This book is part of a new generation of work on the events of the 1920s and 1930s, one that provides a gestalt view of this period. As such, the many events that have until now been viewed as unrelated, are viewed as parts of a greater whole, namely the introduction of a new power drive technology in the form of electric unit drive and its effects. The Roaring Twenties, the spectacular growth of the 1920s, the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, the Stock Market Boom and Crash, the decline in investment expenditure, the ensuing depression and the National Industrial Recovery Act are all shown to be related.
Contents:
- Introduction
- Literature Review
- Electric Unit Drive and Interconnected Power Grids
- Assessing the Impact of Electric Unit Drive-Based Acceleration on Productivity and Rated Capacity: The Case of the 1920s and 1930s
- The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Bill: The Republican Party Responds to Growing Excess Capacity
- Wall Street Responds Favorably to the Proposed Tariff Bill
- The Stock Market Crash and the Decline in Investment: The Depression Sets In
- The National Industrial Recovery Act: FDR's Bold Attempt at Closing the Gap
- Why So Slow? The Role of Ongoing Conversion/Acceleration in Delaying the Recovery
- Summary and Conclusions
Readership: Academics, researchers; undergraduate and graduate students; general public, specifically those with an interest in economic history and history in general.
Key Features:
- This book provides a gestalt view of the Great Depression era, rationalizing the various events, both before and after, as part of a greater whole
- Metaphorically, it connects the dots, and in so doing, provides a comprehensive, convincing account of the events of the 1920s and 1930s
- This book marks the beginning of a new generation of work, one that seeks to establish links between seemingly unrelated events
