The Great Depression and the COVID-19
A Comparative Analysis of the 1919 and 2020 Crisis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14422/cir.i22.y2021.001Keywords:
crisis, economy, Great Depression, New Deal, keynesianism, COVID-19, pandemic, economic recovery, liberal democracyAbstract
The main purpose of this paper is to carry out a comparative analysis between the Great Depression, which took place after the Stock Market Crash of 1929, and the economic recession caused by the COVID- 19 pandemic. In the first section of the paper, the causes and background of the world economic depression of the 1930s are examined, as well as the global impact of the crisis and the policies adopted by the different governments of the world, paying special attention to the New Deal in the United States. In addition, the main political implications of the Great Depression are analyzed, focusing on the role of the depression in the international success of Keynesianism and the rise of Nazism in Germany.
The second section analyzes the socio-economic impact of the pandemic and the policy responses taken to contain the virus worldwide, such as social distancing or lockdowns, as well as the effectiveness of the social policies and job retention schemes implemented to preserve jobs and protect the economy. In this way, the existence of certain similarities/differences between the two crises is argued. Finally, the paper concludes with a reflection on the possible political consequences that the events experienced during 2020 may foreshadow for the future of liberal democracy.
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