A Nation in Crisis
OER PROJECT: WH ORIGINS / LESSON 8.5OPENERA NATION IN CRISISUnless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Credit: “A Nation in Crisis,” OER Project, www.oerproject.com/1PurposeTake on the perspective of a citizen in a nation experiencing political and economic instability.This will helpyouthink criticallyabout the choices people made during the rise of extreme ideologies in the interwar period.Process1.Imagine the following scenario:You are citizens of the fictional country of Veritania in 1923. Your country just lost a devastating war. Your economy is collapsing. Inflation is so bad that one loaf of bread costs thousands of dollars. People are unemployed and hungry. Citizens are losing faith in the democratic government, which seems powerless and divided.There are three groups in your country who are trying to gain power:•Traditionalists: They want to restore the monarchy and the old social order. They believe that the crisis started when people abandoned traditional values.•Radicals: They want a worker-led revolution likethe 1917Russian Revolution.They blame aristocrats and businesses for the crisis.•The National Front: They promise strengthand unity, and vow they’llmake the country powerful again. They blame minorities and foreign powers for the crisis.2.Which group would you support, and why?3.What fears or hopes are guiding yourdecision?
OER PROJECT: WH ORIGINS / LESSON 8.5OPENERA NATION IN CRISIS24.What concerns do you have about your decision?5.Why might real people in real history have been drawn to extreme solutions?