How Did The Economic Conditions Of The Unites States Of America In The Nineteen Twenties Enable Underworld Figures Such As Al Capone To Prosper?

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Independent Studies – Essay

How did the economic conditions of the United States of America in the

nineteen twenties enable underworld figures such as Al Capone to

prosper?


Al Capone became one of the world’s most infamous underworld

figures in creating a gangster legacy in Chicago in the nineteen twenties. He

was able to accomplish this partly through his ruthless yet respectful

methods of conducting business. However, his rise was also enabled as a

result of the economic crisis in America at the time, and the opportunities

that then arose. In this essay we will discuss the causes of how this crisis

came about and the effect that it had on the people of the United States.

We will then look at Al Capone and his career and how he manipulated the

situation in order to reap the benefits.


The Great Depression


“The Great Depression was the worst economic slump ever in U.S.

history, and one that spread to virtually the entire industrialised world. The

depression began in late 1929 and lasted for about a decade, and was the

result of a number of factors. The main cause for the Great Depression was

the combination of the enormously unequal distribution of wealth throughout

the 1920's, and the extensive stock market speculation that took place

during the latter part of the decade. The misdistribution of wealth in the

1920's existed on many levels. Money was distributed disproportionately

between the rich and the middle-class, between industry and agriculture

within the United States, and between the U.S. and Europe. This imbalance

of wealth created an unstable economy. The excessive speculation in the

late 1920's kept the stock market artificially high, but eventually led to

large market crashes. These market crashes, combined with the

misdistribution of wealth, caused the American economy to collapse.” (1)


As the...