O Level History: Depth Study D, The United States 1919-41 — Practice Questions (Cambridge 2147)

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions. The wording below is invented for practice purposes, but the structure follows the syllabus’s own: Depth Studies are examined only on Paper 1, Section B, which sets two questions on each Depth Study (candidates answer one), each a three-part structured essay split (a), (b), (c). Depth Studies are not set on Paper 2, so this page contains no source questions. Cambridge International holds copyright in its own papers; use these alongside the official past papers available through your school or Cambridge directly.

Related: Depth Study D revision notes | Depth Study D study guide

---

Depth Study D of Cambridge O Level History 2147 is assessed in Paper 1, Section B, which offers two questions on each Depth Study; you answer one, worth 20 marks – (a) 4, (b) 6, (c) 10. The four questions below cover every key question.

Question 1: The boom (key question 1)

(a) Describe how mass production changed the car industry in the 1920s. [4]

(b) Explain why agriculture did not share in the prosperity of the 1920s. [6]

(c) “Government policies were the main reason for the economic boom of the 1920s.” How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [10]

Worked answer

(a) Henry Ford’s moving assembly line; each worker did one task; car-building time fell dramatically; the price of the Model T fell, so ordinary families could afford cars; car ownership rose rapidly; Ford paid higher wages ($5 a day) to keep workers; other firms such as General Motors copied the methods.

(b) European demand for US food fell after the war as European farming recovered; tractors and fertilisers increased output, causing over-production; prices fell, so farm incomes dropped; many farmers had borrowed to expand and could not repay loans; foreign countries put tariffs on US goods in retaliation for US tariffs, cutting exports.

(c) Government policies: Republican laissez-faire, low income tax for the wealthy, few regulations, and the Fordney-McCumber Tariff (1922), which protected US industry from imports. Other factors: mass production and new technology; electricity creating demand for consumer goods; credit and hire purchase; advertising; the USA’s wealth and resources after the war; confidence and the stock market. Judgement: government created favourable conditions, but industry’s new methods and consumer demand drove the boom.

Question 2: Society in the 1920s (key question 2)

(a) What was the Ku Klux Klan’s aim in the 1920s? [4]

(b) Explain why Prohibition was introduced in 1920. [6]

(c) “The lives of women changed a great deal in the 1920s.” How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [10]

Worked answer

(a) To keep white Protestant Americans dominant; it targeted Black Americans, Catholics, Jews and immigrants; it used intimidation, violence and lynching; it claimed to defend “100% Americanism”; it gained political influence in some states; membership reached millions in the mid-1920s.

(b) The temperance movement and the Anti-Saloon League had campaigned for decades; many Protestant churches, especially in rural areas, saw drink as sinful; alcohol was blamed for crime, poverty and violence in families; during the war, drinking seemed unpatriotic because many brewers were German-Americans and grain was needed for food; the 18th Amendment was ratified in 1919 and came into force in January 1920.

(c) Change: women gained the vote nationally in 1920; more women worked as typists, telephonists and shop assistants; flappers challenged conventions in dress and behaviour; labour-saving devices reduced housework for some; birth-control campaigns grew. Continuity: most women still married young and stayed at home; women were paid less than men; few held political office; rural, Black and immigrant women saw little change; many Americans disapproved of flappers. Judgement: change was real for young, urban, middle-class women, but limited for most.

Question 3: The Wall Street Crash (key question 3)

(a) Describe what happened on the New York stock market in October 1929. [4]

(b) Explain why Roosevelt won the presidential election of 1932. [6]

(c) “Speculation was the main cause of the Wall Street Crash.” How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [10]

Worked answer

(a) Share prices had begun to fall; on Black Thursday (24 October) nearly 13 million shares were sold in panic; leading bankers bought shares to restore confidence, but this failed; on Black Tuesday (29 October) over 16 million shares were sold; prices collapsed; many investors who had bought on the margin were ruined.

(b) The Depression had worsened under Hoover, with mass unemployment and bank failures; Hoover’s belief in limited government action looked uncaring, especially after troops cleared the Bonus Army; Roosevelt promised a New Deal of direct government help; he had acted energetically as Governor of New York; he campaigned widely and seemed confident; he promised to end Prohibition.

(c) Speculation: rising prices encouraged buying on the margin with borrowed money; share prices rose far above company values; when confidence fell, investors had to sell to repay loans, causing a collapse. Other causes: over-production as demand fell by 1929; unequal distribution of wealth limited spending; weak, unregulated banks had lent to speculators; farm problems; tariffs reducing trade. Judgement: speculation explains the sudden crash in October 1929, but the economy’s underlying weaknesses explain why it turned into a long Depression.

Question 4: The New Deal (key question 4)

(a) Describe the work of the Tennessee Valley Authority. [4]

(b) Explain why the Supreme Court opposed the New Deal. [6]

(c) “The New Deal failed because unemployment remained high throughout the 1930s.” How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [10]

Worked answer

(a) Set up in 1933; covered a poor region across several states; built dams on the Tennessee River; produced cheap hydroelectric power; controlled flooding; created jobs; improved farming and reduced soil erosion.

(b) Most judges were conservative and had been appointed by Republican presidents; they believed the federal government was taking powers that belonged to the states or to private business; in 1935 they ruled the NRA unconstitutional and in 1936 the AAA; they saw some measures as interfering with free enterprise; Roosevelt’s plan in 1937 to appoint extra judges made the conflict worse.

(c) Agree: unemployment fell from about 13 million (1933) but stayed high; the 1937-38 recession pushed it back up; full employment came only with war production. Disagree: millions gained work through the CCC, PWA and WPA; the banking system was saved; Social Security gave lasting protection; the Wagner Act strengthened workers; the TVA transformed a region; democracy survived. Judgement: measured by unemployment alone it fell short, but its aims included relief and reform, where it achieved a great deal.

Where marks are usually lost

• (a): giving reasons instead of describing.
• (b): one reason only, or reasons without explanation.
• (c): no definition of what “success” or “main cause” means.

Frequently asked questions

How many questions should I practise? All four here: in the exam you pick one of two, and you cannot predict which key questions will appear.

What figures are worth learning? Unemployment of about 13 million by 1933, the dates of Prohibition (1920-33), and the price of a Model T falling below $300 are enough; explanation earns more marks than extra statistics.

Official syllabus

Cambridge O Level History (2147) syllabus for examination in 2024, 2025 and 2026 – cambridgeinternational.org (Depth study D; Details of the assessment, Paper 1).