Chapter 11: Getting on With Business

Chapter 11 explains how the United States recovered from World War I to enjoy prosperity during the 1920s.

Section 1 describes the United States' turbulent years following World War I. The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 and the communist uprisings in Europe caused many Americans to worry that communism was spreading. An anti-Communist panic, called the Red Scare, swept through the nation and inspired violent raids, arrests, and deportations. In the middle of the Red Scare, labor strikes broke out and tensions between whites and African Americans erupted into race riots. While public support of progressive issues declined during the turmoil of the postwar period, Congress ratified prohibition and women's suffrage legislation.

Section 2 shows how Republican presidents changed the United States' focus during the 1920s. Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and Herbert Hoover instituted policies that protected big business and rejected progressive reform. While the Republicans were in office, big business flourished and United States products dominated the world market. Even though the United States was heavily involved in trade with Europe, the United States took measures to prevent political involvement in European affairs. In Latin America, though, it took time for the United States to realize the problems of using military might to protect its business interests.

Section 3 traces the rise of big business in the United States. Following a short period of postwar social and economic unrest, the United States saw business profits and wages rise as never before. Technological and industrial advances made businesses more efficient and productive. With the boom in business came new roads, housing, and skyscrapers. Business mergers and expansions required more specialized management and more supervisory positions. While management had nearly complete control over labor, employers still aimed at undermining unions. To this end, employers made some concessions that improved workers' well-being.

Section 4 describes how technology, scientific management, and corporate growth changed the workplace. The introduction of the assembly line, a product of scientific management, increased production, profits, and wages, but also made work impersonal and tedious. New occupations were created to support and promote business. In offices and stores, white-collar workers flooded the work environment as typists, clerks, and sales and advertising professionals. Women were employed in greater numbers, although their places and pay in the workforce were distinct from those of men.