"The Great Depression changed the American governments views of its role and responsibility"
to what extent do you agree with this quote.
Well . . . what do you know about life in American before and after the Great Depression? Compare Hoover's response to the economic crisis with FDR's. Consider Hoover's attitude toward governmental assistance versus personal responsibility and then contrast that to Roosevelt's attitude. Which governmental programs created during the Great Depression are still a part of the national landscape? Is there governmental oversight of the economy as a result of the Great Depression? What programs has the US government put in place to suppress another economic downturn of the Great Depression's magnitude? Do you think that a federal government like the one we had prior to 1932 would have sent the survivors of Hurricane Katrina Visa debit cards and paid for housing for four years after the catastrophe? What did the federal government spend on entitlement programs in the 1920s? During Roosevelt's tenure? In the last decade? What kinds of benefits would our current President like to see the government/taxpayers foot the bill for?
Basically you need to decide whether or not you feel like the Great Depression changed the role of government in the US. What was the role of government before the Great Depression and what was it after? Was there a change? If you think that there was a change, find examples to support your position. If you don't think that there was a change in the role and responsibilities of government, then you will need to find material to support that stance.
I hope that this helps to spur some thoughts.
Try Googling "Great Depression changing role government." Then run the same search in Google Books. Then read a lot, and write up your findings. Post the essay draft here for more feedback.
You can't even think? Uh-oh!
What comes to your mind when you think of the Great Depression? Do you have a clear before and after image? If not, then before following Sean's excellent advise, you may want to just refresh your memory on the basics of what happened by, for example, consulting Wikipedia or a history textbook on the Great Depression. Then, as Sean said, you can do some reading on the specific question of the changed role of the government during that era.
Yes, you should certainly make sure that you understand what the Great Depression was, before you try writing anything on it. I suspect, though, that you have been studying this for some time, and that you have not been assigned the topic randomly. If this is so, then mostly what you need to do is to get something, anything, down on paper. Just write down whatever you know about the topic, your opinions, reflections, random tangentially related thoughts, whatever comes to mind. Then post the results here. At least then we have something to work with when we are trying to help you out.
