Question

How could William Jennings Bryan oppose the gold standard and also support bimetallism?
Bryan took each position at a different point in his career, with his support for bimetallism coming later in life.
Bimetallism called for a fixed value for gold, which was the opposite of the gold standard.
Bryan spoke in favor of the gold standard when addressing the wealthy and in favor of bimetallism when speaking to the poor.
Bryan opposed the idea of a fixed value for gold while supporting the concept of a currency based on two metals.

Answer 1

Correct answer: 4.

Why: Bryan opposed the gold standard because it tied the currency to a single metal (gold) and, in his view, produced deflation and harmed farmers and debtors. He supported bimetallism because it based the currency on two metals (gold and silver), which would expand the money supply and ease credit. Those positions aren’t contradictory: he was rejecting a one‑metal (gold) standard while advocating a two‑metal system.

Brief notes on the other choices:
- 1 is wrong — he did not simply switch from gold to bimetallism later in life; his prominent stance (e.g., the 1896 “Cross of Gold” speech) was consistently for free silver.
- 2 is wrong — bimetallism calls for both metals (with a fixed ratio between them), not “a fixed value for gold” as the opposite of the gold standard.
- 3 is misleading — Bryan’s public position consistently favored bimetallism; it wasn’t merely rhetorical tailoring to different audiences.