Date: _______________________
American History in Film
Name:_____________________________________
Chapter 14
The Great Depression Begins
Section 1 – The Nations Sick Economy
List five problems Americans faced at the end of the 1920s.
1.
Define the following terms:
2.
• Speculation
3.
• Buying on Margin
4.
• Black Tuesday
5.
List effects of the economic collapse
Business Effects
Social Effects
Depression Indicators Answer the questions using the chart on pg. 470
Which indicators rose between 1928 and 1933?
Between 1932 and 1933, which indicator fell sharply?
Rose sharply?
In which years did average people spend everything they earned in a year?
Complete the chart with economic statistics which show the extent of the Great Depression.
Financial Collapse
1929
1932
Bank Closures
Gross Domestic Product
Unemployment
14-1
List the four causes of the Great Depression
1.
2.
3.
4.
Key Terms to Know
Price support
McNary-Haugen bill
Credit
Uneven distribution of income
Herbert Hoover
Alfred E. Smith
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Speculation
Buying on margin
Black Tuesday
Great Depression
Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act
Section 2 – Hardship and Suffering During the Great Depression
Describe how the Great Depression affected people differently living in rural areas and the cities.
RURAL
CITIES
SIMILARITIES
14-2
Describe how each of these individuals coped with the Great Depression.
• Men
• Women
• Children
Look at the map on Pg 474 of the Dust Bowl
Why was the region given the nickname “Dust Bowl”?
What states were in the “Dust Bowl”?
Why might most of the migrants who left the Dust Bowl traveled west?
How did Dust Bowl conditions in the Great Plains affect the entire country?
HOBO Symbols—communicating on the road!
What was the symbol for “Danger”
Sleep in Barn?
In what ways did the Great Depression affect people’s outlook?
Key Terms to Know
Shantytown
Soup kitchen
Bread line
Dust Bowl
Direct relief
14-3
Section 3: Hoover Struggles with the Depression
Directions: Divide and Conquer. Read section 3 and take notes on the section assigned. Meet with group and
share results.
Hoover’s early responses were too
Hoover’s responses
cautious
Hoover makes economic changes
“too little, too late” and not effective
Explain the cartoon to the left.
What was the Bonus Army?
Key Terms to Know
“A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage”
Herbert Hoover
Boulder Dam
Federal Home Loan Bank Act
Reconstruction Finance Corporation
“trickle down”
Shantytowns
“Hoovervilles”
”Hoover Blankets”
”Hoover flags”
Patman Bill
Bonus Army
14-4
Seabiscuit
Name_______________________ Period______
Date___________________ Score_______
Listening Skills Activity
Directions: The details listed below occur in the video. They are listed here in the order
that you will hear them. Each detail is described so that you will easily recognize it
when you hear it. You need to listen to the entire film to get all the answers. Before
listening to the film, go over this sheet carefully so that you know what you are listening
for. When you hear a detail, write the answer in the blank quickly, and then
immediately begin listening for the next detail.
1. What vehicle is shown at the start of the film? _______________________
2. The narrator states, “If your dreams were big enough and you had guts enough to follow, there
was a __________________ to be made.”
3. “We never know how high we are until we are called to rise.” Who is the author?
_____________________
4. Johnny (“Red”) has never been over what weight? _______________
5. Tom says, “You don’t throw a whole life away just because he’s ___________ _______ a
little.”
6. Seabiscuit’s ‘other great talent’ was ________________.
7. What is the race commentator’s name? ________________.
8. Why does Red say he lost his first race with Seabiscuit?
__________________________
9. Charles states, “Sometimes the _______________ guy, if he doesn’t know he’s a
_______________ guy, can do real _____________things.”
10. “Though he may be little, he is fierce.” Who does this quote originate from?
____________________________
11. Charles sets up a huge race with the world’s best horses worth $_______________.
12. In the big money race, ______________________ is the horse to fear.
14-5
13. What did Red lie to Charles and Tom about? __________________________.
14. Charles states about Seabiscuit’s loss, “You either pack up and you go home, or you
_______________ __________________.”
15. How many times should George flick the whip?_________________ On which side?
_______________________.
16. How many gallons of lemonade were made for the Match Race? _________________
17. How many Americans would hear the Match Race call? ______________________
18. How was Rome built? “___________ ____ ___________.”
19. Toward the end, George states, “Its better to break a man’s ___________ than his
_______________.”
20. Who does the narrator say the horse fixed? ________________________________
14-6
Seabiscuit
Name_______________________ Period______
Date___________________ Score_______
Literal Comprehension Activity
Directions: Answer the following questions about the film Seabiscuit. Give your answers
in complete sentences.
1. What is the significance of the barbwire that Tom touches in the beginning of the film?
2. Why was Seabiscuit forced to lose? Relate this to humans.
3. Besides an angry, hurt, horse with a lot of potential, what does Tom see in Seabiscuit?
4. In what ways are Seabiscuit and Red similar? In what ways are Seabiscuit, Red, and the folks
enduring the Great Depression similar?
5. What is Johnny’s big wound? What is Charles’ big wound? What is Tom’s big wound? And
what is Seabiscuit’s big wound?
6. If it was not the jobs, the money, or the programs (such the CCC) what was it that healed
America?
7. When Tom says of Seabiscuit, “He’s been running in circles so long, he’s forgot what he was
born to do.” What does he mean? Apply this to humans.
8. Red’s gift was riding horses. Tom’s gift was training horses. Charles’ gift was ingenuity.
Marcelle was a helper. What is your gift? How are you using or pursuing it?
9. Which of the characters in the film, Marcelle, Charles, Tom, Red, or Seabiscuit do you best
relate to? Tell me why you think this.
10. Who is the Hero of Seabiscuit? Why? What type of hero are they?
14-7