Sketchplanations

Explaining one thing a week in a sketch

Recession vs Depression illustration: Recession is depicted by a man in a flat cap sitting on the edge of the pavement next to a man with a briefcase on his way to work. Depression is depicted by both men now sat on the pavement in despair.

Recession vs depression

There don’t seem to perfect definitions for either recessions or depressions. A recession is commonly defined as two successive declining quarters of GDP, but it’s not gospel. And a depression is a kind of prolonged recession for 3–4 years. So I liked Harry Truman’s clarifying explanation — US president from 1945–1953:

A recession is when your neighbour loses his job. A depression is when you lose yours. —Harry Truman 

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Languishing illustration: an unmotivated, apathetic figure sits slumped in an armchair with a TV remote in hand, clearly fed up and demoralised - for the time being at least.
Affordance illustration: one person effortlessly pushes open a door with a flat plate while a victim of poor design struggles to pull open a door with a bar handle and a discreet push sign
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