Question

answering an economic crisis
(1) the stock market crashed in 1929. the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression. (2) as the crisis deepened, the unemployment rate soared, destroying many lives. (3) the crisis required a bold response from the government, but president herbert hoover resisted saying economic depression cannot be cured by legislative action or executive pronouncement.
(4) people like hoover, who thought that the government should not take steps to help the economy, ignored the suffering of millions of americans. (5) in some cities, the unemployment rate exceeded 70 percent. (6) many lost their homes and were forced to live in shantytowns where the quality of housing was poor. (7) these towns were named hoovervilles, because people believed president hoover had some responsibility for the crisis. (8) still, the hoover administration took half - hearted steps to help citizens.
(9) franklin roosevelt was then elected president. (10) recognizing that people were scared, his inaugural address said, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. (11) franklin roosevelts administration immediately took more action than president hoover. (12) in his first 100 days in office, roosevelt and congress passed legislation that was known as the new deal. (13) the financial system was reformed and the employment rate increased. (14) over the next four years, the countrys economy gained strength and the unemployment rate dropped a lot. (15) roosevelts ideas worked.
which choice best replaces sentence 1 (reproduced below) in the passages introduction?
the stock market crashed in 1929, the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression.
after the stock market crash of 1929, the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression.
the stock market crashed in 1929, the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression.
before the stock market crash of 1929, the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression.
the stock market crashed in 1929, but the united states entered a severe economic downturn called the great depression.

Explanation:

The original sentence presents two events: the stock - market crash and the start of the Great Depression. The original has a bit of a choppy flow.

• Option A: "After the stock market crash of 1929, the United States entered a severe economic downturn called the Great Depression" uses "After" to show a clear temporal and causal relationship between the two events. It is more fluid than the original.
• Option B: The original "The stock market crashed in 1929, the United States entered..." has a comma - splice (two independent clauses joined only by a comma). This option does not correct that.
• Option C: "Before" is incorrect as the stock - market crash preceded the Great Depression, not the other way around.
• Option D: "but" implies a contrast, but there is no contrast between the stock - market crash and the start of the Great Depression. They are sequential events.

Answer:

A. After the stock market crash of 1929, the United States entered a severe economic downturn called the Great Depression.