The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression [Paperback]

 

 

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Prior to FDR becoming president, federal government actions seldom had much effect on the economy or the nation's culture. The exceptions were when the federal government waged war, tampered with the currency or the money supply, or indulged in social experiments (like Prohibition). Prior to Hoover, there was usually a social consensus that the government that did the least was best.

Amity Shlaes' anecdotal history of the Great Depression highlights the dangers that occur when government begins to intervene in the economy and social structure in too many ways, too quickly, and too intrusively.

One of the key mysteries of the Great Depression was why the U.S. economy was hit so much harder than the British one. Some economists argue that a more established economy will experience fewer perturbations during a global recession or depression because those concerned about safety will seek out the oldest financial markets. Ms. Shlaes suggests that the Americans meddled too much and scared off investments.

The book's title is drawn an example of flawed government legislation described by William Graham Sumner in 1883 where two parties seek to help a third party in a way that requires a fourth party to participate . . . but without considering the effect on the fourth party -- the forgotten man who "always pays." Interestingly, the book points out the many different people who were identified by politicians of the era as the forgotten man.

Ms. Shlaes' story focuses on the class warfare that FDR conducted against business executives, wealthy people in general, and shareholders . . . and how that class warfare encouraged those groups to behave in ways that made the depression deeper and longer lasting than it would have been without the class warfare.

The story of the Great Depression is told by following the lives of a number of people who were prominent as government leaders (such as Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and FDR), members of government (such as FDR's brain trust and Felix Frankfurter), industrial and financial leaders (Andrew Mellon, Samuel Insull, and Wendell Willkie), Supreme Court justices, those involved in key law suits that challenged the New Deal, religious and social leaders (Father Divine), and those who addressed the social ills of the time more directly (Bill Wilson's founding of Alcoholics Anonymous). This approach makes for good reading, but light understanding.

Anyone wanting to attach causes to effects will be disappointed in the book. While many connections are suggested, the analysis to back up those connections is missing. Fans of FDR will feel like he is unfairly expected to be perfect. Those who are concerned about giving the most people a sense of being treated fairly will feel like that aspect of the book is underdeveloped.

Did FDR make mistakes? Yes. Did Herbert Hoover make mistakes? Yes. Did the Federal Reserve make mistakes? Yes. Did Congress make mistakes? Yes. But you knew that already.

The main benefit of this book is that you'll get to know the supporting cast from those times (especially those who were initially very impressed by the Soviet Union) much better than you would have otherwise. That will enrich your appreciation of the mental set and tenor of the times.

If you would like to know more about the history of public electrical power, you'll also find this book to be a helpful resource,

The reader may draw many parallels to Barack Obama and Roosevelt and Hoover and George W. Bush and the government interference coupled with a loss of support for Capitalism and a cuddling up to Socialism during a deep recession. Government interference in the 1930s made a recession a Great Depression. The book makes the reader wonder how the current economic situation is being handled and if in fact our leaders today may be making it worse in the long run by meddling...This book is quite thought provoking by exposing how the Great Depression was started and prolonged. Did we learn anything from our 1930's history?

It has been a while since I read "The Forgotten Man", but I can verify and support the contention that Amity Shlaes has provided us with a view of the events of that period that you will not find in almost any standard educational environment in the Western World. Why? Because if you look at the actual data, the influences of the mercantilist Hoover (absolutely NOT the free market capitalist he is portrayed as being), and the statist Roosevelt picking up Hoover's plans because FDR was bereft of ideas, you begin to get a slightly different idea of what was going on than the view that is generally presented for common consumption.

There is no "j'accuse!" or writing about the US Federal Reserve accusations in this volume. There is neither macro-economic theory nor any declared penchant for any economic school of thought presented. In fact, this is probably one of the delights of the book in that it simply presents the excellently researched perspective of the political issues and milieu of the day. There is a certain John Dos Passos quality to her style and methodology that is utterly charming.

In short, this is a political event and circumstance history. It is presented cleanly and eruditely without polemic or visible economic perspective. The brilliance is that it leaves the interpretation to the reader - which may or may not reinforce the views you bring to this literary occasion.

The strength, in my humble view, is that the book does not present an obvious bias, but a history of those dark times. I must say that one can draw conclusions, as I have, from the evidence presented - but that is my contribution, not the author's.

I would recommend this book to anyone who did not live through those times, yet was given certain fashionable views as to what might have happened during that period. If you desire to understand the Great Depression as one who lived through it, this book will allow that impression through its telling of stories that are not generally circulated. While it takes no obvious position in respect of those events, their telling gives you a perspective that you probably did not have previously.

It certainly gives you a far better perspective of the challenges facing the world after the current housing and credit debacle - and perhaps a view of how this difficult time is somewhat different and, yet, somewhat the same; but you have to figure that one out.

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