves" and the "have nots

    Read More

  • Articles of Confederation

    1227 Words  | 3 Pages

    Discord among states who began taxing each other. This led to an overall slump in the national economy and, eventually, a depression.

    Read More

  • Great Depression Causes And Effects Essay

    1065 Words  | 3 Pages

    Another issue that caused the market to drop has to do with America’s finances. In the 1920’s, stock prices were getting out of hand. Many investors were buying stocks on margin:

    Read More

  • The New Deal Essay

    1634 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the years preceding the stock market crash of 1929, the condition of America’s economy wasn’t anywhere near ideal, but it certainly was not at its worst either—not yet. Also known as “the Roaring Twenties,” this period before the crash brought with it an extreme over dependency on factories and production, especially because the automobile industry exploded in popularity among the opulent class. Also, the distinction between rich and poor was amplified. Poverty was common among 60% of the population, whil...

    Read More

  • New Deal

    788 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although, the growth of business was booming and consumption was extremely high during the 1920’s employers failed to equally distribute the benefits to its industrial workers who got the short end of the stick and did not see any profit from productivity. Since there was no law at the time established on how many hours a person was to work and get paid, employers would overwork and underpay the laborers. This became a major problem because it brought about high unemployment rates, which for laborers, the shortage of jobs meant strong competition among each other for finding and keeping a job, and low wages, which brought down consumption.

    Read More

  • Social Welfare Movement Essay

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    Economic activities in the nineteenth century led to significant changes in United States society. During this time, the US experienced economic growth which was fueled by industrialization. This industrialization, which began in the eighteenth century,

    Read More

More about The Yellow Brick Road Case Study

Open Document