"Era of Prosperity" USA (1920s). Features of American life
" or " ».This decade was characterized not only as an era of jazz, an era of industrial revolution and unprecedented prosperity, it was a time of an unprecedented rise in crime caused by "dry law". In those years, probably every vagabond dreamed of becoming a millionaire - and some really did.
Along with this, this is the heyday of gang wars in America. This is the time of Al Capone and Lucky Luciano, it was then that many clans known to this day were created and the foundations of the modern American mafia were laid.
Atlantic City, New York or Chicago are huge cities where millionaires, members of noble families from Europe, eminent industrialists from all over the world come to rest. Young boys and girls thirsting for wealth and fame flock here like moths to the light, emigrants settle here in poor quarters, waiting in the wings when they can move to the central streets, to the splendor and luxury of prestigious quarters, or make a fortune without missing your luck. Young people filled nightclubs and dance halls. As a result of the fact that during the war many girls and women had to replace men in their workplaces, a large number of working independent and emancipated women appeared. The "era of women" began. Perhaps it is difficult to find another such historical period in which, in such a short time period, such changes have occurred in the appearance of women and in the style of their behavior. The process of change was aggravated by the First World War, after which there were fewer men, which means that women had to attract attention to themselves in more explicit ways.
After the First World War, there was a kind of hangover: people who survived the horrors of tank attacks and gas attacks, who lost their relatives, willingly forgot about the hardships of the war and plunged into a beautiful fairy tale. The glittering and glamorous age of jazz has been a time of re-emergence for America in everything from economics to fashion.
The most influential fashion designers at this time were, begins to work.
Such personalities as the Duke of Windsor and actors Ronald Colman and Rudolph Valentino had a great influence on men's fashion of this time.
The luxurious and elegant Art Deco style reigned in fashion. In Europe and the States, this edgy style has managed to become truly total, covering everything from architecture to accessories. At the same time, the new fashion was not sugary. On the contrary: geometric lines marked the end of feminine modernity. Outwardly homogeneous, Art Deco has absorbed many directions: elements of oriental and African cultures, antique and Renaissance motifs, French court style of the 18th century.
Flowing, beaded dresses entered women's fashion. Some dresses were emphatically feminine: marshmallow and airy, like Madeleine Vionne's outfits - flying translucent robes made of silk muslin. Or the toilets designed by Jeanne Lanvin, whose trademark was the bell skirt. However, the era already demanded something else - functionality. This mood was subtly captured by Coco Chanel. There are several dresses on display - black, modestly decorated, but tasteful.
The changed rhythm of life, further penetration into the daily life of the car, telephone, gramophone, new socio-economic conditions blurred the line not only between classes, but also between genders. The style of "unisex" is in vogue, however, at that time it was called "la garconne" (after the novel by V. Margueritt, extremely popular in the 20s). Now a modern girl drove a car, smoked, played tennis and golf, painted her lips and eyes brightly, wore a short haircut, and danced at night in fashionable clubs. Fashionistas wore loose clothing and short skirts (and the most desperate wore men's suits), which should emphasize the angularity of the boyish figure.
In the 1920s, women, as part of emancipation, learned to smoke in public and correct their makeup. It is no wonder that lighters and minaudiers have turned into luxurious trinkets that you are not ashamed to get out of your purse.
After the end of the First World War, people realized that the heavy outfits of the Victorian era were too uncomfortable. Then short skirts came into fashion, which caused a real sexual revolution - women were finally allowed to appear in decent society half-naked. The changes that began in the 20th year by 1923 moved the waist to the place of the hips, replaced lush hairstyles with short ones, shortened the length of dresses and introduced a fashion for bright makeup, which was previously familiar to prostitutes and music-hall artists, which was often the same. This fashion even touched respectable elderly ladies, only in a more relaxed version.
During these years, the woman not only showed her legs, she opened the heel! Earlier, ladies, going out, did not even think about this.
The Roaring Twenties created a new type of women - playwomen. They began to be called flappers, or "crackers". She is beautiful, full of "aplomb and independence", passionate about sports, adore cars and crowded parties, where, like true flappers, they enjoy dancing to the rhythms of jazz with a glass of expensive champagne. Many of these ladies belong to high society, but choose a more daring progressive lifestyle and clothing - bright dramatic makeup and burgundy manicure, seductively tight-fitting outfits that slide over a flexible stately figure, and shamelessly deep cleavage.
The ideal of feminine beauty has undergone dramatic changes compared to previous eras. Now, the boyish figure is in vogue, with a flat chest, narrow hips and long legs. Clothes of this period were supposed to hide curvaceous forms.
Those ladies who did not have a fragile physique were required to wear corrective corsets and gracefulness that flattened the bust and hips. Girls with a slender figure were limited to a bra and a belt for stockings. Under short skirts, they wore "directory" pantaloons with an elastic band at the knee or "French" loose fit. A knee-length undershirt with straps or a short vest-like shirt was worn under the dresses.
In the early 1920s, skirts remained rather short, just like during the war. But later, the couturier lengthened the skirts. The longest hems of the skirts and the dress reached the ankles. Baggy calf-length dresses, which were tied at the hips with a belt or scarf, were in fashion. The upper part of the dress fell on the low waist in the form of a blouson or jumper. The bodice of the dress was loose, the skirt of the dress was sewn straight or with folds, it could be pleated, the neckline could be round, square or V-shaped. A flat collar lay on the stretch and imitated a scarf. The sleeves of the dress were usually sewn long or ¾, with cuffs. Thanks to Coco Chanel, business and practical dresses and knitted suits appear.
Evening dresses were sleeveless or strappy, with a deep neckline in the front and back. By the end of the 20s, evening dresses began to have a long train, side panels or an uneven edge. Transparent chiffon draperies were worn over the dresses.
The cut of jackets in the early 20s was slightly tight, later straight, single-breasted or double-breasted, with narrow set-in sleeves. By the end of the decade, three-piece suits with coats began to be found. Pants are coming into fashion.
The woman-boy style was also emphasized by the hairstyle. Long curls were out of fashion. Short hair, curls, slightly covering the ears, side-pies - such hairstyles required small hats. The hats looked like a pot or bucket and were tightly pulled over the head. They were decorated with flowers and ribbons. The universal hat of this decade was the cloche hat, which covered the entire head and ears.
Ladies wore pointed shoes with a deep cut made of thin leather and a membrane, with a stable heel, with straps and clasps so that they would not fall off during the performance of Charleston or Foxtrot, lace-up shoes, boots. In the 1920s, flesh-colored stockings appeared, evening stockings intertwined with gold and silver sequins.
Decorations begin to play an important role in the composition of the costume. Jewelry ceases to be jewelry: brooches, necklaces made of artificial materials; artificial flowers on hats and dresses. Long strands of pearls and rock crystal, brooches and hairpins, wide bracelets, large earrings in geometric, Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles became the favorite jewelry of the 20s. Squeak of evening fashion jewelry - diadem.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the passion for sports has led to the fact that there is a need for special sportswear and many couturiers are starting to create sports collections.
The men's suit was divided into formal and informal. The men's suit consisted of a shirt, vest, trousers, jacket, tie, hat, shoes. Unofficial suits were worn on vacation, during sports or hunting. For official events, a tuxedo was still chosen, now it was double-breasted, had four buttons and patch pockets with a welt on the upper cut on the hips. The most common fabric for a men's suit was tweed. Flannel was another popular fabric of the era.
Jackets in the 20s were single and double-breasted. Sports jackets were usually single-breasted, and business suits were double-breasted. The jacket had a fitted silhouette and narrow shoulders, it was loose in the chest and tight at the hips.
The shirts had removable, rigidly starched collars. These collars were always white, even if the shirt was colored. The collar of the shirt was fastened with a tie pin, which kept the tie from shifting. Ties came in a variety of colors, but the diagonal stripe was a popular design.
The back of the vest was silk or lining, and the front was the same fabric as the entire suit. A strap with a buckle was sewn on the back to fit the figure. During sports, it was much more comfortable to wear knitted vests. At this time, jumpers are gaining popularity, which have become part of men's sportswear.
Pants in the 1920s began to be sewn much wider than in the previous decade. The trousers had an ironed arrowhead and pintucks in the belt. To play golf, wide breeches began to be worn, and then golf pants, which had a wide slouch at the shins.
A sports suit was complemented by a cap, business suits were complemented by felt and tweed hats.
After the First World War, shoes became the main type of men's footwear. And the most popular model of men's shoes were "Oxfords", no less popular were "derby", "beef roll", "barcroft". Patent shoes were worn with the tuxedo.
Bright socks with a pattern were worn with breeches and golf pants, with business suits, socks in dark colors were worn, they could be silk or cotton.
The fashion of the “roaring 20s” made people feel always young and carefree. But this decade of unbridled fun flew by very quickly, it was replaced by the Great Depression, which equalized everyone.
Toilets embroidered with gold were replaced by more strict outfits. The brilliance of diamonds has faded, Art Deco is a thing of the past forever.
The twentieth century began for the United States of America with an extraordinary rise and accelerated (not without the help of immigrants from all continents) population growth. The rapid economic and social development allowed America to become one of the most powerful states at that time. This success became possible, first of all, thanks to the victory of the North, tuned in to capitalism in the Civil War, which ended in the second half of the 19th century. The rich reserves of minerals, in particular, coal and oil, also contributed to the rapid economic recovery, which allowed the country to remain independent.
Following the assassination of President William McKinley in September 1901, Theodore Roosevelt (then Vice President) took over in leadership. His rise to power is often called the launching point of the second wave of the progressive era.
The era of progressivism
Roosevelt's rise to power was sudden both for society and for himself. The politician who was not inclined to carry out tough reforms was plunged headlong into the maelstrom of events, forcing him to act quickly and find effective solutions to problems. During his first reign, he was able to attract people with his "theory of service" and active fight against corruption. Therefore, during the election campaign in 1904, he easily bypassed a competitor with a margin of almost three thousand votes.
The second four-year term in the presidential chair has become even more productive. By reforming and introducing new laws, Roosevelt was able to maintain neutrality and command respect even among members of Congress and adherents of conservatism.
Tourism developed at a very good pace, new resorts and sanatoriums were opened, and clubs of those who fell in love with this new sport were opening on the shores for kitesurfing fans. But then there were no places like kitebay.ru where you could buy everything for kitesurfing, and athletes had to be content with imperfect equipment.
However, a disillusionment with political progressivism was rooted in society, and more and more often the assertion was made about the possibility of dealing with inequality only after cardinal transformations in the economy and in the social sphere.
In 1909, Theodore Roosevelt resigned and handed over the rule of the country to his Secretary of War, William Taft. The latter tried to continue Roosevelt's antitrust campaign and, under a hail of criticism, successfully introduced two amendments to the Constitution.
In 1913, Wilson Woodrow came to power with the New Freedom policy. The most famous and significant actions of Woodrow for the further history of the United States.
1913 - lower tariffs and the introduction of a tax on corporate and personal income (Underwood-Simons Act) in the same year introduced the law on the Federal Reserve System, which brought order to the banking system, stability in the economy by allowing the government to control lending and monetary emission two antitrust Law in 1914, due to the fight against child labor in 1916, the Keating-Owen Law was issued, prohibiting the transportation of goods created by children, outside the state, the same year was marked by the adoption of laws that significantly improve the lives of farmers, sailors, railroad workers.
Throughout most of his government, Woodrow kept the United States from interfering in the flaring up World War I. The president's peaceful policy drew a storm of criticism from the Republicans led by Roosevelt, which, however, did not prevent him from taking the presidency for a second term.
USA in World War I
Through government efforts until 1917, the United States remained neutral while sympathetic to Western European policies. Wilson Woodrow tried to mediate and achieve a truce, but failed. The second attempt to achieve peace between countries (of course, with the benefit of America) was the decision to help defeat the German troops. In 1917, more than a million men were drafted, and already in the early spring of 1918, American troops fought against the Germans.
Thanks to Wilson, in addition to what was happening on the battlefield, the state of the economy was also controlled. Laws passed in 1917–1918 helped control railways, food (particularly wheat prices), fuel, and other vital areas. The United States provided assistance not only with food and the army, but also gave the allies huge loans, the total amount of which reached $ 25 million.
Woodrow Wilson did not abandon the idea of \u200b\u200ba peaceful end to the war and at the beginning of 1918 he presented a program declaring the goals of the United States in hostilities. A few months later, several countries of Central Europe turned to him in peace, and in November of the same year Germany also agreed to conclude a peace according to his rules.
Development of culture
The first decade of the 20th century in the United States is dominated by the philosophy of pragmatism. Its founder was Charles Sanders Pierce, and the term itself is translated from Greek as "deed, action." His first works devoted to the philosophical trend date back to the 70s of the 19th century, but society began to show interest in them only at the beginning of the 20th century. The philosophy of pragmatism, which evaluates a person by his actions, perfectly describes the aspirations and values \u200b\u200bof Americans. A decade later, two ramifications of realism appear on the scene - neorealism and critical realism.
The first half of the 20th century, despite the First World War, turned out to be a favorable time for the development of literature. This period gave the world such names as Ernest Hemingway, Francis Scott Fitzgerald, Eugene O'Neill and William Faulkner. Thanks to their works, American literature gained fame and popularity in European countries.
During the "Great Depression" on the New York Stock Exchange, the book of John Reed "Ten Days That Shook the World" is of extraordinary interest to Americans. Life in peasant Russia seems so rosy that hundreds of Americans are striving to cross the ocean in search of a better life.
An important place in the culture of the United States of the early 20th century is occupied by cinematography - at that time there were already several dozen film companies in the country. This period gave the world names that are not forgotten to this day - Alfred Hitchcock and Walt Disney, who released their first cartoon "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" in 1937. Disney's brainchild not only proved that animation has a bright future, but also became the highest-grossing film of the first half of the 20th century.
The explosive development of American music begins in the 1920s - the so-called "Roaring Twenties". New Orleans, the cradle of jazz and musicals, is becoming one of the centers of musical art.
As for the visual arts, the primitivism of self-taught artists flourishes here. Under the influence of European artists, expressionism takes root and quickly "flourishes".
The twentieth century in the minds of many people went down in history as the "American century". But the attitude to the country that gave the name of the twentieth century is ambiguous throughout the world, just as the American historical experience itself is contradictory and ambiguous. An example of extremes and contradictions is the perception of the United States by modern Russian society. However, this was not always the case: 15 years ago, our attitude to America was very homogeneous and sharply critical.
Already in the first half of the twentieth century, you can see a lot of evidence of that very "American century". By the beginning of the last century, the economy and new technologies were developing at a rapid pace in the United States. The country has entered the stage of "organized capitalism". In no European country were monopolies as powerful as in the United States. An impressive rationalization of the American economy is under way. New ways of driving such as Fordism are developing. The crisis of 1929-1933 ensued, which shook not only the national economy of the United States, but also the economies of the whole world. And finally, the "New Deal" by F. Roosevelt, which was the key one in bringing the United States out of the crisis.
It is these points that I am going to consider in more detail in my essay - the rationalization of the American economy, Fordism, the crisis of 1929-1933, F. Roosevelt's "new course".
Rationalizing the American Economy
In 1924, the United States of America, like other countries of the capitalist world, entered a period of temporary partial stabilization of capitalism. The most important signs of this period were economic growth, the growth of industrial production and trade, the technical re-equipment of enterprises, the strengthening of the power of the bourgeoisie, and the weakening of the workers' and democratic movement. In the USA, all the main manifestations of partial capitalist stabilization have manifested themselves with much greater force and clarity than in the countries of Western Europe. First of all, the United States managed to overcome the economic shocks caused by the consequences of the First World War and the crisis of 1920-1921 much faster. Already at the end of 1922, having reached the pre-crisis level of industrial production, they entered a period of industrial growth, while England, France and Germany achieved relative stabilization of the economy only in 1924.
The economic recovery in the United States lasted almost seven years, until mid-1929, and was quite significant: the total volume of industrial production in the United States in 1929 exceeded the level of the pre-crisis 1920 by 32%. True, the progressive development of the American economy during the period of capitalist stabilization in the 1920s was not permanent. Twice, in 1924 and 1927. it was interrupted by partial decays. But they were both short-lived and relatively shallow, and each time the US economic recovery resumed with renewed vigor.
The intensive industrial upsurge in the United States in the 1920s was explained by the tremendous strengthening of American imperialism during the World War, and the promotion of this country to the ranks of the strongest capitalist powers. The transformation of the United States into the center of the financial exploitation of the world allowed the monopoly bourgeoisie to extract huge profits. From 1923 to 1929, inclusive, the net profits of the American monopolies totaled $ 50.4 billion, that is, 1.5 times more than during the First World War.
With enormous resources at their disposal, the American monopolies carried out a massive renewal of fixed capital, equipped enterprises with the latest technology, and built new plants and factories. On this basis, a major step was taken in the development of the most important branches of heavy industry. For 1923-1929 steel smelting in the United States increased from 49 million to 61.7 million tons, oil production - from 732 million to 1007 million barrels, and electricity production - from 71.4 billion to 116.7 billion kWh. On the whole, compared with the pre-war level, industrial production in the United States increased by 72% by the end of the 1920s. The rapid rates of economic development of the country during the years of relative capitalist stabilization gave the monopoly bourgeoisie of the United States enormous advantages over the bourgeoisie of other countries. It is known that the British economy experienced a clear stagnation in the 1920s, France lagged behind the United States in terms of economic growth, and Germany was just embarking on the path of accelerated recovery of its economic potential, sharply weakened by its defeat in the First World War. The particularly favorable position then created for the United States led to a sharp increase in their share in the world economy. By the end of the 1920s, the United States provided 48% of the industrial production of the capitalist world. They produced industrial products 10% more than Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan combined.
New branches of industry developed especially rapidly, equipped with the latest science and technology. The most striking example was the explosive growth of the automotive industry. Large car factories were built in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century. But it was not until the 1920s that the American auto industry truly stepped onto the rails of mass production. In 1929, the production of cars in the country increased to 5337 thousand, which was about 11 times higher than the pre-war level. The production capacities of the automotive industry in the late 1920s made it possible to increase production output even more: in the spring of 1929, on some days, up to 25 thousand cars rolled off the conveyors of American automobile plants.
The result of this unusually high rate of development in the automotive industry was the rapid penetration of the automobile into American life. By the end of the 1920s, a total of 26.7 million vehicles were in service in the United States, including 23.1 million passenger cars. This was much more than any other country in the world. Mass production and the gradual reduction in the cost of the car contributed to its spread among fairly wide layers of the population: in 1929, there were 189 passenger cars per thousand US residents. The car became a true symbol of American "prosperity" in the 1920s.
The development of the automotive industry in the United States was primarily associated with the name of Henry Ford, a major designer and organizer who became in the XX century. the owner of one of the giant automobile "empires". In 1908, the production of the famous "Model T" began at the Ford factories, which then became widely known all over the world under the name "Ford". For 20 years, from 1908 to 1927, about 15 million cars of this brand were produced, after which the Ford factories were transferred to the production of another, more comfortable model. In the 1920s, the mass production of cars, in addition to the Ford company, was started by two more large firms - General Motors and Chrysler.
In 1929, the "big three" accounted for 83% of all automobile production in the United States. The rapid increase in output at Ford factories, and then at other firms, was achieved through increased rationalization of production. It included, on the one hand, the technical re-equipment of enterprises, an increase in their power-to-weight ratio, extensive mechanization of production processes, and on the other hand, the introduction of standardization, the mass production of standard parts and their subsequent high-speed assembly on conveyor lines. The increase in productivity, and even more in the intensity of labor, ensured a significant increase in output per worker. In 1923-1929. it grew by an average of 43%. This allowed the capitalists to reduce the number of workers, to leave only the strongest and hardiest on the conveyor lines, to pay them for more productive and, most importantly, much more intensive work, slightly increased wages and still have savings due to a sharp reduction in the total number of employees. Thus, the capitalist rationalization of production intensified the exploitation of some workers and threw others out on the street. In both cases, it somehow turned against the proletariat.
Other new branches of American industry developed just as rapidly: electrical, chemical, synthetic materials, radio. The growth in power supply and the introduction of new technology created the basis for a significant increase in production in some other sectors of the economy. In the late 1920s, about 70% of factory machine tools were electrified in the United States. As in the automotive industry, high rates of production growth in a number of branches of heavy industry during the years of capitalist stabilization were largely ensured by the intensified intensification of workers' labor.
During the years of partial capitalist stabilization, the process of urbanization and industrialization in the United States accelerated even more. The total population of the country for 1920-1930, according to the official data of the 14th and 15th qualifications, increased from 105.7 million to 122.8 million, i.e. by 16%. At the same time, the urban population increased over 10 years from 54.2 million to 69 million (by 27%), while the growth of the rural population was immeasurably slower: the number of rural residents increased from 51.5 million to 53.8 million, that is, only 4.5%. As a result of such a sharp discrepancy in the growth rate, the share of the urban population in 1920-1930. increased from 51.3 to 56.2%, while the share of the rural population decreased from 48.7 to 43.8%.
The population of the most important industrial regions grew with particular speed. Every year, the number of large urban agglomerations increased, including large cities, the surrounding suburbs and satellite cities that practically merged with them. Already in 1920, the United States had 58 such vast urbanized areas, in which about 36 million people lived, that is, a third of the country's population. By 1930, the number of these large urban agglomerations reached 97, and their total population increased to 55 million, already making up about 45% of the US population.
The ever-increasing level of urbanization and industrialization in the United States during the 1920s was reflected in the changing structure of the country's labor force. Its total number increased in 1920-1930. from 42.2 million to 48.7 million. This growth was primarily due to the rapid increase in the number of workers employed in industry, construction and transport (from 17 million to 19.3 million), as well as the number of people employed in trade, financial institutions and the service sector (from 8 , 8 million to 14 million), while the number of the self-employed agricultural population declined (from 11.1 million to 10.5 million).
Manipulating data on the economic growth in the United States, bourgeois propaganda, inspired by official Washington, vigorously disseminated the thesis about the strength and inviolability of stabilization. In December 1925, President Coolidge's annual State of the Union Address to Congress proclaimed that America had entered "an era of long-lasting shared prosperity." Praise in honor of "prosperity" reached its climax in the late 1920s. Prominent figures of both parties, especially the leaders of the ruling Republican Party, in every way repeated about the onset of "eternal prosperity", about the "elimination of crises", about success in "eradicating poverty." In August 1928, in one of his election speeches, H. Hoover solemnly announced: “America is now closer to complete victory over poverty than ever in the history of any country in the world ... We have not yet achieved this goal, but if we have the opportunity to continue the same policy that has been pursued over the past eight years, we, with God's help, will soon bring closer the day when poverty will be forever expelled from our country. "
In the eyes of a superficial observer, the picture of the economic situation in the United States by the end of the 1920s was very optimistic. The industrial boom resulted in a new increase in the US national income. For 1923-1929 it increased from $ 74.3 billion to $ 86.8 billion, that is, by 17%. But its distribution was extremely uneven. The lion's share was appropriated by a small handful of monopolists. In 1929, the big bourgeoisie, which was only about 1%) of the amateur population of the United States, accounted for 14.5%) of the country's national income. 513 millionaires earned income equal to the total annual wages of 1 million workers. But still, something fell to the lot of the petty bourgeoisie and the upper strata of the working class. The increase in income and the widespread distribution of the installment system created quite significant opportunities for these groups of the population to purchase, sometimes in cash, and more often on credit, cars, radios, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, washing machines and other household appliances.
The twenties were also marked by tremendous growth in share prices. In five years, from December 1924 to October 1929, shares listed on the New York Stock Exchange increased in value from $ 27 billion to $ 87 billion, that is, more than threefold. It is not surprising that by the end of the 1920s a real stock exchange orgy began in the country. It attracted millions of Americans who used their savings to buy securities, hoping that the non-stop growth in the value of shares in the conditions of "eternal prosperity" would make them rich.
The leaders of the US business world sought to bolster these illusory hopes with their authority. Thus, the chairman of the financial committee of General Motors, J. Raskob, in 1929 quite seriously argued that if every worker and employee saved $ 15 a week and regularly purchased the most solid shares with these funds, then in 20 years he will have a capital of 80 thousand dollars. "In my opinion, - concluded J. Raskob, - in our country, everyone not only can, but also must become rich." Many ordinary Americans, hypnotized by this prospect of easy enrichment, were inclined to believe everything that was said during those years about the "bright future" of American capitalism. But the situation in the country did not at all confirm these optimistic forecasts. The stabilization of capitalism in the United States, as well as in other capitalist countries, took place under conditions of a general crisis of capitalism and therefore was temporary, partial and fragile. This was evidenced primarily by the extreme unevenness of the development of various industries. With the rapid growth of a number of new branches of heavy industry, there was a stagnation, and sometimes even a drop in production in such traditional sectors of the economy as coal mining, shipbuilding and most light industries.
The growth of industrial production in the industries that made basic necessities (textiles, footwear, food, etc.), even in the best years of "prosperity" was only slightly higher than population growth. In the second half of the 1920s, there was a significant reduction in housing construction. The situation in the coal mining industry was even more unfavorable. In 1923-1929. coal production in the United States fell from 658 million to 609 million tons, i.e. by 8%, and the number of workers employed in coal mines fell from 864 thousand to 654 thousand, or 23%. But the most alarming symptom that emerged by the end of the 1920s was a reduction in the scale of renewal of fixed capital. If in 1924 expenditures on new capital construction accounted for 76% of all private capital investments, then by 1929 their share had dropped to 35%. All this meant that in many traditional industries in the United States, especially in those that were directly related to consumer demand, the signs of overproduction showed up much earlier and more intensively than in the rapidly progressing new areas of the economy.
The constant underutilization of the production apparatus and chronic mass unemployment were also important indicators of the fragility of the capitalist stabilization of the 1920s. Even at the end of the 1920s, in the most favorable period of "prosperity", the production capacity of the industry was generally loaded by about 80%, and in a number of industries the underload of the production apparatus reached 25-30%. The number of unemployed in the United States, according to the most conservative estimates, fluctuated during 1924-1929. from 1.5 to 2 million
Finally, a sign of the fragility of capitalist stabilization in the United States was the disadvantage of agriculture. After the First World War, it entered a new stage in its capitalist evolution, prepared by the rapid growth of agricultural production in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. as a result of the victory of the farming path of development of capitalism in US agriculture. The final completion of the long period of distribution of homesteads at the expense of the lands of the state fund, the complete depletion of the resources of the "free" lands of the West, suitable for settlement and cultivation - all this contributed to the fact that from extensive forms of capitalist agriculture, American farming began to move to intensive methods of farming, to the use of machines, artificial fertilizers, the latest agricultural techniques. Already in 1920, 246 thousand tractors and 4 thousand combines were used in US agriculture. The development of capitalism in breadth, which for a long time was a characteristic feature of the evolution of American agriculture, was replaced by the development of capitalism in depth.
However, the agrarian crisis, which began in 1920 and was not overcome during the entire period of the 1920s, for a long time disrupted the normal conditions of reproduction in agriculture. True, the most acute phase of the agrarian crisis, characteristic of 1920-1923, was replaced in 1924-1928. its somewhat relaxed phase. But even then, neither agricultural prices nor farm incomes reached pre-crisis levels. During the second half of the 1920s, the gross income of American farming remained at the level of $ 13-14 billion, whereas in 1919, before the onset of a long agrarian crisis, it was $ 17.9 billion.
The fall in prices has had the hardest impact on the situation of small and medium-sized farmers, whose economy has become chronically unprofitable. Therefore, the ruin and ousting of small-scale production in agriculture proceeded during the period of partial capitalist stabilization at an unprecedented speed. Only for 1925-1929. 547 thousand farms (8.7% of the total) were forcibly sold under the hammer for non-payment of debts and taxes. The flight of farmers to the cities took on enormous proportions in the 1920s. Since the American industry was experiencing a significant recovery at that time, some of the settlers managed to get jobs. However, most of them have never found employment. So many, having exhausted their meager funds, were forced to return back. However, the flight of farmers to the cities took place at a faster rate than their return to rural areas, as a result of which the net loss of the US farm population was in 1920-1930. 6.3 million people. The ruin of small and medium-sized farming then proceeded so quickly that by the end of the 1920s, for the first time in the history of the United States, the next census recorded an absolute decrease in the total farming population (from 32 million in 1920 to 30.5 million in 1930). and the number of farms in the country (respectively from 6448 thousand to 6289 thousand).
The agrarian crisis also significantly worsened the position of the capitalist strata of farming. The sharp drop in prices has reduced the profitability of their farm. The need to adapt to the unfavorable conditions of the agricultural market required a sharp reduction in the cost of production through a radical technical re-equipment of agriculture. But this was available only to relatively few groups of the farming bourgeoisie. By the end of the 1920s, 920 thousand tractors and 61 thousand combines were already used in US agriculture, which indicated a significant increase in its technical equipment, however, according to agricultural statistics, only 13.5% of farms were equipped at that time tractors and only about 1% - combines.
The process of industrialization of US agriculture, which began in the 1920s, and its transition from the manufacturing stage to the stage of machine production, took place in much less favorable conditions than in industry. The general historical backwardness of agriculture, which became even more aggravated with the entry of the country into the era of imperialism, the new intensification of the exploitation of farming by monopolies - all this led to an unusually deep and protracted nature of the crisis of overproduction in agriculture. Under the conditions of the agrarian crisis, the oppression of finance capital fell on the shoulders of small and medium-sized farmers with a particularly heavy burden. But the domination of the monopolies had a tangible effect on the position of the agricultural bourgeoisie. The enormous tribute they collected from all of farming, including from its capitalist elite, limited the possibilities of capitalist accumulation, diverted large financial resources from productive use, and dragged out the process of overcoming the agrarian crisis for many years.
Thus, in a number of important sectors of the American economy in the second half of the 1920s, the phenomenon of overproduction became more and more pronounced. This gradually shattered the foundations of American "prosperity." In comparison with the countries of Western Europe, signs of the fragility of the stabilization of capitalism in the United States were much weaker. But still, this largest and richest capitalist country was characterized by an egregious contradiction between the growing production capabilities of the economy and the relatively low purchasing power of the broad masses of the population.
During the years of partial capitalist stabilization in the United States, there was a slight increase in the wages of workers, but it was relatively small. According to government statistics, the average annual nominal wages of workers employed in manufacturing, construction and transport increased between 1924-1929. from 1519 to 1620 dollars, i.e., by only 6.5%, and the wages of workers in the mining industry even fell (from 1703 to 1526 dollars). Meanwhile, according to the estimates of American economists, in order to satisfy only the basic needs of a family of four at the then price level, it was necessary to have an income of at least 2 thousand dollars a year. No wonder President Coolidge, in one of his messages to Congress in 1926, was forced to admit that "most workers do not share the fruits of prosperity." But they were not shared by many other groups of the working population of cities and farms. According to very conservative estimates, even in 1929, at the height of "prosperity", the incomes of 60% of American families were below the subsistence level. This is convincing evidence of the fragility of the capitalist stabilization of the 1920s.
Fordism
Fordism is one of the socio-economic trends. The name comes from the name of Henry Ford and is associated with his activities.
At the heart of Fordism is the view that public welfare and high corporate profits can be achieved through high wages for workers, which will allow workers to buy the products they produce. The word "Fordism" began to be used in the early 20th century to describe the practices of Henry Ford's automobile factories. The conveyor is an integral part of this system.
The Fordist production system has 4 distinctive key elements:
- Division of labor - processes are broken down into small operations that can be performed by low-skilled personnel. A highly qualified workforce is engaged in management, development and process improvement.
- High standardization of components, assemblies and spare parts.
- The organization is not around machines with certain properties, but the machines are placed in the order necessary for production.
- The conveyor belt links the various stages of the process.
The whole system is aimed at reducing the cost of the manufactured product (car).
Crisis 1929-1933
A full-scale recession in the United States began in August 1929, two months before the stock market crash (construction began to decline back in 1926). In February 1930, the Fed reacted to the onset of the crisis by lowering the prime rate from 6% to 4%. In addition, government bonds were repurchased from the market to maintain liquidity. For the next two years, the Fed did almost nothing. Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon believed that it was necessary to enable the market to independently make the necessary adjustments to proportions and prices.
In June 1930, the United States adopted the so-called Smoot-Hawley tariff, introducing a 40 percent duty on imports in order to protect the domestic market. This measure became one of the main channels of transmission of the crisis to Europe, since the sale of products of European manufacturers in the United States was difficult.
At the end of 1930, bank depositors began a massive withdrawal of deposits, which led to a wave of bank failures. As a result, an absolute contraction of the money supply began. The second bank panic occurs in the spring of 1931. All these months, the authorities did not react in any way to the growing economic tsunami. GDP in 1930-1931 falls by 9.4 and 8.5%, respectively, and the unemployment rate rises from 3.2% at the beginning of 1930 to 15.9% by the end of 1931.
In 1932, GDP fell by 13.4%, and since 1929 - by 31%. The unemployment rate in 1932 increased to 23.6%. More than 13 million Americans have lost their jobs in a little over three years since the beginning of the crisis. Industrial stocks have lost 80% of their value since 1930, and agricultural prices have dropped 53% since 1929. In three years, two out of every five banks went bankrupt, their depositors lost $ 2 billion in deposits. The money supply has declined at par by 31% since 1929.
Unemployed March Toronto, Canada
Against the background of a slight expansion of the monetary base (from $ 6.05 billion in 1929 to $ 7.02 billion in 1933), the money supply fell sharply - from $ 26.6 billion to $ 19.9 billion. Waves of bank bankruptcies undermined people's confidence in financial institutions, and savings were feverishly withdrawn from deposits and transferred to cash. The banks that survived, in turn, avoided issuing new loans, preferring to keep money in the most liquid form. Thus, the banking multiplier dropped sharply and the credit and deposit issue of banks was practically paralyzed. The desire of both banks and the public to keep money in cash undoubtedly sharply intensified the recession.
Natural population growth in the United States during the Great Depression fell sharply.
In 1932, Detroit police and Henry Ford's private security service shot a procession of starving workers who were on a hunger march. Five people were killed, dozens were wounded, and the unwanted were repressed.
F. Roosevelt's "New Deal"
The New Deal is the name of the economic policy pursued by the administration of US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt since 1933 with the aim of overcoming the large-scale economic crisis (Great Depression) that gripped the United States in 1929-1933.
Taking office on March 4, 1933, Franklin Roosevelt in his speech promised to apply the most energetic measures to combat the crisis. The Roosevelt government immediately took extraordinary measures - on March 9, a special session of the Congress began work, which lasted more than 3 months and adopted a number of important laws that seriously affected the US economy and laid the foundation for the New Deal. This period was called the "first 100 days". The most important task was to rescue and stabilize the US financial system. The policy of the new course was based on measures to strengthen state regulation of the economy, budget deficit financing, and major institutional transformations.
Banking sphere
One of Roosevelt's first steps was to announce a "bank vacation" for a week on March 6, during which all US banks were closed. Further, in order to "clean up" the banking system, a total audit of all banks was carried out. The bankrupt banks fell under the control of the state-owned Reconstructive Financial Corporation (RFK). Sustainable banks have received the right to further work. As a result, the banking system was consolidated - most of the banks recognized as "healthy" were large.
In order to improve the situation, a number of important laws were adopted. One of the most important was the Glass-Steagall Act - the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Act of June 16, 1933. Commercial banks were forbidden to work with securities, this right was received by specialized financial organizations - thereby reducing the risks to which the funds of the bank's depositors were exposed. In order to prevent the attraction of funds at increased rates typical for high-risk transactions, a ban was introduced on the payment of interest on current accounts, and interest on deposit accounts was subject to regulation by the Federal Reserve System (FRS). Exchange credit was regulated.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was created - banks deducted contributions to the insurance fund, in the event of bankruptcy, the FDIC reorganized the bank and paid deposits within the limit established by the law on a deposit in one bank.
Industry
Measures aimed at normalizing production were reflected in the National Industrial Restoration Act (NIRA), adopted on June 16, 1933. The law was based on a plan proposed in 1931 by General Electric President Gerard Swope and approved by the US Chamber of Commerce. The law ordered all business associations to develop codes of "fair competition" that determined the conditions, the volume of production, and the minimum price level. At the same time, antitrust measures were removed from enterprises that adopted such codes. This alignment was beneficial to large monopolies, which actually determined the conditions of production and sales in their industries. About 557 basic and 189 additional codes were drawn up, covering more than 95% of workers. The adoption of the codes contributed to the forced cartelization of industry.
Article 7 of the NIRA contained measures of a social nature - it introduced restrictions on the length of the working week and prescribed a mandatory minimum wage. It also recognized the right to organize trade unions and bargain collectively.
Control over the implementation of the NIRA program was entrusted to the National Reconstruction Administration, created by the President.
Social sphere
To combat unemployment, as well as to improve the material situation of the population, the following measures were taken: direct assistance to the unemployed, the introduction of an unemployment insurance system and the organization of public works.
So, on May 12, 1933, about $ 0.5 billion was allocated to provide assistance to the unemployed, more than $ 4 billion was spent in total. Most of the unemployed preferred community service to receiving benefits. On the basis of NIRA's recommendations, the Public Works Administration (PWA) was created, mainly dealing with large construction projects, thus proving that "the money did not go down the drain." The total volume of work performed on her projects amounted to about $ 3.3 billion.
For unemployed youth, in the spring of 1933, the government organized camps in which young people worked and lived for six months, with full support. The salary was about $ 30, of which $ 25 went to the worker's family.
In 1935, a law was passed providing for insurance for old age and unemployment. Despite the low level of payments and the non-proliferation of the law to large sections of workers (agriculture, civil servants, etc.), the law had a revolutionary significance. A significant step in the second stage of reforms was the adoption on July 5, 1935 of the National Labor Relations Act, the so-called Wagner Act. The law guaranteed the rights of workers to organize, conclude a collective agreement, and organize strikes. The next stage in the development of social rights was the adoption in June 1938 of the Fair Working Conditions Law (FSLA), which provided for a mandatory minimum wage of 25 cents per hour, the introduction of a one and a half tariff when the working week was exceeded (44 hours, since 1940 - 40 hours), limited child labor.
Housing construction
During the Great Depression, the government paid significant attention to the development of housing construction, in particular, mortgage lending. So in 1933, the first company was created to issue bonds for financing mortgages - the Home Owners Loan Corporation. In 1938, the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) was created, under state control. The initial capital of the company was formed from the budget.
Agriculture
In May 1933, Roosevelt signed a Farmer Aid Bill, which proposed measures to combat the agricultural crisis associated with falling product prices and the massive ruin of farmers. Most of it was the agricultural regulation law known as the AAA (the Agricultural Adjustment Act).
His main idea is to eliminate the "scissors" between the price spent by the farmer for the production of goods and the price he received when selling it. In order to balance supply and demand and raise the price of agricultural products, part of the land was withdrawn from agricultural circulation, for which farmers were paid subsidies. First of all, this measure increased the competitiveness of large farms, which received the bulk of the premiums for reducing the sowing fund.
Later, a number of measures were taken to help smaller farmers. In 1935, the Resettlement Administration was established, which was transformed in early 1937 into the Farm Protection Administration. These institutions provided financial assistance to small farmers for the purchase of farms and their relocation to better quality lands, stimulated the development of cooperatives for the sale of products and the purchase of equipment.
In 1936, a law was passed on the preservation of soil fertility and on quotas for the domestic market. According to its provisions, bonuses were paid to those farms that reduced the area under crops that deplete the soil, as well as for measures to improve the soil. The need for these measures was caused by a severe drought in 1934, accompanied by dust storms.
The Agricultural Regulation Act of 1938 introduced the concept of "always a normal granary". The goal of the new undertakings was the same - the restoration of price parity, but the methods of achievement were already different - the products were not destroyed, but preserved, payments were made against the products not yet sold.
In May 1935, the government created the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), which organized work to electrify the countryside.
Conclusion
Having considered the following points: rationalization of the American economy, Fordism, the crisis of 1929-1933, F. Roosevelt's "new course", we can safely say that yes, the twentieth century really went down in history as the "American century". Seeing what a breakthrough the American society has made in at least a few decades, the indisputability of the above fact becomes obvious. Even in spite of the failures in the form of a deep economic crisis, our neighbors from the American continent managed to overcome this devastation in a fairly short time. An analysis of the events of those years shows that the extreme determination of the US people to be the first derazh in the world in everything and always.
