The Great Depression
The great depression was caused by the Wall Street Crash which started in 1929 and extended up to 1930. By 1932,one of the effects of the great depression, was the high rates of unemployment. Millions of people in Britain did not have a job. Free food and shelter were provided by charities and churches. The structure of family life was altered as many men lost their jobs and could not earn money to support their families. Many lost their source of income and their houses. The lives of children also drastically changed. Children had to bear more responsibilities. They had to drop out of school and start work to help out their families. They also had to mature and grow up quickly to provide emotional support for their families. The number of cases of domestic and child abuse also increased during this time as stress levels and sense of failure was high among the troubled public. Men began to feel unworthy and humiliated as their wives and children had to start work to gain some income. The rate of suicides had also increased. There were stories of people who jumped from from tall buildings to end their lives due to bankruptcy. Starvation was a huge problem. Farmers even killed their animals despite the shortage of food because no one could afford to buy food. People were getting desperate and some even set forests on fire on purpose so that jobs as fire fighters would be available. It was a terrible time of distress and poverty. Things however were improving slowly towards the beginning of world war two, where by more job opportunities were available.
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| Thousand of people on Wall street as the news spread. |
The traumatic experience suffered during world war one unfortunately did not end after the battle ended. World war one definitely had caused some psychological effects on both civilians and soldiers. WW1 introduce the term “shell shock”. It is currently know as Combat Stress Reaction (CSR). Shell shock was described as psychological traumatic experienced. Some of the symptoms of shell shock are anxiety, depression, disorientation, nightmares and insomnia.
Some soldiers who endured the long intense battle started suffering from panic attacks and the symptoms were usually recognized more quickly by their fellow soldiers instead of the authorities. Initially, many perceived shell shock to be caused by the effects of shell blasts or from intense monoxide exposure. Shell shock was initially thought of an act of cowardice as some soldiers would leave the battlefield due to panic attacks. Some soldiers even had to undergo trials and got convicted. Treatment for shell shock at that time included –
· -solitary confinement
· -disciplinary treatment
· -electric shock treatment
· -shaming and physical re-education
· -emotional deprivation
There was a huge increase in number of war neurosis thus resulting in shortage of number of hospital beds to accommodate the victims. A number of hospitals for mental diseases were build and taken over from other unused buildings. Also, there was an improvement in psychiatric treatment and increase in umber of psychiatrists to help treat the victims.
After living through the horrid years of the war, all the destruction the war had caused and especially the loss of their loved ones, the civilians were scarred. Almost 13 million lives were killed during the war. Anger and dissatisfaction towards their government and leaders started to grow amongst the citizens. Many felt that the effect of the war and began to question why the war began in the first place. The dreams and spirits of the people were low as they mourned over their loved ones and tried move on after the war.
References :
http://cookit.e2bn.org/historycookbook/21-104-Life-in-interwar-years.html
www.historylearningsite.co.uk/wall_street_crash.htm
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/snpmech5.htm
www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/shellshock.htm
www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/extra/series-1/shell_shocked.shtml
http://www.novelguide.com/a/discover/egd_02/egd_02_00431.html
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