US History II Honors Mr. Terry
The “Roaring” Twenties: Early ‘20s Politics and Policy
Reading Questions (p. 798-803)
NOTE: Any time you copy the language from the textbook, put it in quotation marks to distinguish Pageant’s words from your own. Try to say as much in your words as possible.
1. What is American Pageant’s general assessment of President Harding’s cabinet?
2. * What did the new group of “Old Guard” Republicans and their allies seek to achieve from government during the 1920s? How was this different from previous pre-Progressive approaches to government (ex: Cleveland, McKinley)?
3. Unpack the text: What does Pageant mean by describing Harding’s appointments to the Supreme Court as “deep-dyed reactionaries”?
4. What did the Adkins v. Children Hospital decision (1923) highlight about the conflict among ideas regarding women?
5. How did big businesses use this time period to make or consolidate economic gains? What were some ways that the U.S. government turned over economic power to private industry following the first world war?
6. * What is a “labor injunction” and how did the use of these impact the union movement in the 1920s?
7. What did Secretary of State Hughes attempt to achieve while attending conferences with ambassadors of other world powers? To what extent was he successful? What does Pageant claim was wrong with the Kellogg-Briand Pact?
8. Why did the U.S. government increase tariffs in the ‘20s and what impact did this have on the world market? What did European governments do in response?
People, Events, and Terms Worth Knowing
(Why are they mentioned? Why are they important?)
US History II Honors Mr. Terry
Adjustment Compensation Act
* - You may have to look beyond the textbook for information on this. A very brief (no more than 5 minute!) internet search should do it.