“Latin American responses to the Great Depression had only limited success.” Discuss with reference to one Latin American country.

The question requires that candidates offer a considered and balanced review of the statement that Latin American responses to the Great Depression had only limited success. Responses may extend beyond the timeframe but they must be clearly linked to the issue raised in the question. Candidates may refer to Brazil or Argentina’s relative success in adopting a more centralized economy which promoted national industries and reduced imports; Chile’s adoption of import substitution industrialization (ISI) policies that improved their balance of trade; the many countries that abandoned the gold standard in order to increase the money supply (though at the expense of the poor). Other relevant factors may be addressed, for example the difficulty of obtaining foreign capital for countries that defaulted on their foreign debt, such as Bolivia and Columbia, but with a focus on the issue in the question. Candidates’ opinions or conclusions will be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

The view that Latin American responses to the Great Depression had only limited success was an infrequent choice and was almost always examined from the perspective of Brazil. In many cases, candidates dwelt more on the causes of the depression in Brazil than on Vargas' response. The majority position was that Vargas was only partially successful. Knowledge of the ISI was often not well-developed and there was some tendency to digress into aspects of Vargas' authoritarianism.