Deck 42: A Fragile Balance: Europe in the Twenties

Question 1

Explain totalitarianism and how it was implemented in the interwar years.

Answer 1

Answers would include a discussion of the five characteristics of totalitarianism,antirationalism,Italy and Mussolini.

Question 2

In a totalitarian regime,"the people" refers to

A) members of the political party in control of the government.
B) government leaders.
C) those willing to give over control to a supreme leader.
D) members of the majority ethnic group.
E) all citizens who are not a part of the formal military structure.

Answer 2

members of the majority ethnic group.

Question 3

Discuss the economic innovations in the interwar years,including the key individuals and nations these were implemented in.

Answer 3

Answers would include a discussion of John Keynes,free market,government involvement in the economy,Lenin,Marx and Russia.

Question 4

By the end of the 1920s,the overall mood internationally may best be described as

A) hopeful.
B) depressed.
C) paranoid.
D) pessimistic.
E) radical.

Question 5

What particular issues did Eastern Europe face and how did they address them.

Question 6

"Thinking with the blood" refers primarily to the concept of

A) class struggle.
B) anti-rationalism, or instincts above logic.
C) fear of conspiracies.
D) the wartime economy.
E) a proletarian revolution.

Question 7

Compare and contrast the experiences of Italy and Germany in the interwar years.

Question 8

Compare and contrast the major nations and their experience with the Great Depression.To what degree did the economic problems impact their politics?

Question 9

Mussolini made his political debut as

A) a communist organizer in postwar Italy.
B) a strikebreaker.
C) a military officer.
D) a liberal parliamentary delegate.
E) a writer of scathing editorials against the government.

Question 10

The "universal blight" for eastern Europeans during the 1920s,according to your text,was

A) industrial unrest.
B) Nazism.
C) nationalist antagonisms.
D) Bolshevik peasant uprisings.
E) unclear borders.

Question 11

After World War II,Western governments were more inclined to adopt Keynesian economic theories,meaning that they were more willing to

A) put more money into circulation even though that often leads to recessions.
B) print more paper money, even though that might devalue the currency.
C) create jobs from the top down, even if giving a false picture of a country's real economic situation.
D) juggle the books to make the economy seem stronger than it was.
E) issue bonds for local building projects.

Question 12

In the totalitarian scheme,the state itself becomes

A) the property of all of its people.
B) an instrument of imperialism.
C) the symbol of the Leader's will.
D) an irrelevancy to be abolished.
E) the cement binding the Leader to the people.

Question 13

In Germany,the support of the Weimar Republic was dependent upon which of the following?

A) Economic prosperity.
B) International relationship with France.
C) Social peace with the various groups within Germany.
D) The strong leadership with an individual of the caliber of Bismark.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 14

In terms of international relations,the peak movement of understanding between nations during the 1920s occurred with the

A) Paris Treaties.
B) Locarno Pact.
C) Kellogg-Briand Pact.
D) Washington Conference.
E) League of Nations.

Question 15

Keynesian economics placed added emphasis on the role of

A) the World Bank.
B) private enterprise.
C) government.
D) the military.
E) international trade.

Question 16

During the period between the wars,Great Britain's laboring class experienced

A) a loss of purchasing power.
B) a steady rise in earning power.
C) a successful general strike.
D) chronic unemployment.
E) increased productivity.

Question 17

The most pressing problem for eastern European countries in the interwar years was

A) a lack of knowledgeable government leaders.
B) a subsistence agriculture-based economy.
C) a fear of communism.
D) a low literacy rate.
E) rampant unemployment.

Question 18

The most difficult and painful part of the Versailles Treaty for Germany was

A) the loss of Poland.
B) the war guilt clause.
C) the loss of French territory.
D) the loss of a strong military.
E) the reparations.

Question 19

During the interwar years of the 1920s and 1930s,politics in America underwent a major change,as

A) party membership broadened to include people from all walks of life.
B) parties began to appeal to people largely on the basis of whether they espoused liberal or conservative ideals.
C) political parties tended to represent single interest groups in an attempt to woo voters by sector.
D) parties pretty much closed ranks based on class membership.
E) political parties began to try to appeal to women voters, with the result that women's issues took center stage.

Question 20

Elaborate on the experience of the victors of World War I in the interwar years and their outlook toward the future.

Question 21

Mussolini came to power in Italy in 1922,and by 1924 he had managed to

A) win a fraudulent election that made it seem as if he were the people's choice.
B) invaded and occupied Ethiopia in North Africa.
C) pulled Italy out of the League of Nations.
D) rigged elections and put his fascist party in control of the parliament.
E) turn Italy into a near-perfect totalitarian state.

Question 22

"Excessive nationalism"

A) was more prevalent in Western than in eastern Europe.
B) made certain that minorities within countries were not overlooked.
C) led to new calls for self-determination in eastern Europe.
D) brought new political parties into power in most of the European countries during the 1920s.
E) evolved into an extremely negative attitude toward any and all minorities.

Question 23

The government of the Weimar Republic

A) assembled a coalition of several political parties in order to repel attempts by communists to take over.
B) officially denounced the Versailles Treaty.
C) adopted a liberal, democratic constitution but could not earn the acceptance of the people, due to simmering resentment over the signing of the treaty.
D) put down numerous coups with the help of the strong German military.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 24

Under a totalitarian government,all political parties could be eliminated because

A) the leader would not allow elections anyway.
B) everything would be decided by the leader, in his capacity of ruling for the people because they shared a mystic bond.
C) parliaments would take their places.
D) the courts would interpret the people's will.
E) all of the people would be in accord in an ideal environment.

Question 25

Fascist economics was best exemplified by

A) playing a large enough role to provide direction but leaving private property alone.
B) doling out government contracts to party supporters whether or not they were profitable companies.
C) playing workers and management against each other.
D) the building of highways and the provision of monetary support for the peasants.
E) the implementation of pregnancy leaves and vacation pay for workers.

Question 26

Mussolini played upon the fears of a(n)____________________ takeover to facilitate his assumption of power.

Question 27

The source of French anxiety in the 1920s was

A) British industrialization.
B) American financial dominance.
C) Italian politics.
D) Russian success with socialism.
E) German vengeance.

Question 28

Britain's Labour party came into existence mainly due to

A) its desire to oust Marxism and socialism from the country.
B) several union strikes that had shaken the general public's confidence in the parties involved in the strikes.
C) the extended depression and high unemployment rate the British experienced.
D) the realization that the older states had allowed the United States and Germany to outpace them technologically.
E) the split within the Liberal party over whether general strikes should or should not be called.

Question 29

Of America's involvement in World War I,it would be accurate to say that

A) the country went so far into debt that most people were saying it would never recover.
B) where the economy was concerned, the war had been a good thing.
C) the stock market reacted negatively when the war ended, since people feared that manufacturing would decline.
D) most Americans hated the necessity of the war but continued to believe it had been necessary.
E) Americans gained a new perspective on their role as the world's policeman.

Question 30

An economic crisis was set off in Germany by the 1923 French occupation of the ____________________.

Question 31

Italy was in a bad way after World War I for all of the following EXCEPT which of these?

A) Unrest because of the way the country was treated at the Paris peace talks.
B) The loss of many skilled people due to emigration to the United States.
C) A sense of being ruled by a parliamentary government that most Italians considered too liberal.
D) The loss of wartime contracts that led to massive unemployment.
E) The failure of the government to plan ahead for how to take care of the people after the war.

Question 32

The Dawes Plan was designed to

A) help the French obtain all reparations payments from the Germans immediately.
B) help Germany obtain a moratorium on reparations payments.
C) help rebuild eastern European cities that had been heavily damaged by the war.
D) help the Eastern European states develop democratic governments.
E) All of the options are correct.

Question 33

The French sent troops to occupy Germany's Ruhr Valley

A) when Germany rebelled and refused to make any reparations payments.
B) in order to prove to the Germans that any resistance on their part would not be tolerated.
C) in 1919, after France realized that German Reich marks were fast losing their value, making reparations worthless.
D) after Germany requested a pause in reparations payments in 1923.
E) after their attempted negotiations with the Germans over reparations payments broke down in 1922.

Question 34

As the decade of the 1920s drew toward a close,it appeared that

A) the Soviet Union was about to make a move on eastern Europe.
B) most European countries were on their way to a full recovery from the war.
C) the Soviet Union was almost ready to take Germany's side against France.
D) an economic bubble created by circular loans was about to burst.
E) European countries, except for Germany, were close to full employment levels.

Question 35

The most painful and crippling requirement of the Paris Peace Treaty upon the German Republic was the bill for ____________________.

Question 36

In the Western world in 1929,most educated people would probably have been best described as

A) worried about the economy but hopeful for the future.
B) still angry over al of the losses during the war.
C) more afraid of communism than ever before.
D) certain that there was no need to fear Italy's fascists.
E) in much better shape economically and hopeful for a peaceful future.

Question 37

France's greatest concern during the 1920s was

A) where to find husbands for all the women left behind by the country's loss of about 1.5 million men.
B) whether Germany was going to pay France the money due them.
C) that people in the seized territories of Alsace and Lorraine might demand a referendum to see if they wanted to belong to Germany or France.
D) being in the unenviable position of fearing Germany's strength but feeling that no matter what Germany did, another war was out of the question.
E) whether its people felt "French enough" to fight off German aggression.

Question 38

Which of the following seemed to fare the best after,and perhaps as a result of,World War I?

A) Great Britain
B) France
C) Russia
D) Italy
E) United States

Question 39

The best support for the ideas of Marx came from the degree of industrialization achieved by

A) Germany.
B) Italy.
C) France.
D) the United States.
E) the Soviet Union.

Question 40

By the 1920s,the instrument for determining the people's will in democratic societies had become the mass ____________________.

Question 41

The ____________________ refers to the economic prosperity in the U.S.in the interwar years.

Question 42

In a totalitarian state,the ____________________ would be all; the ____________________,nothing.

Question 43

As a result of the ____________________,Mussolini was appointed Italy's premier the king.

Question 44

The U.S.sponsored ____________________ persuaded France to leave the ____________________ and give up some reparations payments in hopes that Germany could begin an economic recovery.

Question 45

____________________ is defined as the sentiment/political movement of a national minority to break away and unite with a neighboring country.

Question 46

The only Eastern European state to preserve its constitution throughout the inter-war period was ____________________.