American History

Exercise 1
A1 By Schlesinger opening with a scene from 1933, chronologically the termination point of the book, the reader has a very clear idea as to the contents of the book. At the same time the readers curiosity is awakened. He wants to know the reasons and the authors perspective of The Great Depression. So the reader is led into rest of the pages very effectively.

A2 Schlesinger chose to place that sentence third rather than first because the first two sentences give support to the topic sentence. The first sentence determines the timeline that is the date, time and year. While the second sentence sets the mood as well as giving background information as to why the American economy came to a stop.

A3 The paragraph is indeed engaging. It at once gives an impression of the vastness and grandeur of the American continent, while showing the despair of the President and the American people through the bad times.

A4 The quote at the end of the paragraph There is nothing more we can do., states the end of the term of the American President Herbert Hoover. It also shows the end of an era.

A5 The author does not refer to the President by name in the last sentence. In doing so he is able to show that not just the people but the head of the nation, the president himself, is tired and has given up.
A6 We are at the end of our rope, the weary President at last said, as the striking clock announced the day of his retirement. There is nothing more we can do. Shows the end of term of the then president. The end of an era also marks the beginning of a new era. So by the sentence we are led to believe that some other president will be reinstated. A feeling of hope for the future.

B1 The authors explicit rendering of the paragraph, at once brings the scene of 1920s before our eyes and captures the imagination. Then pathetic situation of the people of such a great nation is almost unbelievable. It definitely holds our interest.

B2 breadlines, shows that there were so many people queuing for mere bread.  Scavenging  underweight uncontrollable trembling are words that Schlesinger uses to capture our attention and show pathetic condition of the times.

B3 The direct quotes of Lillian Wald of Henry Street Have you ever heard a hungry child cry  Have you seen the uncontrollable trembling of parents who have gone half starved for weeks so that the children may have food serve the purpose of rendering the effect of absolute shock and dismay of the spectators of the scene.

B4 There is no topic sentence in paragraph B. It is not necessary as the whole paragraph is a description of the topic sentence, so it is not weakened at all by the absence.
B5 The conditions of the penniless were inhuman. I would put it after the fourth sentence.

B6 The paragraph should be in the beginning of the book, as the utility of the paragraph is in introducing the plight of the people. I t is only a description. There is no logical progression of event or a conclusion in it hence it may not be suited as the end of the book.

C1 But Roosevelt, armored in some inner faith, remained calm and inscrutable, confident that American improvisation could meet the future on its own terms. Is the topic sentence. It is placed second in the paragraph. The first line, Many had deserted freedom, many more had lost their nerve. It serves to strengthen the topic sentence. It introduces the topic sentence by emphasizing the despair.

C2 In the first paragraph there is a break down of faith whereas in the last paragraph there is almost an assurance of hope.

C3 The last paragraph while marking the end of the hopeless times it also leads us into interesting times, when any experiment was for the better of the nation. With this new president, people looked forward to a new age

C4The sentence Many had deserted freedom, many more had lost their nerve. As well as the words catastrophe, paint a vivid picture of the past as the president rides through the packed American streets.

C5 A beginning with a bang, followed by very effective descriptions which narrate the story in such a way, that a mental picture springs into the readers mind. The author is able to capture the readers imagination completely. All this makes Schlesinger an extremely good writer.


Exercise2

B. Americans in the early 1930s yearned for a dynamic, self-assured leader in the White House, a man who could restore the nations confidence in the aftermath of the stock market crash and the subsequent nose dive of the economy. Herbert Hoover proved unequal to the task. An engineer by training and an introvert by disposition, he lacked the intellectual flexibility and the personal flair to guide a democratic, pluralistic nation through its time of trial. To him, the ideal vacation was a weekend of fly fishing in a trout stream in the Virginia mountains. Only after Franklin D. Roosevelt, a seemingly shallow New York patrician, took the oath of office in March of 1933 did the national mood begin to shift.

Explanation As the other sentences deal with serious economic consequences, this one seems out of place talking of frivolous topics like vacation.

C. The most powerful political asset that African-Americans and women held in Washington D.C., during the New Deal years was the presidents wife, Eleanor. An activist in a variety of reform causes since World War I, Eleanor Roosevelt was determined as First Lady to be more than the keeper of her husbands social calendar. During the 1940s, she would become an enthusiastic supporter of U.S. involvement in the United Nations. She called her own press conferences and permitted entry only to female reporters. She met frequently with relief administrator Harry Hopkins, taking special interest in jobs for women and African-Americans. She nudged FDR leftward on appointments for those underrepresented groups. For her efforts, she gained a special place in the hearts of the downtrodden, but she also sparked criticism and nasty rumors, especially among tradition-minded white southerners.

Explanation An unnecessary detail. It does not compliment her effort as the presidents wife like the rest of the paragraph.

Exercise 3

A
1. During the Depression, more women than men were seeking work. False2. Antagonism toward married women in the workplace was greater than antagonism toward unmarried women. True3. Antagonism toward women in the workplace was greater during the Depression than during previous times of prosperity. True4. During the Depression, more women were employed in the private than in the public sector. False

B
1. During the 1930s, well-connected women played a crucial role in getting some government assistance for less fortunate women. True2. New Deal programs provided just as many benefits for women as for men. False3. Civilian Conservation Corps camps for women were less well equipped than those for men. True4. The New Deal served more men than women, but those women who did get government aid got just as much as their male counterparts. False

Exercise 4
Men of old-fashioned principles really believed that the less said about the unemployed, the faster they would get jobs. They really believed that public relief was bad for the poor because it discouraged them from looking for work or from taking it at wages that would tempt business to start up again. According to their theory, permanent mass unemployment was impossible, because there was work at some wage for every able-bodied man, if he would only find and do it. Charity was necessary, of course, for those who were really disabled through no fault of their own, but there could never be very many of these, and they should be screened carefully and given help of a kind and in a way that would keep them from asking for it as long as possible. Those who held this view were not necessarily hardhearted or self-interested. Josephine Lowell, a woman who devoted her life to the poor, issued he bluntest warning, The presence in the community of certain persons living on the public relief has the tendency to tempt others to sink to their degraded level. That was in 1884, when cities were smaller, and fewer people depended on the ups and downs of factory work.